
Class. F ^ " Z 
Book ^^L C'\ 



- -O Ly' -J 



C()MME.\I0HAT1VE 15I0GRAFIIICAL KECORD 



OK THE 



WEST SHOR§ OF GREEN BAY, 



WISCONSIN, 



INCHJOING THE COUNTIES OF 



Bniwii. Oconto. Marinette and Florence, 



CONTAINING 

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF PROMINENT AND REPRESENTATIVE 
CITIZENS, AND OF MANY OF THE EARLY SETTLED FAMILIES. 



-ILLUSTRATED- 



ciiiCAGo: 

J. H. BEERS & CO. 

1896. 




Prekace. 



THE importance of placing in book form biographical historj- of representative 
citizens — both for its immediate worth and for its \alue to coming generations 
— is admitted by all thinking people; and within the ])ast decade there has 
been a growing interest in this commendable means of perpetuating biography 
and family genealogy. 

That the public is entitled to the pri\'ileges afforded by a work of this nature 
needs no assertion at oar hands; for one of (_)ur greatest Americans has said that the 
history of any country resolves itself into the biographies of its stout, earnest and 
representative citizens. This medium, then, serves more than a single purpose: 
while it perpetuates biography and family genealogy, it records histor}-, much of 
which would be preserved in no other way. 

In presenting the Commemorative Biographical Record to its patrons, the 
publishers have to acknowledge, with gratitude, the encouragement and support their 
enterprise has received, and the willing assistance rendered in enabling them to sur- 
mount the man}- unforeseen obstacles to be met with in the production of a work of 
this character. In nearly every instance the material composing the sketches was 
gathered from those immediately interested, and then submitted in type-written form 
for correction and revision. The volume, which is one of generous amplitude, is 
placed in the hands of the public with the belief that it will be found a valuable addi- 
tion to the library, as well as an invaluable contribution to the historical literature of 
the State of Wisconsin. 

THE PUBLISHERS. 



BIOGRAPHICAL 



^'j 








AKTIN, HON. MOR- 
GAN LEWIS, *was 
' ' one of tlie most 
conspicuous and dis- 
tinguished among the 
band of pioneer settlers 
who early gave a nation- 
al reputation to Wiscon- 
sin. " He was mainly 
instrumental — chiefly by 
his influence in both Sen- 
ate and Congress — in se- 
curing the Fox River\'al- 
*^J^* ley improvement, and his name 
"y*^ is indissolubly linked with the 
early history of a great portion of north- 
ern W^isconsin. 

Judge Martin, for by that title he is 
more generally referred to, came of good 
lineage, the family being of eminence and 
antiquity in Hertfordshire, England, and 
Tours, France. The name of his imme- 
diate ancestor, Thomas Martin, is borne 
on the list of colonists who emigrated to 
America in 1693, and he became one of 
the proprietors of the Ockoocangansett 
plantation in Marlborough, Mass., land 



* For much of the personal sketcli of Judge Martin we 
are indebted to ■■ Reminiscences of Morgan L. Martin, 18^7- 
IHH7," edited and annotated, witll biographical sketch, by 
Reuben G Thwaites. Secretary State Historical Society of 
Wisconsin. — Ed. 



having been granted him there. Aaron 
Martin, his grandson (son of Adam, who 
died April 25, 1716), born January 21, 
1 712, was in Salem, Mass., where the 
colonists first settled, the Martins a few 
years later moving to Sturbridge, in that 
State, where the original homestead was 
built, and which is still in a fair state of 
preservation. This Aaron Martin, who 
was the great-grandfather of Morgan 
Lewis Martin, was one of the first manu- 
facturers in New England, holding large 
domains of land on the various river 
courses; and, while yet in middle life, was 
drowned in one of his own mill streams, 
the Quenebang river, when crossing over 
to the mill on a cold March morning. 

Adam Martin, his son, who was born 
August 5, 1 7 16, owned, in 1763, a valua- 
ble estate, with water power and sawmills. 
He was an officer in the Provincial army 
during the French and Indian wars, sub- 
sequently captain in a Massachusetts regi- 
ment during the Revolution, his commis- 
sions dating April 24, 1770, and August 
'7. '797. respectively. Like his father, 
from whom he inherited extensive landed 
property, he was largely interested in 
lumber, woolen and grain mills in Lewis 
county, N. Y., whither he had emigrated 
at an early day, while the country was 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



yet a wilderness. He purchased a town- 
ship in Lewis county (which was named 
after Governor Morgan Lewis, of New 
York), naming the chief town "Martins- 
burg," after himself. 

His only son, \\'alter, father of Hon. 
Morgan L. Martin, while yet a young 
man, came into the inheritance, and was 
considered the patron of northern New 
York. \\'hile yet a lad he served under 
his father in 1788, and at the close of the 
war of 1812 Col. Martin was commis- 
sioned by Gov. George Clinton, of New 
York, quartermaster No. 1 of militia 
in which his father had been commis- 
sioned lieutenant-colonel. These com- 
missions are still intact, the heading of 
Col. Walter Martin's reading as fol- 
lows: " The People of the State of New 
York, by the grace of God free and inde- 
pendent, to Walter Martin, gentleman, 
greeting." 

Morgan Lewis Martin, son of Gen. 
Walter Martin, was born in Martinsburgh, 
Lewis Co., N. Y., March 31, 1805. In 
1824 he graduated from Hamilton Col- 
lege, at Clinton, N. Y., and for two years 
he studied law with Collins & Parish in 
Lovvville, N. Y. In 1826 he went to 
Detroit (then the chief city of the North- 
west), where he entered the law office of 
Henry S. Cole, and was soon afterward 
admitted to the bar. But he did not 
long remain in Detroit, for in May, 1827, 
acting under the advice of his cousin, 
James Duane Doty-^who was then seek- 
ing to have the Territory of Huron erected 
by Congress, with Green Bay as the seat 
of government — he took up his home in 
Green Bay, and here resided until his 
death which occurred December 10, 1887 
— a most interesting period of sixty 
years. 

Judge Martin landed in Green Bay 
May 20, 1827, the voyage from Detroit 
having been made c)n the "La Grange," 
a chance sailer, loaded with provisions 
for the garrison at Fort Howard, and 
having on board several army officers, 
among whom were Brig-Gen. Hugh 



Brad}' and Paymaster Maj. Benjamin F. 
Larned. Of the civilians, who were also 
passengers on the "La Grange," was 
Father Fauvel, the first of his Church, it 
is said, to land in Green Bay after the 
close of the earlj' missions. At Shanty 
Town, in those days the commercial em- 
porium of the Bay Settlement, our sub- 
ject established his law ofifice, which con- 
sisted of a room in a story-and-a-half 
frame building occupied by a branch of 
the Ducharme family. At that time there 
were not more than one hundred civilians 
at the Bay Settlement, in the main con- 
sisting of French and mixed-blood " voy- 
agcurs," and Indians of various tribes — 
Pottawattamies, Ottawas, &c. — were 
numerous. There were a few clearings 
and cultivated fields surrounding the set- 
tlement, Lawe, Porlier and Grignon be- 
ing the leading agriculturists, the latter 
having, probably, the most pretentious 
farm, which same was located at the 
Kaukauna rapitls, on the north side, be- 
low the present city of Kaukauna. 

In 1828 Judge Martin took a canoe 
voyage from Green Bay to Prairie du 
Chien, up the Fox ri\er and down the 
\\'isconsin, and enjo3'ed a ver}' interesting 
experience. The year before had occur- 
red the Winnebago outbreak at Prairie 
du Chien, and the murderer Red Bird 
and his friends were now to be tried at a 
special term of court. Judge Doty had 
appointed our subject United States dis- 
trict attorney, />n> tent, hence the latter's 
presence with the judicial party. On his 
arrival at Prairie du Chien he met Lucius 
Lyon (whom he had previously known in 
Detroit), at that time a United States sur- 
veyor, who had just completed his survey 
of the private French land claims there, 
and our subject finding that, after all, 
his services in the Red Bird case would 
not be needed, he and Lyon planned to 
make a tour through the lead mines. 
"There were no maps of this country 
then," writes Judge ^Iartin, "but Lyon 
had a small pocket compass with him, 
and took the courses and distances of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Fox-Wisconsin route, and made the tirst 
approximately correct map of that water 
highway; later, on my return from Galena 
to Prairie du Chien, I did the same for 
the Mississippi; we then put our notes to- 
gether and gave the result to a prominent 
eastern map-maker who adopted it as part 
of the geography of the country. It was 
published in 1829 or 1830, and was the 
first real map of the country between 
Green Bay and Galena. I was much 
gratified, afterward, to see that later 
official surveys of the Mississippi corres- 
ponded exactly with mine. Lyon and I 
started down the Mississippi from Prairie 
du Chien on a very primitive sort of 
steamer; there were two vessels like 
Mackinaw boats, with a platform between 
and a shed built on that — it was, in fact, 
a steam catamaran. During the entire 
time court was in session at the Prairie, 
we staid at Galena, and then Judge Doty 
and Rowland came down and joined us 
there. After a few days, Lyon and I went 
on what was then a decidedly novel trip, 
an expedition through the mining region 
north of Galena," which they found over- 
flowing with prospectors, miners, and a 
certain nondescript class that might be 
catalogued as " camp followers," in all 
fully two thousand men. After their in- 
spection of the mining country, the party 
returned home from Galena the way they 
had gone, meeting with no special ad- 
venture. 

In the spring of 1829, in company 
with Wistweavv, a Menomonee Indian, 
and Alexander Grignon, a young half- 
blood Menomonee, as assistants. Judge 
Martin and Judge Doty, starting from 
Green Bay on horseback, traversed the, 
up to that time little known, region south 
of the Fox and Wisconsix rivers, and are 
believed to have been the first party to 
make the trip by land between the ex- 
treme outposts of this section — Green 
Bay and Prairie du Chien. At the latter 
place Judge Doty held a term of court, 
and Judge Martin officiated as United 
States district attorney, pro tc/n. Their 



return trip was also by overlanil, but with 
some change of trail, and on both jour- 
neys they were greatly struck with the 
beauty of the lake country and its adapta- 
bility for becoming the abode of civilized 
life. They passed along the north bank 
of Fourth lake, where eight years after- 
ward, in 1836, Judge Martin laid out the 
" City of the Four Lakes," and the coun- 
try they traversed on this novel journey 
was (in the words of Judge Martin him- 
self), "after reaching a distance of thirty 
miles from Green Bay, more charming 
than any we had ever beheld, with its ex- 
tensive oak openings and almost unlimited 
prairies. There was not, however, a 
trace of occupancy or any indication that 
it had ever before been traversed by white 
men. " 

In October, 1829, the first public 
meeting in the history of Green Bay was 
held there, Louis Grignon being chair- 
man, and Judge Martin, secretary. Con- 
gress was petitioned to build a road from 
Green Bay to Chicago, and also to im- 
prove the Fox and Wisconsin rivers. In 
1833 the Judge paid his first visit to Mil- 
waukee, while on a horse-back tour of 
exploration, on which occasion he was 
accompanied by Daniel Le Roy and P. 
B. Grignon, and as far as Fond du Lac 
their course lay on the same trail our sub- 
ject and Judge Doty had made in 1829. 
After that they struck southeast to the 
shore of Lake Michigan, following it 
closely until the Milwaukee river was 
reached. At their destination they met 
Solomon Juneau, the trader, whose home 
was the " old trading house," and he and 
Judge Martin became fast friends, their 
business relations continuing many years 
— in fact they were joint owners of the 
original plat of Milwaukee; and such con- 
fidence had they in each other, that no 
written memorandum of the terms of 
their partnership was ever made between 
them; yet at the end of three years ac- 
counts between them were adjusted, and 
" property valued at hundreds of thous- 
ands divided with as little difficulty as 



lO 



COMMkMUJiATIl'E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



you would settle a tritling store bill," the 
Judge's own words. Such in lirief is an 
outline of the life of Judge Martin as a 
pioneer of northern Wisconsin; and the 
early history of the city of Green Bay, as 
well as of the entire Fox River Valley, is 
so inter\olved with the active period of 
his life, that a record of the one is essen- 
tially a record of the other. 

From the "Reminiscences" we ex- 
cerpt the following, illustrative of the 
early efforts toward the improvement of 
the Fox-Wisconsin river highway, an im- 
portant feature in the development of 
this portion of the State. The statement 
is substantially in the Judge's own words: 
" The first movement by the general gov- 
ernment toward the improvement of the 
Fox-Wisconsin ri\er highway — with a 
view to making a continuous line of navi- 
gation from Lake Michigan to the Missis- 
sippi river — was made in 1839, while I 
was in the Territorial council. Capt. 
Thomas J. Cram, of the topographical 
engineers, made, under the direction of 
the War Department, a preliminary sur- 
vey of the rivers and an estimate of the 
cost of their improvement. In 1846, 
while a delegate in C(Migress, 1 secured, 
by dint of very hard work, the passage of 
an Act (approved August 8) making a 
grant of land to the State, upon its ad- 
mission into the Union, for the improve- 
ment of the Fox river alone, and the build- 
ing of a canal across the portage between 
the two rivers. The grant covered every 
odd- numbered section within three miles 
of the canal, the river and the lake, fit 
route from the portage to the mouth. 
When the second Constitutional Conven- 
tion was held, this proposition on the 
part of Congress was endorsed, and, at 
the first session of the State Legislature, 
the latter body passed an Act, approved 
August 8, 1848, appointing a board of 
public works consisting of five persons 
and providing for the improvement of the 
river. * * * On January i, 1851, the 
board reported to the Legislature that 
the work would have to stop unless some 



device for a more rapid sale of land could 
be originated. While the affair was in 
this condition, I made a proposition to 
the Legislature, through Gov. Dewey, to 
do the work from Green Bay to Lake 
Winnebago, except what the board of 
public works had finished or was already 
under contract for. The board had dug 
the canal at Portage, before there was 
any steam navigation possible on the 
Lower Fox. * * * The Legislature of 
1851 accepted my proposition, and I 
went to work with about five hundred 
men, commencing at Kaukauna. Oper- 
ations were carried on throughout that 
season, along the entire distance from 
Green Bay to Lake W^innebago." The 
Improvement Company went on with the 
work until 1856, in which year the first 
boat, the "Aquilla," passed through the 
works — from Pittsburg to Green Bay. 

From 1 83 1 to 1835 Judge Martin was 
a member of the legislative council of 
Michigan Territory, and from 1838 to 
1844 he was one of the Territorial council 
of Wisconsin. In 1845-47 he represented 
his Territory in Congress with marked 
ability; was president of the State Con- 
stitutional Convention of 1847-48, and 
both in the chair and on the floor was 
one of the guiding spirits of the body 
which framed the charter under which 
the Commonwealth of Wisconsin still 
operates. In 1855 he was elected a 
member of the State Assembly, and three 
3"ears later was sent up to the Senate. 
Throughout the entire period of the Civil 
war he served as an army paymaster. In 
1866 he was appointed Indian agent, 
holding the position until 1869, when the 
War Department took charge of Indian 
affairs. In 1866 he was the candidate 
(mider the Johnson movement) for Con- 
gress, from the Fifth District, in which 
campaign he was defeated by Philetus 
Sawyer. In 1870 he resumed the prac- 
tice of law which he had temporarily laid 
aside, and in 1873 he was again elected 
to the Assembly. From 1875 until his 
decease he served as county judge of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Brown count}', and from its orj^anization 
was one of the most active of the vice- 
presidents of the State Historical Society 
of Wisconsin. 

On July 25, 1837, Judge Martin was 
united in marriage, at Green Bay, with 
Miss Elizabeth Smith, daughter of Col. 
Melancthon Smith, U. S. A., and grand- 
daughter of Judge Melancthon Smith, 
who wLs a delegate from New York, in 
Congress, in 17.S2-84, prior to the period 
of the Constitution. To this marriage 
were born si.x children, namely: Leonard 
Martin; Annie, who died in 1861; Me- 
lancthon, deceased in infancy; Sarah, 
Morgan L. , Jr., and Debbie. Judge 
Martin was a man of generous impulses, 
kindly manner, keen wit, fine literary 
tastes, and greatly enjoyed the comforts 
of his beautiful home in Green Bay, 
" Hazelwood," where lie was surrounded 
by a loving and accomplished family. He 
died December 10, 1887. 



JOHN L. JORGENSEN, proprietor 
of the largest dry-goods and carpet 
establishment in northern Wiscon- 
sin, the same being located in the 
thriving and wide-awake city of Green 
Bay, Brown county, is a native of Den- 
mark, born of German ancestry May 27, 
1849, in the city of Nakskov, Laaland. 

Grandfather Jorgensen (who spelled 
his name "Juergens"), a highly educated 
man, resided in Schleswig, where he was 
a minister of the Lutheran Church. He 
was possessed of great force of character, 
interesting himself deeply in the politics 
of his country, and, being both pro- 
gressive and aggressive, he took an active 
part in the revolutionary risings of 1848, 
shortly after which he was removed to 
Denmark, the language of which country- 
he spoke fluently. 

J. A. Jorgensen, father of our subject, 
who was one of a family of six children, 
received his education at the public 
schools of Denmark, which was supple- 
mented with a course of study at a 



college, his intention at first being to 
enter some profession. Preferring, how- 
ever, a mercantile career, he prepared 
himself for such in some business house 
of Nakskov, Denmark, where he re- 
mained, and he has been prominently 
and successfully engaged in mercantile 
pursuits for the past hfty years or more, 
being now one of the oldest and 
wealthiest merchants in that city, where 
he is highly esteemed for his integrity, 
and recognized as a man of influence and 
ability, and as a leading churchman. He 
married Miss Sophia Mortensen, a native 
of Denmark, who died in middle life, the 
mother of one son, John I^. , the subject 
of this sketch. 

John L. Jorgensen received his educa- 
tion in his native town, and was reared 
to mercantile pursuits. At the age of 
sixteen years (in 1865), having decided to 
try his fortune in the New World, he set 
sail from his native land, and after an 
uneventful transatlantic voyage landed at 
Boston, whence he at once proceeded 
westward, arriving at Chicago, a stranger 
in a strange land. After a short sojourn 
in the metropolis of the West, he set 
out for Wisconsin, Neenah, Winnebago 
county, being his objective point, and 
here attended school for a short time in 
order to become conversant with the 
English language. Securing now a 
position in Mr. Pettibone's dry-goods 
store in Neenah, he remained there a year 
and a half, after which he was sent by 
Mr. Pettibone to Green Bay, where he 
clerked for him a long time in his store 
in that city; also was in the employ of 
D. Butler & Son for a brief period. 
Having by this time saved some money, 
he commenced the dry-goods business 
May 27, 1876, at Fort Howard, in part- 
nership with A. Gray, of that place, in 
which they continued two and one-half 
years, when they divided the stock, and 
Mr. Jorgensen opened out a similar liusi- 
ness for his own account in Fort Howard, 
commencing on a small scale, with but 
two clerks; but he soon found he had to 



C0M.MI:M0RATIVE biographical liECORD. 



enlarge his store by adding to it from 
time to time. The business at last had 
grown to such proportions in 18S7 that 
he was compelled to open a branch store 
in Green Bay, and form a joint-stock 
company composed of himself and his 
two brothers-in-law, G. A. and F". T. 
Blesch, under the firm name of Jorgen- 
sen, Blesch & Co. Soon the branch 
store became the chief one, and Mr. 
Jorgensen found himself under the neces- 
sity of building a new store on the same 
street, opposite the old one, which he 
fitted with all modern improvements, and 
to-day it is without exception the largest 
dry-goods and carpet store in northern 
Wisconsin. 

In 1877 John L. Jorgensen was mar- 
ried at Fort Howard, Wis., to Miss 
Sophia Blesch, daughter of Francis and 
Antoinette (Schneider; Blesch, natives, 
the father of Bingen-on-the-Rhine, Ger- 
many, the mother of Brussels, Belgium. 
Mrs. Jorgensen was born and educated at 
Fort Howard, is a lady of refined tastes, 
a great reader, a lover of home, flowers 
and home influences, and, withal, special- 
ly excelling as a musician. Our subject 
in his political preferences is a Republi- 
can, and in social affiliations is a member 
of the I. O. O. F.. A. O. U. W. and 
Royal Arcanum: in the I. O. O. F. he is 
grand master for the State of Wisconsin, 
and he was instrumental in having the I. 
O. O. F. Home established in Green Bay, 
where at present some thirty members 
find a home and shelter, and he has been 
general manager and superintendent of 
this institution since its establishment. 



WILL1.\M LUEKE, the able and 
efficient county treasurer of 
Brown county, stands promi- 
nent among the German-Ameri- 
can citizens of northern Wisconsin, by 
reason of his jiopularity, his administra- 
tive abilities and his long-established 
reputation for honesty and loyalty. 

He was born December 24, 1850, in 



Fahlenverder, Province of Brandenburg, 
Prussia, Germany, of which province, in 
the cit\' of Nauen, Potsdam, his ancestors, 
who were for the most part millers by oc- 
cupation, as far back as can be traced, 
had "a local habitation and a name." 
Here his father, Charles F. Lueke, was 
born December 4, 1S22, and here he was 
reared and taught the trade of miller in 
the ancestral mills. After serving his ap- 
prenticeship he became a journeyman in 
the business, traveling from place to place 
(as is the custom in the Fatherland), 
finally settling in Fahlenverder, where he 
married Miss Amelia Hordlemann, young- 
est daughter of one of the prosperous 
farmers of that locality. Here to Mr. 
and Mrs. Lueke were born two children, 
William (our subject) and Louisa, the lat- 
ter of whom died in Milwaukee, Wis., 
shortly after the family's arrival in the 
Western World, in the fall of 1854, the 
then village of Green Bay being their ob- 
jective point. Here the father first found 
employment with G. T. Kyber, in the 
construction of the old military plank 
road running from Green Bay to Fond du 
Lac, next spring moving to De Pere, 
where he found employment as a miller, 
his legitimate vocation, and so continued 
until i860, in which year he bought a 
mill on Cedar creek, near Green Bay. In 
the following year, however, he abandoned 
this and. returning to De Pere, made his 
home there till the spring of 1867, at 
which time he moved to Wrightstown, 
where he built a gristmill, on the East 
river, more frequently called "Devil 
river," which mill he successful!}' operated 
till July 4, 1880, when it was destroyed 
by fire; he also owned a fine farm of 160 
acres of land. Selling out this property 
in the fall of 1880, he removed to Mani- 
towoc, and here remained till the spring 
of 1 883, the year of his taking up his resi- 
dence in Greenleaf. Brown county, where, 
in association with his son William, he es- 
tablished a grain and general mercantile 
business, which they successfully con- 
ducted till April 7, 1890, when they dis- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



solved partnership, the father takin,;; the 
store, the son retaining sole control of the 
grain branch of the concern. Charles F. 
Lueke continued the store up to his death, 
which occurred March 23, 1891, when he 
was sixty-seven years old, the county los- 
ing one of its best-known and most highly- 
respected citizens, esteemed by all for his 
sterling honesty and manly qualities of 
head and heart. He was an active and 
consistent member of the Lutheran 
Church, and in his political affiliations 
was a lifelong Democrat, although no 
partisan. In Wisconsin were born to 
Mr. and Mrs. Lueke children as follows: 
Mary, now Mrs. Gehrke; Albert; Emma, 
now Mrs. Alten; Charles, Minnie and 
Fred — eight children in all. The mother 
is still living in Greenleaf, Brown county. 

William Lueke, the subject proper of 
this memoir, secured a liberal education, 
in part at the schools of De Pere, in part 
at the North Western University of 
Watertown, Wis. Learning the trade of 
miller under his father's instruction, he 
followed same till the summer of 1874, 
when he embarked in the hotel business 
in Greenleaf, erecting the "Greenleaf 
Hotel," now operated by Albert Lueke, 
who purchased it in 1887. Our subject 
then devoted his entire attention to the 
mercantile and grain businesses in the same 
village, retiring from the former in 1S90, 
as already recorded, and from the latter 
at the time of his moving to Green Bay, 
May 14, 1 89 1, renting his warehouses to 
other parties. 

In the fall of 1890 he received the 
Democratic nomination for county treas- 
urer, and was elected by a majority of 
1,200, his unquestioned popularity being 
proven bj' his re-election in the fall of 
1892, and he is yet filling the incumbency 
with characteristic ability and fidelity. 

On July 12, 1 87 1, Mr. Lueke was 
married to Miss Augusta Wuerger, a na- 
tive of German}', and their union has been 
blessed with a family of seven children, 
named respectively: Charles, Flora, Clara, 
William, Anna, Nora and Lillie. Mr. and 



Mrs. Lueke are members of the Lutheran 
Church, and are in the enjoyment of the 
well-merited esteem and regard of the 
community at large. 



J 



OHN BETH, senior member of the 
widely-known wholesale and retail 
grocery firm of John Beth & Sons, 
is one of those successful merchants 
who in early life acquired a knowledge of 
the value of time and money, and who had 
been early trained to possess patience, 
qualified with perseverance; to remember 
that time is money, and that there are 
just sixty minutes in one hour; and to 
never forget that whatever is worth doing 
at all is worth doing well. 

Mr. Beth is a native of Bruttig, Ger- 
many, born on the river Moselle, Rhein 
Province, January 25, 1840, a son of 
Theodore and Catherine (Goebel) Beth; 
also of German nativity, who in 1852, 
with their little family of children, emi- 
grated to the United States, making their 
first New-World home in Milwaukee. 
Here the father, who was a shoemaker, 
followed his trade until 1855, when he 
came to Green Bay, where he continued 
his trade up to about the time of his death, 
which occurred May 3, 1857; his wife had 
died October 24, 1852. They were the 
parents of six children, viz. : Jacob, 
Joseph, John and Frank, who all reside 
in Green Bay; Maggie, who is the wife 
of Thomas Hubert, of Menominee, Mich. ; 
and Katie, who died November i, 1852, 
at Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

As will be seen, the subject of this 
sketch was twelve years old when the 
family came to the United States, so his 
education had already been secured in 
Germany, he having attended school 
there between the ages of seven and 
twelve. At thirteen he commenced work- 
ing from home, in Wisconsin, engaging 
in various occupations for the next few 
years, or until 1861, when, the Civil war 
having burst over the land, his ardor to 
fight for his adopted country prompted 



'4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



him to enlist for service in the Union 
army. Accordingly, on June 14, that 
year, he set out on foot for Appleton, 
Wis., and the following day entered the 
Appleton Light Infantry, being the third 
recruit in it from Green Bay. The quota 
of this company, however, was not filled 
at that time, and our subject, not to be 
thwarted in his intentions, proceeded by 
rail to Alton, 111., where he enlisted in 
Company K, Twenty-fourth Illinois In- 
fantry, three-\ears' service. This regi- 
ment was attached to the Army of the 
Cumberland June 30, 1861, and partici- 
pated in the battles of Perryvilic (Ky.), 
Stone River and Chickamauga, at which 
latter engagement he received a gunshot 
wound in the left elbow, which confined 
him to hospital for some time. On July 
30, 1864, Mr. Beth received an honorable 
discharge, and returned home to Green ^ 
Bay. He then commenced clerking in a 
grocery store, and so continued until 
March i, 1870, when he embarked in the 
wholesale and retail crockery and glass- 
ware trade, which for eight years he con- 
ducted with encouraging success. In 
April, 1878, he combined general gro- 
ceries, also wholesale and retail, and 
carried on these departments until 1891, 
when he closed out the crockery and 
glassware, substituting flour and feed. In 
1886 he put up his present substantial 
brick building, two stories and basement, 
53 X 100 feet, on Washington street. 

On January 10, 1865, Mr. Beth was 
married in Green Bay to Miss Elizabeth 
Knapp, a native of St. Louis, Mo. Her 
parents resided in Monroe, Wis., for sev- 
eral years, but are both now deceased, the 
father having died in St. Louis, Mo. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Beth were born eleven 
children, nine of whom arc yet living, a 
brief record of them being as follows: 
Leonard was married September 24, 1 890, 
to Miss Mary Mahn. who was born in 
Green Bay, daughter of Theodore Mahn, 
an early pioneer of the city, and they have 
two children, Laura E. and Aaron (he is 
a member of the Modern Woodmen); 



John \'alentine was married October 10, 
1893, to Mary Dennis, who was born in 
Belgium, daughter of David Dennis, of 
Green Bay; Maggie was married in 18S9 
to Benjamin Smith, of Green Bay, aod 
they have two children, Clarence and 
Chester; Elizabeth is married to Joseph 
Dennis, and has two children, Louie and 
Raymond; and Anna, Fred, Emma 
Charley, and Louie. 

Mr. Beth is a representative self-made 
man, having b\- his own industry and 
sound judgment, commencing on a bor- 
rowed capital of thirty dollars, risen to 
his present commercial standing, doing a 
business to the amount of one hundred 
and twenty thousand dollars per annum. 
Outside of members of his own family, he 
gives employment to eight hands, and 
three of his sons are now associated with 
him in business. Politically he is a Re- 
publican, and has served as supervisor. 
Socially, he is a member of T. O. Howe 
Post No. 124, G. A. R., of which he was 
commander two years; president of the 
Peninsular \'eteran Association, and a 
member of the Catholic Knights of 
^^'isconsin. 



M 



KS, ROSAMOND (BROWN) 
FOLLETT, deceased. This 
lady, who for so many years 
was editor and proprietor of 
the (Jazctti\ Green Bay, was a native of 
New York State, born at Dansville. Jan- 
uary I, 1847. Her early life was happy 
and abounded in good influences, while 
the privileges of e.xcellent schools were 
enjoyed by her, which by degrees brought 
her into a beautiful womanhood, thor- 
oughly equipped in purpose and prepara- 
tion for a useful career. Her education 
for the most part was received at the 
public schools and seminary of the place 
of her birth, also at Auburn, N. Y. . and 
at Milwaukee. Wisconsin. 

On May 29, 1873, she was united in 
marriage, at Bath, N. Y., with Dwight I. 
Follett, one of the founders and proprie- 




40 ^^ ^-^ v^^Ur-^ 1 C' 



L Mf</6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



n 



tors of the Green Bay (\\'is.) Gazette, 
which had been established by him and 
Col. George C. Ginty early in 1866. In 
September of the same year, however, 
Mr. FoUett sold his interest to Col. Ginty, 
but reconnected himself in May, 1868, 
with the paper by purchase of the 
Colonel's interest (who in the meantime 
had associated himself with William B. 
Tapley, of Racine), the firm name be- 
coming Tapley & Follett. This arrange- 
ment continued about eighteen months, 
or until January i, 1870, when Mr. Tap- 
ley sold out to George E. Hoskinson, and 
the new firm of Hoskinson & Follett then 
changed the name of the paper to The 
State Gazette, commencing a daily issue 
in November, 1871, and in 1882 Mr. Fol- 
lett assumed sole ownership and control. 
The Gazette has always stood in the front 
rank of the Republican political journals 
of the State of Wisconsin. 

The home which Mr. and Mrs. Fol- 
lett created by their marriage was ideal 
in its happiness, till the 3'oimg wife saw, 
with unspeakable sorrcjw, that an incura- 
ble malady would soon take her husband 
from her. After much painful suffering 
he was called from earth June 24, 1888, 
deeply mourned by a wide circle of 
friends. He was a man of perfect recti- 
tude, just and honorable, and possessed 
of a good mind and a true heart — a lover 
of things beautiful in nature, literature 
and art. After his death the responsi- 
bility of the extensive business, which he 
had wisely planned, but which, owing to 
ill-health, he had never been able to 
Ijring to its best possibilities, were laid 
upon his sorrowing widow. She rose to 
her new duties, however, with a strength 
and capacity which astonished even those 
who knew her best. The necessities of 
the situation, and, doubtless, the des- 
peration of her grief, stimulated her every 
energy into activity. Discouragements 
that seemed almost paralyzing yielded to 
her unconquerable determination, and she 
persevered till success w-as complete. 
But the shadow of death was upon her. 



and the bright, useful and beautiful life 
was doomed to total eclipse. Early in 
the spring of 1894 Mrs. Follett began to 
realise that her health, which she had 
thought to be almost faultless, was rap- 
idly failing, and in searching for a cause 
it was found that she was suffering from 
an internal cancer, from which it was 
early seen there was no possible cure. 
How this knowledge moved her brave, 
resolute soul can never be known, for she 
made no sign of either fear or regret, 
though her sufferings were intense. She 
bore all with uncomplaining fortitude, 
responding to the faithful and tender 
ministrations o[ friends with loving grati- 
tude, while her thoughts were of others 
rather than of herself, even to the last 
hour of consciousness. 

The end came at last, death releasing 
her from her sufferings August 27, 1894, 
and three days later all that was mortal 
of the departed was laid beside the re- 
mains of her husband amid the peace and 
silence of Woodlawn cemetery, Green 
Bay. A great concourse of the people of 
the city where for twenty years she had 
lived and wrought — old and young, rich 
and poor — citizens from other places, 
officials, representatives of the Press 
Association, and many friends from even 
greater distance, followed the remains to 
their last resting-place. The funeral took 
place from the Presbyterian Church, of 
which she was a member, Re\'. J. L. 
Hewitt officiating, assisted by Revs. F. R. 
Haff and H. W. Thompson. Among 
those assembled to pay their last respects 
to their loving friend were members of 
the Press Association, as just mentioned, 
with which organization earh' in her 
newspaper life she had identified herself, 
becoming after the death of her husband 
a constant attendant at its sessions. 
Eulogies in the Press were numerous, and 
from the Green Bay Gazette we glean 
the following: "" " * " Simple and touch- 
ing were the ceremonies at the funeral; 
grief and sorrow were the emotions of al. 
who had come to bid her a last farewelll 



iS 



COMMEMORATIVE DWGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



There were those who had known her 
long and intimately, and who will miss 
her greatly, and there were those who 
thought they had stood farther from her, 
yet had often felt the touch of her 
friendly hand, had frequently heard from 
her words of sympathy and of cheer, and 
who had come to see in her a sister, 
friend and mother." The Green Bay 
Advocate also paid a beautiful tribute to 
the memory of her whose life had left the 
world the better for her having lived, and 
we quote the following : " It is with 
deep sadness that we realize that the 
vital spark has fled from the suffering 
body of our long kind friend, highly 
respected citizen and co-laborer in 
the newspaper field, Mrs. Rosamond 
Follett. We grieve at the severance 
of those early ties of friendship and 
almost kindred feeling that long years 
of harmonious work in a common cause, 
without a jar or discord, had cemented. 
We grieve that we shall nevermore see 
the kindly face, animated by its cheerful, 
benevolent spirit. At the same time we 
feel thankful that the inevitable parting 
is over, and the free spirit has risen from 
the tortured clay, unhampered with cares 
and gr^fs of earthly life, to unending 
peace and blessed rest in the mansions 
that the Master went before to prepare. 

* * * Her work was well done from the 
cradle to the grave. In the years that we 
have known her, from the time that she 
came here as a bride until she finally laid 
down the pen and entered the chamber of 
suffering, we have found nothing in her to 
criticise, and everything to commend. 
We recall her sturdy step, as with strong 
frame she supported the failing energies 
and wasting frame of her late husband, 
Dwight I. Follett, shouldering the weight 
of the cares of his business as he entered 
the dark valley, and assuming the busi- 
ness altogether when he passed away. 

* * * A perfectly healthy and whole- 
some childhood and youth laid the foun- 
dation of those powers of endurance so 
valuable to her. She was a ready writer. 



with a faculty of pleasing; was always 
courteous, and made friends of all with 
whom she had dealings or acquaintance. 
There was no false pride about her, and 
she was careful never to assume a dig- 
nity that would drive away the humble. 
She was sympathetic for the woes of oth- 
ers, and always ready to relieve the dis- 
tressed. " Mrs. Follett left one son, John 
C. Follett, to mourn the loss of a loving 
mother. — [In compiling the above sketch, 
the writer is indebted for many sugges- 
tions to a beautiful article from the pen 
of Edwin D. Coe, which appears in the 
"National Printer-Journalist," of Octo- 
ber, 1894.^ — Ed. 



AUSTIN F. OLMSTED, M. I)., 
for over twenty years a highl}' 
respected citizen of Green Ba)', 
enjoying an unchallenged reputa- 
tion as a successful physician and surgeon, 
is a native of Middlebury, \'t., born Jul}- 
20, 1843. 

Erastus Olmsted, grandfather of our 
subject, was of Welsh descent, and was 
born in Middleburj', Vt. , of which locality 
his ancestry, inthiscountrj', were pioneers. 
By trade Erastus was a chair-maker, 
which he carried on at his home in the 
country, near Middlebury, becoming pros- 
perous. He had a numerous family of 
children, of whom Juba Olmsted, father 
of our subject, was born August 15, 1807, 
in Middlebury, Vt. He learned his 
father's trade, and followed it for a time, 
but eventually took up farming, which he 
made his life work for the rest of his days, 
in 1850 moving with his family from Ver- 
mont to Wisconsin, and settling on a 
farm in Fond du Lac county, four miles 
south of the city of that name. Here, by 
industry and judicious thrift, he accumu- 
lated a comfortable competence, and by his 
exemplary life, sinccrit}' of heart, genuine 
charity and elevation of character, won 
the highest esteem and respect in the com- 
munity in which he li\ed. He died in 
1854, at the early age of forty-seven 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



years, deeph' regretted by all who knew 
him. In religious faith he was a member 
of the M. E. Church, in politics a stanch 
Whig. In 1829, he was married to Miss 
Sarah K. Huston, daughter of Robert 
Huston, an honored pioneer of Middle- 
bury, Vt., and three children, all sons, 
were born to this union, \'\z. : Wallace 
Juba, a minister in the M. E. Church, at 
present stationed at West Bend, Wis. ; 
Charles Cook, a practicing physician at 
Kansas City (he studied medicine under 
Dr. Patchen, of Fond du Lac, and gradu- 
ated at Cleveland, Ohio); and Austin P., 
the subject of this sketch. The mother 
of these was married, the second time, to 
Hiram Edgerton, and is now living at 
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. 

Austin F. Ohnsted received his liter- 
ary education at the Fond du Lac high 
school and Lawrence University, Apple- 
ton, which latter institution he left at the 
end of two years, for a time thereafter 
clerking in a store. Deciding on making 
the noble profession of medicine his life- 
work, he during these years, as circum- 
stances permitted, studied the science, and 
in 1 87 I entered Clexeland (Ohio) Home- 
opathic Hospital College, where he grad- 
uated in the spring of i<S74, immediately 
thereafter settling in Green Bay, where 
he has since remained in the active prac- 
tice of his profession. He now ranks 
second to none in the county among the 
followers of /Esculapius and Galen, his 
specialty, perhaps, being obstetrics, in 
which he has had a wide and uniformly 
successful experience, which can be also 
truly said of his general practice; and this, 
coupled with his well-known professional 
zeal, as well as attentiveness to his 
patients, has established for him an en- 
viable reputation throughout the length 
and breadth of the Fo.x River Valley. He 
is associated with the American Institute 
of Homeopathy, and is an active member 
of the State Homeopathic Medical Society 
of Wisconsin. 

On October 21, 1863, Dr. Olmsted 
was married to Miss Harriet Sylvester, 



daughter of Setli antl Rachel (Young) Syl-. 
vester, and three children have been born 
to them, named respectively: Minnie 
Edna, Clara K. and Austin (). Dr. and 
Mrs. Olmsted are active workers in the 
Presbyterian Church at Green Bay (form- 
erly connected with the Congregational 
Society), of which she is a member. So- 
cially, he is affiliated with the Knights of 
Pythias, Independent Order of Foresters 
and Ro\al Arcanum, and in his political 
preferences casts his vote in the interests 
of the Republican party. Public-spirited, 
and in all things progressive, he has iden- 
tified himself with every civic movement 
tending to the advancement and prosperity 
of the city and county of his adoption, 
where, as a useful, loyal and intelligent 
citizen, he is held in the highest regard. 



PH. MARTIN. This gentleman, 
who has been prosecuting attor- 
ney for Brown county since 188S, 
is a native of the county, born in 
Rockland township April 21, 1S62. Ed- 
ward and Bridget (Farrell) Martin, 
natives of Ireland, parents of subject, 
came to the United States when young, 
settling in Rockland township, where 
they engaged in fanning, and are still 
living. 

P. H. Martin, whose name tipens this 
brief sketch, received his education at the 
schools of Rockland and in the cit}' of 
De Pere. He was reared on the farm, 
but at the age of eighteen he coniiiienced 
teaching school in Brown county, a voca- 
tion he followed some five years. In 
1885 he came to the city of Green Bay, 
and for some time was in the United 
States railway mail service as postal 
clerk on the Chicago, Milwaukee & 
St. Paul railroad, running between 
Green Bay and Milwaukee. In 1883 
he commenced reading law in the 
office of Hudd & Wigman, attorneys- 
at-law. Green Bay, and in 18S7 he 
was admitted to the bar. In 1889 he 
entered into partnership \\ith Mr. Wig- 



20 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



man, under the firm name of W'igman & 
Martin, and has since been engaged in 
regular practice. In the fall of 1888 he 
was elected to his present incumbency, 
that of prosecuting attorney for Brown 
county, which he fills with eminent 
ability, and to the complete satisfaction 
of the people. 

In 1 886 P. H. Martin and Miss Mary 
Wigman were united in marriage. She 
is a daughter of J. H. M. Wigman, senior 
member of the firm, and an early pioneer 
of Brown county. To this marriage four 
children have been born, viz. : Marie, 
Agnes, John Edward and Patrick Jerome. 
Mr. and Mrs. Martin are members of St. 
John's Catholic Church. Iti politics he 
is a Democrat. 



AI).\M SPUHLER, of the firm of A. 
Spuhler & Co. (limited), whole- 
sale and retail dealers in dry 
goods, clothing, carpets, hats, 
caps, notions, etc., in Green Bay, has 
been a prominent resident of that city 
since 1879, and an enterprising merchant 
of several \ears standing. 

Mr. Spuhler is a native of Wisconsin, 
born in Washington county, in 1 846, of 
German parents. Henry Spuhler, his 
father, was born in Bavaria, where he 
married Miss Sarah Zepp, of the same 
country, the young couple soon afterward 
emigrating to the United States, making 
their first home in Washington county, 
Wis., where they took up a farm. In 
I S67 they moved to Dodge county, same 
State, settling at Beaver Dam, where they 
passed the rest of their busy lives, the 
father dying in 1870, the mother in 1880. 
Their family numbered seven children, 
five of whom are yet living, namely; Mol- 
lie, wife of Benjamin Filield, a farmer of 
Lake county, Ind. ; Mary, wife of Charles 
Schuette, of Beaver Dam, W'is. ; Lizzie, 
wife of Andrew Schluckebier, also of 
Beaver Dam; Adam, of whom we write; 
and John, a cigar manufacturer, in Wi- 
nona, Minnesota. 



The subject of this notice was reared 
on his father's farm in Washington county. 
Wis., receiving his education at the win- 
ter schools of the neighborhood of his 
home. In 1861, then fifteen jears old, 
he entered the dry-goods store of Newton 
& Willard, in Beaver Dam, remaining 
with them till they sold out in 1865 to 
Hebgen & Lehrkund. With the latter 
firm he clerked till 1 867, in which year he 
commenced business in the same town, 
in partnership with a Mr. Schluckebier, 
carrying cmi a prosperous dry-goods trade 
till 1873, when the firm dissolved and our 
subject moved to Wrightstown, in Brown 
county. Here he was associated with a 
Mr. Mueller in the same line of trade from 
1873 to 1879, the style of the firm being 
Mueller & Spuhler, and in that j'ear they 
transferred their business to the more 
thriving town of Green Ija\\ here remain- 
ing in partnership till 1886, the year of 
Mr. Mueller's death. After that event 
Mr. Spuhler continued the retail business 
alone till 1889, when, having established 
a wide connection and an enviable repu- 
tation for fair and square dealing he ex- 
panded his business by combining the 
wholesale trade with the retail, changing 
the style of the house to the .A. Spuhler & 
Co. (limited). 

In 1867, in Dodge county. Wis., Mr. 
Spuhler was married to Miss Jennie Far- 
dell, a native of England, but reared to 
womanhood in Dodge county. Wis., and 
daughter of Matthew and Sarah (Bishop) 
Fardell, highly respectable English 
people who immigrated to the United 
States several years ago, settling in 
Dodge county. Wis., where Mr. Fardell 
died in 1887, and his widow is yet living. 
To our subject and wife have been born 
seven children, to wit: Sarah, Nellie 
(wife of D. Lucas, a boiler manufacturer 
in Ft. Howard, Wis.); Fred (assisting in 
his father's store), Alice, Mabel, Jennie 
and Louise. In his political predilections 
Mr. Spuhler is a Democrat; in 1881-82 
he served his city as alderman of the 
First ward, and is now a member of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



town council and of the county board, 
and was chairman of tlie Finance commit- 
tee of that board some j-ears. Socially 
he is affiliated with the F. & A. M., at 
Green Bay, Washinj^ton Lodge No. 21, 
Warren Chapter No. 8, Council No. 13, 
and Palestine Commandery No. 20, \\. 
T. ; is a member of the I. O. O. F. , 
A. O. U. W., and of Pochequette Lodge, 
K. of P., Uniformed Rank. In religious 
faith he and his wife are members of the 
M. E. Church. Mr. Spuhler is one of 
those men of business to whom success is 
bound to come, a success that is the re- 
sult of his own individual exertions, and 
not of that "luck" which the world 
(little understanding what the word im- 
ports) so often ascribes to those who rise 
unaided to distinction. No man knows 
better how to time his efforts, and while 
he has never wasted his force on worth- 
less and unattainable objects, he well 
knows how to take advantage of opportu- 
nities promising advantages to his busi- 
ness. 



HON. JAMES HENRY ELMORE, 
the efficient, progressive and pop- 
ular mayor of the city of Green 
Bay, is a native of Wisconsin, 
born in Mukwonago, Waukesha county, 
January 6, 1843. The first of the Elmore 
famil)- in the United States, of whom our 
subject is a worthy representative, were 
three brothers who came from England, 
one settling in New York State, one in 
Connecticut, and the third in South Caro- 
lina, the first of the three being the im- 
mediate progenitor of Mayor Elmore. 

Our subject received his elementary 
education at the common schools of his 
native town, whijh was supplemented 
with a course of study at the East Troy 
school taught by Mr. Markham, who after- 
ward became principal of the " Markham 
Academy," Milwaukee. At the age of 
fifteen he entered Racine College, which 
he attended two years, and we then find 
him connected with his father's mercan- 



tile business in Mukwonago, later in the 
capacity of reporter for various news- 
papers, being stationed, during the winter 
of 1862-63. at Madistni, Wis. In the 
spring of 1863 he came to (ireen Bay, 
and engaged in the grain elevator and for- 
warding business, in which he remained 
until 1877, removing then to Milwaukee, 
where, tor a year, he was interested in 
the commission trade, after which he 
spent several years in traveling and 
employing his time at various occupa- 
tions. Two summers he spent in New 
York; was in the Black Hills and in 
Arizona; at Crystal Falls, Mich., where, 
for one year (1882), he was superintend- 
ent of the Crystal Falls Iron Company. 
Returning to Green Ba\-, he received the 
appointment. May, 1884, of receiver for 
Strong's bank, the mi.\ed-up affairs of 
which institution he succeeded in unravel- 
ing and clearing up in such a highly credit- 
able and satisfactory manner as to receive 
from all concerned, including the judge of 
the court, the highest encomiums, the 
upshot being his appointment at different 
times as assignee to various estates. Mr. 
Elmore's next occupation was in the 
manufacture of and dealing in cedar poles, 
ties, piling posts, shingles, etc., in which 
line he has since done a remarkabl}' large 
business, and at the present time he is in 
partnership w-ith James Delaney, of Fort 
Howard. 

Mr. Elmore has at various times had 
abundant proof of his popularity by elec- 
tion to various positions of honor and 
trust, including, more than once, the 
highest civic office in the gift of the 
people. In 1873 he was elected, without 
opposition, the first mayor of Fort How- 
ard; also served as alderman of the same 
borough, and after coming to Green Bay, 
in 1883, he was elected mayor of that city 
in 1890, which incumbency he has since 
filled continuously, having been elected 
twice without opposition, and once (1892) 
over an opponent who succeeded in cap- 
turing only about one-fourth of the votes. 
Mr. Elmore was again elected in 1895. 



22 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGliAPUlCAL RECORD. 



Although known to be a stanch Demo- 
crat, still he has always had the support 
of all parties, regardless of political bias, 
the general feeling being that the chief 
magistrate of a city should be a man pro 
bono publico, and not a politician. 

Since assuming the reins of civic gov- 
ernment in Green Bay, Mayor Elmore 
has had the pleasure of seeing vast im- 
provements in the fast rising city, among 
which may be mentioned a couple of miles 
of cedar block paving; several miles of 
sewers; two old bridges rebuilt, and a new 
one erected; the reorgani;iation of the 
Fire Department, which is now in all re- 
spects a model one, equipped with the 
Gamewell fire-alarm telegraph s\stem, 
besides man\- other improvements, all 
tending to place Green Bay among the 
model cities of the State. The latest 
project, in the way of public progressive- 
ness, is the new high school, which, it is 
intended, is to be built of Lake Superior 
red sandstone, and which will be an orna- 
ment to the city. To his efforts, also. 
Green Bay is indebted for the best system 
of street railroads in the United States, 
everything pertaining to it being of the 
most modern design. 

On January 19, 1876, Mayor Elmore 
was married to Miss Anna Leola Chap- 
man, daughter of Col. \\'illiam Chapman, 
U. S. A., and one child has been born to 
them, named William Chapman. Mrs. 
Elmore is a prominent member of the 
Daughters of the Revolution, of which 
she was appointed regent for the State of 
Wisconsin. Mayor Elmore is a member 
of the F. & A. M., and is a Knight Temp- 
lar; he is also affiliated with tlie Order o{ 
Elks. 



GUSTAV KUSTERMANN. This 
well-known, popular and promi- 
nent citi/en of Green Bay, of 
which flourishing city he has 
been postmaster since 1892, is a native 
of Detmold, Germany, born May 24, 
1850. 



Carl Ludwig Kustermann, grandfather 
of our subject, was a farmer and mechanic 
(as was his father before him) in Schoet- 
mar (Lippe-Detmold), and died there in 
advanced life, the parent of a large 
family of children, one of whom, Carl 
(father of our subject), was born in 1820, 
also in Schoetmar. He (Carl) was reared 
to the trade of gunsmith, and was eni- 
plo3'ed as such in the German army for 
nearly thirty years, also serving in the 
Schleswig-Holstein campaign and the 
Prussian-Austrian war of 1S66. In 1846 
he married Julia Wollcben, daughter of 
Gustav Wolleben, b}' which union four 
children were born — all sons — to-wit: 
Carl, (lustav, Robert and Otto, the last 
named dying at the age of fourteen years; 
Robert was in partnership with his 
brother Gustav in the book and music 
business at Green Bay until 1894; Carl 
and Gustav will be more fully spoken of 
farther on. The mother of this family 
died in 1886, the father in 1894. 

Gustav Kustermann, whose name in- 
troduces this sketch, received his educa- 
tion at the gymnasium or high school in 
Detmold, graduating therefrom, and when 
fourteen years old went to the city of 
Hamburg, where he served a three-years' 
apprenticeship to the wholesale dry-goods 
business. At the age of eighteen, in 
1868, he emigrated to America, from the 
port of debarkation coming direct to 
Wisconsin and Green Bay, whither, not 
long before, two of his old schoolmates 
had come and settled. Here he clerked 
in the hardware store of St. Louis 
Case & Co., but at the end of about si.\ 
months secured the position of book- 
keeper in the office of the Green Bay 
Advocate, at that time owned by Robin- 
son & Bro. , and filled the incumbency 
with the utmost satisfaction for three 
years, or until 1872. On March 15 of 
that year, in company with Louis Neese 
and Erastus Root, he established in 
Green Bay a stationery and job-printing 
business, the style of the firm being 
"Neese, Kustermann & Root "; but De- 



COMMEMORATIVE BWQRAPHWAL RECORD. 



23 



cember 15, 1873, the firm experienced a 
change, Mr. Root and a Mr. Kimball tak- 
ing the job-printing branch, our subject 
and Mr. Neese retaining the stationery de- 
partment, adding thereto music and 
musical instruments, the name of the 
firm being Neese & Kustermann until 
May I, 1876, when Mr. Kustermann 
bought out Mr. Neese's share, and from 
that time until 1880 carried on the con- 
cern alone. In that year his brother 
Robert became associated with him in 
the business, the partnership e.xisting till 
1 894, when the latter retired from the 
firm (as alread}' stated), since when our 
subject has continued the business alone. 
He carries a well-assorted line of sta- 
tionery and all its adjuncts, as well as 
a complete assortment of musical instru- 
ments, his trade in these particular lines 
not being surpassed by any similar enter- 
prise in northern Wisconsin. In all his 
business obligations he is prompt and 
reliable, and his innate courtesy and 
obliging disposition have brought him 
hosts of friends and customers. 

Mr. Kustermann is a ready writer, as 
well as a clear, forcible speaker, in either 
English, German or French, and his 
trenchant pen has contributed not a few 
interesting articles to one or other of the 
standard European journals, among which 
may be mentioned Die Gartcnlauhc, pub- 
lished in Leipzig, besides political articles 
during election campaigns, to home jour- 
nals, especially the leading newspapers of 
Milwaukee. Recently he compiled a high- 
ly-interesting work on the "World's Fair" 
or "Columbian E.xposition, " being a col- 
lection of articles written by him for a 
newspaper published in his native town. 
In oratory he has secured a wide reputa- 
tion as a good, reliable all-round political 
speaker, whether on the "stump" or on 
the platform, and he has always been 
affiliated with the Republican party, 
wherein he has never failed to exert a 
substantial influence. Nor have his 
efforts for the cause remained altogether 
unrewarded. Twice was he nominated 



for Congress, although through no fault 
of his own on each occasion he had the 
minority; but, by his pure, yet forcible 
language, clear and concise reasoning, he 
left upon the minds of his auditors a last- 
ing impression that there was a man 
among them worthy not only of the metal 
of any political foe, but also of the respect 
and esteem of the communit\' at large — a 
citizen, in truth, of whom the State might 
well feel proud. During the last political 
campaign he was urged by some of the 
leading spirits of his party to become a 
candidate for the highest State office in 
the gift of the people; but he resolutely 
declined to "listen to the song of the 
Siren." Indeed, it has been said, and in 
no spirit of mere flattery, that, without 
doubt, Mr. Kustermann, in point of edu- 
cation and natural ability, is one of the 
most representative German-American 
citizens in the State of Wisconsin. In 
February, 1S92, he was appointed post- 
master at Green Bay by President Harri- 
son, and is still holding the office, his 
term expiring in i 896. In civic affairs he 
has served in the city council of Green 
Bay, also as city treasurer, and has been 
a member of the county board. 

On June I3, 1S75, our subject was 
united in marriage with Miss Emma Schel- 
lenbeck, of Green Bay, and four children, 
all daughters, named respectively: Tillie, 
Alma, Olga and Emma, have come to 
bless their home. 

Carl Kustermann, eldest son of Carl 
and Julia (Wolleben) Kustermann has 
been assistant postmaster at Green Bay 
since 1892. He was born in Detmold, Ger- 
many, October 29, 1847, and in 1868 
came to Green Bay, where he first found 
employment as clerk in the dry-goods 
store of D. Butler. At the end of a year 
he entered the office of the register of 
deeds, where he clerked some twelve 
months, his next employment being as 
bookkeeper for a lumber company at Lit- 
tle Sturgeon Bay, an incumbency he filled 
three years. In 1873 he paid a six- 
months' visit to Eurtipe, and on his return 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



to Green Baj" engaged for his own ac- 
count in a white-goods and shirt-factory 
business; but finding the same unprofit- 
able, he accepted a position as manager 
of the shoe and clothing store of B. Fol- 
lett, holding the same for two years, at 
the enii of which time he entered the 
Green Bay Savings Bank as assistant 
cashier. In 1S78 the bank affairs were 
\\ound up, and Mr. Kustermann removed 
to Helenville, Jefferson Co., Wis., where 
for si.\ years he conducted a general store; 
then returned to Green Bay to fill the 
position of bookkeeper for Anson Eldred 
& Son, lumber merchants, but, in 1892, 
he left this to accept his present position 
in the postoffice. 

In 1873 Carl Kustermann was married 
to Miss Margaret Grimm, who was born 
in Jefferson, ^^'is., daughter of Adam 
Grimm, the celebrated apiarist, who died 
in 1876. To Mr. and Mrs. Kustermann 
were born two children, Julia and Agnes, 
who lost their mother in 1882, and in 
1S84 their father was married to Miss 
Anna Haubert. of White Water, Wis., 
daughter of Joseph and Marie (Rust) 
Haubert, natives of Bavaria, Germany. 
By this marriage there are three children: 
Otto, I-Irna and Herbert. Mr. and Mrs. 
Kustermann are members of St. Paul's 
German Lutheran Church, and in his 
political preferences he is a Republican 
in national affairs, but independent in 
local issues. 



ALONZO KIMBALL. The family 
in America, of which the subject 
of this sketch is a worthy mem- 
ber, dates back to one Richard 
Kimball, who in 1634 came from Ipswich, 
county of Suffolk, England, to America. 
It is presumed that he settled in Ipswich, 
Esse.x Co., Mass., for his son Henry is 
known to have been a resident of that 
town in 1640, while another son, Thomas, 
was in Charlestown, Suffolk county, 
in 1653. 



Boyce Kimball, a lineal descendant of 
the immigrant Richard, was born June 
26, 1 73 1, in Ipswich, Mass., where he 
married, and the children born to him 
were as follows: Bo\ce, Rebecca, Jona- 
than, Ebenezer, Mary, Susanna, Pris- 
cilla, Timoth). Richard. Amasa and Ruel. 
Of these, Ruel Kimball was married Jan- 
uary I, 1799, to Hannah Mather, and 
settled in Marlboro, \'t., where he was a 
Presbyterian minister. The children born 
to this union were Ruel, Amanda, Cotton. 
Hulda, Alon^o, David M.. Lucy (who 
married Rev. Henry Bannister, of Evans- 
ton, 111.), Mary, Harriet and Martin L. , 
Alonzo, our subject, being the only sur- 
vi\or; Amanda, the second in the family, 
married Alanson Merwin, and they cele- 
brated their golden wedding in 1875. 
Ruel Kimball was for the most part self- 
educated, and was a man of strong con- 
victions, one who represented the true 
type of orthodox Presbyterianism. He 
was a very useful man, was beloved for 
his many good qualities of head and 
heart, and was possessed of sound com- 
mon sense and judgment. He could 
draw a deed or contract of any kind, and 
was an adviser and friend to all. He died 
at East Hampton, Mass., October 1, 
1847. Mrs. yannah (Mather) Kimball, 
mother of our subject, was a daughter of 
Timothy Mather, who was a descendant 
of Increase Mather, the father of Cotton 
Mather. She was a woman of great 
force of character, and may be said to 
have inherited much of the spirit of her 
noble ancestors. She died in Leyden, 
N. Y. , at the age of seventy-eight years, 
eight months and eight days. 

Alonzo Kimball, the subject proper of 
these lines, was born November 20, 1808, 
in the town of Le Ray. Jefferson county, 
N. v., and received his primary educa- 
tion at various schools, which was sup- 
plemented with a course at Union 
College, Schenectady, N. Y. , where he 
graduated in 1836, while Dr. Nott was 
president. After this he taught school 
about ten vears, and then engaged in 




^-^^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



business, condiictiiii,' a general store in 
Green Bay several years, whither he 
came May 22, 1849: in 1S54 he com- 
menced the hardware business. From 
the time of his first entering the arena oi 
commercial trade success followed his 
efforts, and his reputation for honesty 
and veracit)' became as a household word 
in the Fox River \'aney. On October i, 
1S40. Mr. Kimball married Miss Sarah 
Weston, daughter of Rev. Isaiah Weston, 
who, during the war of 1S12, was revenue 
collector at New Bedford, Mass., and 
later lived in Dalton, same State, where 
he was engaged in business, and preached 
the Gospel of love to the people. He 
died there of paralysis February 17, 1S21, 
aged fortj--eight \ears and sixteen days, 
deep!}' lamented. Six children blessed 
the union of Mr. and Mrs. Kimball, viz. : 
Mary C., A. Weston, Charles T. , Mather 
D., Sarah and William Dwight; of whom 
A. Weston is general agent of Illinois for 
the Northwestern Life Insurance Com- 
pany of Milwaukee, and has made an 
enviable record: Mather D. is in the em- 
ploy of the same company: Charles T. 
conducts his father's business: Mary C. 
is the wife of M. H. W^alker, and Sarah 
married L. B. Sale, who was drowned 
in the Vo\ river with his two sons, 
Richard and Robert: \\'illiam Dwight 
died at the age of two years. Mr. and 
Mrs. Kimball li\-ed a happ\' life together 
of over half a century, having celebrated 
their golden wedding October t, 1890. 
She died in Green Bay June 27, 1891, 
aged near!}- ninety jears, an active mem- 
ber of the Presbyterian Church. Charit\- 
was her twin sister. Rich and poor 
alike, she called them all her friends, and 
her name and deeds of bene\'olence will 
long be held in blessed remembrance by 
the people. Mr. Kimball is a member 
of the Presbyterian Church at Green Bay, 
and was appointed an elder in 1858. His 
venerable appearance on the streets, 
bearing on his snowy head the winter of 
over eighty-six years, reminds the passers- 
by of the patriarchs of old, and the 



respect shown is evidence sufficient of 
the high esteem in which he is held 
bv all. 



WALTKR THOMAS HAGEN, M. 
I)., who is fast making his way 
to the front rank of his profes- 
sion, not only as a ph}'sician in 
general practice, but also as an oculist and 
aurist, as a specialist, is yet a young man, 
with the promise of a brilliant future before 
him. 

He is a nati\e of Green Bay, Wis., 
born October 19, 1868, a son of Frank 
and Nellie (Magher) Hagen, the former 
of whom was born in I'ranktort, Germany, 
and when a seven-year-old lad came to 
the United States with his parents. For 
a time the}' made their home in Fond du 
Lac, Wis., finally removing to Winona, 
Minn., where Frank grew to manhood, 
after which he returned to Wisconsin and 
was engaged in business in Oshkosh till 
1865, the year of his coming to Green 
Bay. Here he established a livery-stable 
business, which he carried on successfully 
some twenty-seven years, eventually 
l)ecoming actively interested in a stone 
quarry and in a steamboat line: he also 
takes government contracts for the build- 
ing of piers, breakwaters, etc. His wife 
is a native of Ireland, and, coming to this 
country whenjoung, was reared to woman- 
hood in Cleveland, Ohio : she is the 
mother of four children, \\z. : Frank, 
Walter T., William and Mary. 

The subject proper of this sketch 
received his elementary education at the 
common and high schools of Green Bay, 
and learned the trade of printer in Eras- 
tus Root's office. When seventeen years 
old he entered a drug store in Green Bay, 
subsequently clerking in one at Stephen- 
son, Mich., prior to which, July i, 1885, 
he had commenced the study of medicine 
under the preceptorship of Dr. J. R. 
Brandt, formerly a well-known physician, 
of Brown count}', Wis., now of Chicago. 
Being now fully prepared for college, our 



COMMFMi>i:.\ riVi: niOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



subject entered tlie University of Michi- 
gan, at Ann Arbor. October i, 18S5; but 
ill health prevented him from completing 
his course, and at the end of two years he 
had to return home. In October, 18S9, 
he entered Jefferson Medical College, 
Philadelphia, where, after two years' 
attendance, he graduated April 15, 1S91, 
during which time he made a special study 
of the eye and ear. Along with some 
friends he took the State (Pennsylvania) 
examination, which he passed satisfactor- 
ily, and he is also registered in the State 
of Illinois. In July, 1891, he returned to 
Green Bay, where he opened an office, 
and after about one month's general 
practice became assistant to Dr. E. W. 
Bartlett, the eminent eye and ear special- 
ist, of Milwaukee. At the end of si.\ 
months he returned to Philadelphia, and 
took a private course in general medicine 
and literature, at the same time holding 
the position of assistant in the Eye and 
Ear Department of Jefferson Medical 
College Hospital. 

On December 10, 1S92, he again 
returned to Green Bay, and at once com- 
menced the practice of his chosen pro- 
fession, in which he has met with emi- 
nent success, particularly in hisspecialty — 
eye, ear and throat treatment — in which, 
as an ardent student, thoroughly read-up 
in all the details, he has no superior and 
but few peers in the State. Socially the 
Doctor is a member of the I. O. O. F. , 
and in politics he is an active Republican. 



C.VPT.MN JOSEPH G. LAWTOX. 
Hut few men have come more 
directly in contact with the mone- 
tary institutions, and the business 
men of the country, and none have com- 
manded more completely their respect 
and confidence than this gentleman. His 
ancestors in this country were not only 
early English colonists of the educated 
and wealthy class, but were active in the 
affairs of the colony of New York. Massa- 
chusetts and Connecticut — men of high 



standing in professional, commercial, poli- 
tical and also militar\' affairs of those 
early days in New England. 

The name Lawton was original spelled 
and pronounced Layton, by some simple 
metamorphosis becoming, during the life- 
time of the eldest born in this country, 
what it now is. Capt. Lawton traces his 
ancestry to one John Layton, who was 
born in 1630, and who, in 1652, at the 
age of twenty-two years, in company with 
others, mostly from Connecticut and other 
portions of New England colonies, settled 
in Newtown, Long Island, N. Y. Twenty- 
eight members of this colony, John Lay- 
ton being of their number, purchased 
farms direct from the Indian owners, 
although also purchasing titles from the 
government of New Netherlands, of which 
Peter Stuyvesant was then governor: and 
it is worthy of record that this purchase 
from the Indians was the onl\- one of 
that kind made, excepting a similiar 
transaction effected by William Penn, in 
Pennsylvania. During John Layton's resi- 
dence in New Netherlamls, that colony 
fell into the hands of the Duke of York, 
and on account of the active and promin- 
ent part he took against Governor Stuy- 
vesant, Layton made many enemies among 
the Dutch colonists. Consequently he 
moved with his family to Suffield, Conn., 
where he died September 17, 1690. and 
was buried in the Presbyterian grave\ ard 
by the side of his wife. Benedicta. Their 
gravestones are still (1S94) extant, and 
the name inscribed thereon is plainly 
"Lawton. " so that the change of the 
spelling of the name presumably must 
have taken place some time in the latter 
part of the seventeenth century. John 
Layton was married twice; the first time 
September 2 I. 1659, to Johanna \Villiams, 
by whom he had one daughter, Mary. 
His second marriage occurred at Ports- 
mouth, R. I., in 1665, the lady of his 
choice being Benedicta, and to this union 
were born three children perhaps more) 
as follows: Benedicta, born October i 3, 
1666, married in 16S3; William, born 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOGliAPinCAL RECORD. 



April 15, K'lOy, died May 8, 1677; and 
James, born April 5, i'i73, married 
November 9, i<)93, to Al)i;^ail Lamb, who 
bore him two children, both dyinf^ younj;; 
the mother passed away November 14, 
1696. For his second wife James married 
Faith Newell, who bore him live children, 
their names and dates of birth being as 
follows: Christopher Jacob, July 20, 1701; 
C'harity, November 8, 1703; Mercy, 
November 23, 1705; John, April 26, 1708, 
and died August 22, 17 14. 

Christopher Jacob Lawton, the eldest 
of this family, was the great-great-grand- 
father of ("apt. Joseph G. Lawton. He 
was married in 1 73 1 to Aljigail Ivellogg, 
who was born in l^eicester, Mass.. in 
1702, and died in 1734. He was a law- 
yer of considerable note, spoken of in 
Washburn's History as an honor and or- 
nament to his profession. In 1735 he 
moved to Leicester, Mass., where he 
served as a member of the general court 
of Massachusetts during the years 1736, 
'739- > 740 and 1741, and as moderator 
of the court in 1739. He had one child, 
Pliny, born in 1732, in Siiffu;ld, Conn., 
and married, in 1750, to Lucretia Sar- 
gent, a great-granddaughter of William 
Sargent who came from England in 1638. 
By this marriage there was but one child 
who did not die young — William, born 
April 9. 1759. Pliny Lawton was a phy- 
sician, beccjuhng prominent in his pro- 
fession at Leicester, Mass. ; he died from 
smail-po.x, and was buried in one of his 
own fields. William I^awton, his son, 
who also became a physician and sur- 
geon, served during the war of the Rev- 
olution, in the Fifth Regiment Massachu- 
setts infantry, and in 1794 was appointed 
by President George Washington as sur- 
geon at West Point. In 1784 he was 
married in the Presbyterian Church at 
Flushing, L. I., by Rev. Matthias Bur- 
net, to Abigail Farrington, who died 
about the year 1 800, and was buried at 
Flushing. To this marriage were born 
four children, vi/. : Ch;irles ^father of the 
subject proper of this sketch, and of 



whom further mention will jjresently be 
made); Mary, born October 23, 1789, 
married John Ogilvie Roorbach fhad six 
children; William. Benjamin, Charles L. , 
Mary, John Ogilvie. Jr., and Sarah;; 
Amelia, born in 1792; and William, born 
at West Point, N. Y. , in 1795, married 
January 17, 1817, to Maria R. (Juion 
(had six children; Frederick. Franklin, 
Julia, Cornelia, Maria and J. Warren j. 

Charles Lawton, eldest son of Dr. 
William and Abigail (Farrington) Lawton 
was born at L(n'cester, Mass., in 1787. 
On January 17, 1809, he was married in 
New York City t(j Miss Sophia l)(jbsoa 
Willson. In the war of 1812-14 he was 
commissioned a captain, and served as 
such to the close of the struggle, after 
which he returned to New York where he 
became actively engaged in business for 
some years. In 1826 he and his brother 
William, and others, organized what is 
known as the "Board of Brokers, " the 
nucleus of the present New York Stock L.\- 
change. At one time he served as treasurer 
of the City of New York. In 1827 he 
moved to Ogdensburg, N. Y. , and was 
there engaged in the lumber business until 
1830 when he decided to move to Potts- 
ville, Penn., where there were extensive 
mining operations, and the following brief 
account of their trip may not l)e uninter- 
esting to the reader: 

The family and servants, all told, com- 
prised nineteen persons, of whom the two 
eldest sons had gone on before, the coach- 
man and cook traveling the entire dis- 
tance in the family carriage. That left 
fifteen persons to go by steamboat from 
Ogdensburg to Oswego. They left their 
own home for a hotel, there to await the 
departure of the steamer which was de- 
layed in starting. At last, about 9 o'clock 
1'. M., all was ready to "get aboard," but 
before starting the captain of the steamer 
recommended Mr. Charles Lawton, as 
his party was a pretty large one, to 
"count noses," to make sure that all 
were on the steamer. This being done, 
to their surprise one was missing; a search 



3° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was made, and on returning; to the hotel, 
behold! a }oun]Ljrfon was discovered sound 
asleep across the foot of the bed, so well 
covered up with the bed clothes that he 
had been overlooked. This young son 
was Joseph G. Lawton, eight years old, 
the subject of this biographical sketch. 
From Oswego the faniih- proceeded by 
canal to Albany, X. Y. , thence by steam- 
boat to New York, from which cit\- a 
chartered stage-coach conveyed them to 
Philadelphia, while from that point another 
chartered stage-coach carried them to their 
destination, Pottsville, Penn., one hun- 
dred miles distant, the family arriving 
October 4, 1S30. Until a residence which 
Mr. Lawton had engaged was prepared 
for their reception, they took up their 
quarters at a new hotel at Port Carbon; 
but as soon as possible moved into the 
house. In this they made their home one 
year, and then removed into a more com- 
modious residence which Mr. Lawton 
bought, and this comparatively elegant 
home the family occupied many years. 

Charles Lawton ere long took a very 
prominent and active part in business mat- 
ters and other affairs of Pottsville, becom- 
ing one of the most extensive miners and 
shippers of coal at that place. He died 
there July 21, 1858; his wife passed from 
earth .\pril 19, 1844, while on a visit to 
New York City, and the\' rest side by side 
in the cemetery at Pottsville. Fourteen 
children were born to them as follows: 
John Willson. born April 22, 18 10 (never 
married); Alfred Tom, born August 1 6, 
181 I, married October 16, 1834, to Mary 
Kern Nichols, daughter of Francis B. 
Nichols, who was on board the U. S. 
frigate "Chesapeake" in her memorable 
fight with the British frigate "Shannon," 
on which occasion he was wounded by a 
ball which entered his left side below the 
heart, passed thence down into the groin, 
causing lameness for many years; Mary 
Willson, born March 28, i Si 3, married 
May 10, 1832, to William H. Mann, of 
Pottsville, and died November 12, 1879; 
Sophia Matilda, born September 15, 181 5, 



married Charles Warder Bacon May 10, 
1832, and died December 22, 1839; 
Charles, born April 27, 181 7, married at 
Pottsville, Penn., April 7, 1842, to Eliza- 
beth Evans Ridgeway. and died April 17, 
1 891; Catherine Dobson, born Decem- 
ber 31, 18 1 8, married April 11, 1843, at 
Pottsville, Penn., to John Charles Neville, 
now of Green Bay, Wis., and died April 
16, 1876; William, born April 15, 1820, 
died August 5, 1820; Joseph Grellet, sub- 
ject proper of sketch, whose personal 
biography is given further on; Sarah Havi- 
land, born Ma\' i, 1823, twice married, 
first time October 5, 1847, to Alfred Sab- 
baton (who died), second time June 28, 
1858, to William Henry Bruce Gilbert, 
and now lives at De Pere, Wis. ; Walter 
Van Wagener, born October 8, 1824, 
married to Julia Willis, who died June 5, 
1 88 1 , and for his second wife wedded 
Elizabeth E. Eustis, and died September 
30, 1888. at Boston, Mass.; Amelia, born 
December 6, 1825, married May 13, 
1848, to John Ogilvie Roorbach, and now 
lives at M\'stic, Conn. ; William Thorn- 
ton, born December 6, 1828, died Octo- 
ber 14, 1833; George Augustus, born De- 
cember 6, 1829, married April 18, 1853, 
at Green Bay, Wis., to Sophie Pauline 
Mitchell, and now lives at Afton, Rock 
Co., Wis.; and Anna Maria, born August 
9, 1834. married at Erie, Penn.. March 
4, 1858, to George Selden, and died 
March 2, 1871, at Erie. 

Capt. Joseph G. Lawton, w'hose name 
introduces this sketch, was born February 
14, 1822, in New York City, where, on 
Broome street, his father had erected 
four fine dsvelling houses, in one of which 
it was destined our subject shouhl first see 
the light. He safely passed through the 
years of his childhood and earlier boy- 
hood, and was in his ninth year when the 
family made their memorable trip from 
Ogdensburg, N. Y., to Pottsville. Penn. 
At the latter city he was placed in a pri- 
vate school kept by one Silas Hough, 
where he received his elementary instruc- 
tion, and then at the end of one year 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



31 



entered tlie hi,L;h school of the place. In 
this educational institution he remained 
until he was was about fourteen jears old, 
after which he became a student at the 
Pennsylvania University at Philadelphia, 
leaving at the close of one year to enter 
upon his first business traininj^. This was 
in a fruit and wine importinj^ house, in 
Philadelphia, in which he remained until 
1840, when he returned to Pottsville, and 
soon afterward, in company with his 
brother John, and assisted by his father, 
purchased the Mammoth Vein ("oal Mine, 
on Mill creek, at the foot of Broad nioim- 
tain, which they operated until 1849, also 
conducting in connecti(jn a general store. 
In that same year our subject began the 
study of law. 

Having heard and read much of the 
brilliant opportunities awaiting men of 
energy in the West, he on .March i, 1851, 
set out on a prospecting tour, to Green 
Bay., arriving there on the 17th (jf the 
same month. So favorably was he im- 
pressed with the country and its surround- 
ings, that he at once returned to Potts- 
ville, and made preparations to move his 
family to the new Wisconsin Eldorado. 
Accordingly, a party — consisting of his 
wife and four children; his brother-in-law, 
W. H. Mann, wife and two children; his 
brother, G. .\. Lawton, and sister, .Amia 
Maria Lawton — set out with their eftects, 
arriving at Green Bay August 4, 1851. 
In 1852 J. G. Lawton formed a partner- 
ship with Otto Tank, for the purpose of 
operating a foundry and machine shop at 
Fort Howard, and same year purchased 
Private Claim 12 and i ;;, 450 acres on 
the west side of Fo.\ river. Hereon he 
built a commodious house, into which the 
family moved December 14, 1852. In 
the spring of the following year he organ- 
ized in Green Ba}'. under State charter, 
the Fo.\ River Bank, of which he was 
elected president and his brother, G. A., 
cashier. In June, same year, the partner- 
ship between him and Mr. Tank was dis- 
solved. During all these years Mr. Law- 
ton, bu.sy as he was, still found time to 



prosecute bis law stu<lies, and could have 
been admitted to the bar, had he not, at 
the request of Morgan L. Martin, pro- 
ceeded to New York for the purpose of 
selling the bonds which he received for 
carrying on the improvements on Fox 
river, under contract with the State. Mr. 
Lawton succeeded in his mission, and in 
December, 1853, proceeded to Madison, 
Wis. , to attend the Legislative Assembly, 
in the interest of Morgan L. Martin, to 
endeav(.)r to secure the issue of bonds by 
the governor, as per contract with the 
State, .\fter no little delay and consid- 
erable effort, this important mission sub- 
stantially was successful. Mr. Lawton's 
success depended in a great measure on the 
interpretation of the laws already passed, 
which laws the opponents of the improve- 
ment refused to execute. Then the friends 
of the improvement suggested to Mr. 
Lawton that he should form a company 
to complete the improvement, and prom- 
ised that they would give himself and 
friends a liberal charter. Having secured 
the consent of Morgan L. Martin, Mr. 
Lawton himself tirew up a charter which 
was presented to that session of the Leg- 
islature. At that time, however, there 
was great excitement over the impeach- 
ment of Judge Hubbell, and the Legisla- 
ture decided to tr\ the impeachment at 
an adjourned meeting to be held in June 
following, when, after the actjuittal of 
Judge Hubbell, the Legislature took up 
the subject of the Fox and \\'isconsin im- 
provement, and granted a charter to 
Morgan L. Martin, Dr. Darling, Otto 
Tank, Joseph G. Lawton, Edward Gonk- 
lin and Dr. U. H. Peak (who weri' incor- 
porated as the Fox and Wisconsin Im- 
provement Company) conditional that they 
each enter into a bond of $10,000 for the 
faithful performance of their part of the 
contract. Prior to the meeting of the 
adjourned session of the Legislature in 
June, 1854, Mr. Lawton had purchased 
from the executor of the estate of Joshua 
F. Cox, the undivided half interest in the 
town plat of De Pere as well as of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



water power of the De Here daiu on both 
sides of the Fox river at De Pere. tniine- 
diately after receipt of the charter of the 
Fox and Wisconsin Improvement Com- 
pany they organized, executed the requisite 
bonds to the State, and appointed a com- 
mittee consisting; of Morgan L. Martin, 
Dr. Darling and Joseph G. Lawton, to 
proceed to New York in order to negotiate 
requisite funds for the company. This 
the committee succeeded in doing, and 
while in New York Mr. Lawton arranged 
with John & A. H. Lowery, owners of 
the other undivided half of the Joshua F. 
Cox estate, to deed the whole estate to a 
company called the " De Pere Company," 
and to issue bonds for the improvement of 
same. 

Early in 1S55 Mr. Lawton f)urchased 
the stock of the Erie City Bank, at Erie, 
Penn.. and in June of the same jear 
moved with his family to that city in or- 
der to fill the position of cashier of that 
institution, an incumbency he tilled until 
1857. In 1858 he sold the Erie City 
Bank to C. B. Wright, then of Philadel- 
phia, Penn., and on June 7, that year, 
returned to \\'isconsin with his familj', 
locating at De Pere. In 1856 he had 
founded the Brown County Bank of De- 
Pere with a capital of $25,000, appoint- 
ing G. A. Lawton, president, and J. O. 
Roorbach, cashier. On .August 4, 1858, 
he commenced the erection of a stone 
dwelling in De Pere, on the north end of 
Broadway, on Private Claim 28, into 
which he moved with his family on the 
last day of that jear. New Year's Eve be- 
ing celebrated within the new and elegant 
structure. After leaving the army in 1863 
(an account of his military experience ap- 
pears farther on), and recovering some- 
what from an illness brought on by ex- 
posure in the service, he set out cast on 
December 3 1 , that 3ear, to arrange for the 
erection of a sta\e factor)' at West Dc- 
Pere, also for the erecting of a smelting 
furnace and flax factor)-. Succeeding in 
his mission, these enterprises were at 
once commenced. In Ma)\ 1863, he 



laid out and platted all that part of West 
De Pere l)ing on Pri\ate Claim 28. In 
the same ) ear he built a wing dam on the 
west side of the river, and dug a canal 
200 feet long, which in i 867 was extend- 
ed 600 feet farther. In 1864 he built a 
new bridge 1 , 500 feet long between East 
and West De Pere; also built a sash and 
door factory — 80 x 40 feet — in West De- 
Pere; and it may be here noted that his 
work here during the two years, i 863-64, 
increased the population of West De- 
Pere from 150 to 2,500. From 1858 to 
1 88 I the family lived in the stone house 
he had built at the north end of Broad- 
way, East De Pere, and cleared and 
farmed a 200-acre tract of land, and in 
1889 he moved into his present residence. 
No. 610, Broadway. Since 1881 the 
Captain has lived a retired life. 

On February 19, 1844, Capt. Joseph 
G. Lawton was married to Miss Ellen V. 
Baird, daughter of Capt. Thomas J. 
Baird of the U. S. army, and grand-daugh- 
ter of Mathew Carey, the Philadelphia 
publisher and philanthropist, who pub- 
lished the first Bible printed from mova- 
ble type in the United States, a copy of 
which, dated 181 2, is now owned by Capt. 
Lawton. Henry C. Carey, an uncle of 
Mrs. Ellen V. Lawton, was a well-known 
author of standard works on political econ- 
omy. To the marriage of Capt. Lawton 
and Ellen \' . (Baird) Lawton were born 
children as follows: Charles Augustus, 
December 16, 1S44, Fannie Augusta, 
August 30, 1846, Henry Carey, May 23, 
1848 (died February 3, 1858), and Caro- 
line Virginia, May 13, 1850, all born in 
St. Clair, Penn. ; Sophie Willson, August 
2, 1852, in Green Bay, Wis., Ellen Jose- 
phine, Augu.st I, 1854, in Fort Howard, 
Wis., died February 3, 1888. Of these, 
Charles Augustus was married September 
5, 1866, in De Pere, Wis., to Elcey Mor- 
gan Arndt, who was born November 27, 
1846; they have two children, Edward 
Wallace, born October 20, 1867, and 
Ellen Baird, born April 9, 1869. Fannie 
Augusta was married at De Pare Septem- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



ber 26, 1867, to Jeremiali S. Dunham, 
and they also have two children: Lewis 
Augustus, born F"ebruary 10, 1869; and 
Edith Virginia, born May 17, 1872. Caro- 
Hne Virginia was married in De Pere, Oc- 
tober 4, 1876, to Archie Lynn Gowey, 
and they have six children; Archie Lynn, 
Eliza Carey, Paul Eugene, Pauline 
Eugenie, Ellen Virginia and Clarence 
Parish. Ellen Josephine married, June 
25. 1879, Ervvin A. Thompson, and they 
have two children: NanineM., born Aug- 
ust 2, 1 88 I, and Bessie D., born March 
28, 1885. On February 19, 1894, Capt. 
and Mrs. Lawton celebrated their • ' golden 
wedding," amid many congratulations 
and much rejoicing. Capt. Lawton was 
by birth a member of the Society of 
Friends; but having been married by a 
" hireling Priest " he was " disowned." In 
1 842 he united with the Episcopal Church, 
afterward, in 1887, becoming a member 
of the Presbyterian Church, with which 
he is still associated. In 184^ he joined 
the F. & A. M. and the I. O. O. F. 

Military Rtcord of Capt. Jose pit G. 
Lazi'toii. — On August 20, 1861, Joseph 
G. Lawton was authorized, by Governor 
Harvey, of Wisconsin, to raise a com- 
pany for service in the war of the Rebell- 
ion. By September 22 he had enlisted 
forty men, and soon thereafter received a 
commission as first lieutenant, dated Sep- 
tember 27, I 861 ; later was commissioned 
captain, and by October 21 recruited his 
company to one hundred men. On No- 
vember 12 they were ordered into camp 
at Camp Wood, Fond du Lac, arrived 
there on the 15th, and were assigned to 
the Fourteenth Regiment Wis. V. I. 
The first night they passed at Camp 
Wood, the thermometer registered twenty- 
si.x degrees below zero. At six .\. M., 
March 8, 1862, the Fourteenth regiment 
left Fond du Lac and arrived two days 
later at Benton Barracks, St. Louis, Mo., 
and there were cheered with the view of 
green fields and dry land instead of a 
country covered with snow a foot deep, 
as in Camp Wood. On March 23 they 



left Benton Barracks on steamer " Minne- 
ha-ha" for seat of war; left Cairo, III., 
March 25, and Paducah, K\'., 26th, arriv- 
ing at Savannah, Ga., 27th, and disem- 
barking from steamer 28th. lincauiped at 
Savannah until April 6, on which day 
they embarked on steamer for Pittsburg 
Landing; disembarked i 1 v. m. same day, 
and by daylight of following morning 
had occupied the right of the left wing of 
General Smith's division. The regiment, 
including Captain Lawton and his com- 
pany, participated in the battle of Pitts- 
burg Landing April 7, iS()2, and in a 
charge captured a Rebel batter)' of three 
guns, which, by Captain Lawton's orders 
and in his presence, were spiked. Dur- 
ing a slight lull in the firing, after the 
spiking of the guns. Captain Lawton ob- 
served a number of soldiers retreating, 
and supposing they were of his company, 
hastened to rally them, and ga\e them 
orders to get under cover in the wockIs. 
They obeyed, and then Captain Lawton 
discovered that they were chiefly mem- 
bers of an Illinois regiment who had 
passed through the ranks of his regiment; 
soon afterward an officer of that regiment 
came up and requested Captain Lawton's 
assistance in re-forming the men. This 
was soon accomplished, and their Colonel 
gave the order to march aiid "fire at 
will." At this the Lieutenant-Colonel 
rode up and asked the Colonel why the 
men should fire when there was no 
enemy in sight; to which he replied: 
"Only to make a noise and let them 
know we are here." Captain Lawton 
fearing that his own regiment would be 
in the line of their fire, unless they had 
retreated, went in search of them and 
meeting a lieutenant of cavalry, the latter 
suggested that the Captain should rally a 
large number of soldiers who had become 
separated from their regiments. This he 
Droceeded to do, and on looking arouna 
perceived the color-bearer of his own 
regiment and a corporal guard. Asking 
them where the regiment was, he received 
the reply that ' ■ the regiment was all cut 



34 



COMMEMOKATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



to pieces. " [To il(j tlie color-bearer jus- 
tice, it should be added that afterward, 
when he was put on oath b\ pension ex- 
aminers, he swore that it was not he who 
gave that answer, but the corporal.] 
Capt. Lawton ordered them to halt, 
and then rallied the retreating sokliers 
around the Hag, about a dozen of them 
responding. He was also endeavoring to 
get other soldiers to join the little squad, 
which took him some 1 50 yards away, 
and on his return he found that the color- 
bearer and the rest of the rallied soldiers 
had disappeared. The cavalry lieuten- 
ant said they had "gone off into the 
woods to the left;" and while they were 
yet talking a lieutenant of infantry came 
up, and reported to the cavalry lieuten- 
ant that the enemy were in full retreat. 
This being the case, Capt. Lawton re- 
paired to the regimental surgeon's head- 
quarters, which were in sight, and while 
talking with Surgeon Walker, the latter, 
looking over his shoulder, exclaimed to 
Capt. Lawton: "There is your regi- 
ment marching b)'. " Of course, the re- 
port of the regiment being cut to pieces 
was false or imaginary, as it had been 
ordered to this part of the field t(j guard 
a batter}'. The Captain then rejoined 
his regiment, which was marched back to 
place of bivouac, formed in line and or- 
dered to "rest" for the night. During 
the 8th, 9th, loth and nth of April, 
after the fight, the regiment was without 
tents, and every night it rained. 

Capt. Lawton relates some interest- 
ing incidents illustrative of the bravery 
and coolness of the men, among which 
may be here recorded the following: A 
sixteen-year-old soldier, named Philip 
Duirr, had in his excitement loaded his 
rifle ball-end of cartridge down, instead 
of powder-end, rendering the rifle tempo- 
rarily useless as a firearm. The young 
soldier, running to the Captain, reported 
his mistake, and asked what he should 
do. "Throw away your gun and pick 
up another." "But it's numbered, and 
the boys will say I lost it." "Then take 



your rod and draw the load." So, in 
.spite of the enemy's bullets flying thick 
around him, he deliberately extracted the 
charge from the barrel and reloaded his 
rifle, then ran to his captain and reported 
his "gun all right," but he could not 
"return ramrod," as the wormer had 
been screwed too tight on the rod. So 
the captain and he put their united 
strength to the job, but even then could 
not unscrew it. The rod was then 
thrown away and another jtickcd up, and 
he regained the ranks, .\nother inci- 
dent: After the battle, when the 
wounded were being cared for, Capt. 
Lawton. observing a wounded soldier 
lying on the ground in the hospital tent, 
stopped to talk to him. He found the 
man had been wounded thirty-six hours 
before, and to all appearance a bullet 
had passed through his body, entering 
his breast near the heart and coming out 
at the back. The unfortunate soldier 
had been given up by one or two of the 
surgeons; but Capt. Lawton, thinking 
that as he had lived so long after being 
wounded there might yet be some chance 
of saving his life, called to his assistance 
a surgeon who had just amputated both 
legs of a soldier at the thighs. This 
surgeon, after carefully examining the 
wound, said to the apparently dying man: 
• ' You are a good deal better than a dead 
man yet; what you want most is some- 
thing to eat; the ball has not passed 
through your body, but has simply 
entered here in your breast, broken a rib, 
glanced off, and run clear around under 
the skin, and come out at the back." 
The soldier immediately arose, and, 
although weak, walked off in search of 
his company as if nothing had happened; 
he had been lying on the ground nearly 
two days under the impression that he 
had received a fatal wound — such is the 
force of imagination! 

On .April 10, Col. Wood, who had 
been a]ipointed jirovost-marshal of the 
camp, appointed Capt. Lawton officer of 
the day, giving him at the same time the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



use of his hcirse, and he h;ul to remain in 
the saddle all day long, from early morn- 
ing until night. On the i 5th Gov. Harvey 
and staff arrived, and one of the hitter, 
Commissary-Gen. E. W'adsworth, called 
on Capt. Lawton to inform him that 
before starting for the seat of war he had 
been at De Pere and there learned that 
his (Capt. Lawton'si wife was very sick, 
and that the attending physician had said 
that her husband's return home was the 
only hope for her life being saved. Con- 
sequently, on the iSth he sent m his 
resignation, which Gen. XN'adsworth pre- 
vailed on Col. Wood to accept, and Gov. 
Harvey til approve. On the 19th Capt. 
Lawton accompanied Gow Harvey to 
Gen. Grant's headcjuarters, and the Go\- 
ernor induced the General to accept the 
resignation, and grant Capt. Lawton lea\e 
of absence and transportation home jiend- 
ing its approval by Gen. Hallcck. The 
Captain accompanied Gov. Harvey to the 
steamboat, on which they were to go to 
Cairo on their way to Wisconsin, and 
just as the_\- arrived at the gangway t<i the 
upper cabin, some one told the Governor 
that "a man wished to see him." There- 
upon Gov. Harvey requested Ca]it. Law- 
ton to take up to the cabin a Kelul gun 
and some other relics he was taking home, 
saying he would "be back in a minute." 
The Captain took the articles from him, 
carried them into the cabin, and had just 
laid them on the tal)le when some one 
came on board exclaiming, ' ' the Governor 
is drowned; " he had made a mis-step and 
had fallen off the gang-plank. Cajit. 
Lawton left on the e\'ening of the 19th 
and arrived home, a \ery sick man, on 
the afternoon of April 2},, 1863. 



H1-;XKY WAT1:K.M0LKX, derk 
of the circuit court of iJidwn 
county, is a native of Belgium, 
born October 2S, 1836, a son of 
Christopher and ISTary (Denuiylder) Water- 
molen. The family immigrated to the 
United States in 1856, settling in Helle- 



\nv. township. Brown Co., Wis., where 
the father died three weeks afterward; 
the mother passed from earth in Febru- 
ary, 1 8C0. They were the parents of 
three children, namely: Christo]iher, 
who resides on the old homestead in 
Bellevue townshii); b'rancis, retired, hav- 
ing his residence in Green Ba)', and 
Henry, the sul)ject of this sketch. 

Henry Watermolen was reared and 
educated in his nati\e land, and. as will 
be seen, was twent\- years old wIk'u he 
came to the New World. b'oi- a time, in 
order to become con\ersant with the I'.ng- 
lish language, he attended school at 
Henry, 111., subseciiu'utly (18611 taking a 
course at Munns Business College, Chi- 
cago. In that city he was emplo\'ed in a 
warehouse and commission business, 
through the day, in the evenings attend- 
ing school, until the age of twenty-six, at 
which time he returned to Green Ba)'. 
Here he engaged in the stave and shingle 
business two years, after which he moved 
to De Pere, same rountw and in Febru- 
ary, 1865, embarkt'd in general mercan- 
tile trade. Continuing in same till 1882. 
Ill that year he returned to Green Bay, 
having received the appointment of deputy 
sheriff, an incumbency he tilled four years, 
at the end of which time he was elected 
sheriff, serving as such unld 1888, when 
he was elected to his present official posi- 
tion. 

On September 5, 1865, Mr. W'ater- 
molen was united in marriage with Miss 
Elizabeth Tuyls, also a natixe of \\v\- 
gium, daughter of [ohn and .\nna Marie 
(Van Op. den Bosch) Tuyls, of the same 
coimtry, who came with their family to 
America and to Brown county. Wis., in 
1855; they died in Preble township. To 
Mr. aiul Mrs. Watermolen were liorn 
eight children, four of whom are yet liv- 
ing, to-wit: Isabella, a school teacher in 
Milwaukee, Wis.; Frances A., a student 
in the law office of Ellis & Merrill, Green 
Bay; Louise and Dora. The deceased 
are Charles F., who died in infancy, 
Josephine, at the age of seven and a half 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHTCAL RECORD. 



years, Louie F.. in infancy, and Octa\ic, 
at the age of four years. Tfie parents 
are members of St. Willebrord's (Catho- 
lic) Church. Mr. Watermolen in politics 
is an ardent Democrat, and in addition to 
the public offices above mentioned he 
served as a member of the board of trus- 
tees of De Pere; as clerk of Lawrence 
township; assessor for De Pere eight 
years, and for several years was county 
poor commissioner. 



JR. MINAHAN, M. 1). Among the 
eminent physicians and surgeons of 
Brown count}', the more prominent 
of whom find place in this volume, 
none cnjojs to a greater extent the con- 
fidence and esteem of the community at 
large than the gentleman, although }et a 
jouiig man, whose name is here recorded. 
Dr. J. R. Minahan is a native of Wis- 
consin, born September 6, 1862, in Calu- 
met county, a son of William B. and 
Mary (Shaughncssy) Minahan, natives of 
Ireland, who immigrated thence in single 
life to this country, settling in New York 
State. In New York they were married, 
and in 1850 they came west to Wisconsin, 
locating first in Manitowoc county and 
later in Calumet county, for the most part 
making their home in the town of Chilton. 



REV. PROSPER GOEPFERT, C. 
S. Sp. Emerson, the great Amer- 
ican writer, has said that "society 
is a troop of thinkers, and the best 
heads among them take the best places," 
an epigram peculiarly applicable to the 
reverend gentleman whose name is here 
recorded. 

The subject of this sketch was born 
a little over fifty years ago, in a suburban 
parish of Colmar, in the (then) French 
Province of Alsace. At an early age he 
began his classical studies in the flourish- 
ing college of that town, where year after 
year he distinguished himself in all his 
classes, and won the esteem and affection 



of his masters and fellow-students. At 
the age of eighteen he felt himself called 
to enter the arena of foreign missions, 
and with that purpose in view entered the 
Society of the Holy Ghost, whose mem- 
bers, though laboring in every part of the 
earth, are chiefly de\()teil to the conver- 
sion of the heathen in Africa, where they 
have established numerous Christian set- 
tlements. After spending three years at 
the College of Langonnet, in Brittany, 
where he finished his literary studies, he 
took a five-years' philosophical and theo- 
logical course at the seminary of the So- 
ciety in Paris. Here, always crowned 
with marked success, he eagerly availed 
himself of every opportunity to "drink 
deep of the Pierian spring." 

In 1866 he was raised to the priest- 
hood by Prince Cardinal Chigi, then Papal 
nuncio at the court of Napoleon III. In 
the following year his superiors, instead 
of complying with his desires to devote 
his life to the conversion of the unen- 
lightened natives of the dark continent, 
sent him to Rockwell College, Cashel, 
Ireland, where he remained for twenty- 
two years as master of novices, and pro- 
fessor of almost every branch of educa- 
tion. During the last ten years of Father 
Goepfert's stay in Erin he filled with dis- 
tinction the position of president of Rock- 
well College, which has always ranked 
among the foremost educational institu- 
tions of the country. 

In 1890 our subject came to Michigan, 
and at Dearborn, Wayne county, he was 
for three years the beloved pastor of a 
parish under the direction of the Congre- 
gation of the Holy Ghost, and although 
but a limited field for so enunent a scholar 
and prominent a priest of the Congrega- 
tion, he was the same hard worker in his 
Master's vineyard, and when he was sent 
to his present charge in Green Bay. Wis., 
he left a record of Christian charity, genial 
characteristics, hospitality, and last, not 
least, hard work in the comforting of the 
unfortunate and the salvation of souls. 
Early in the year 1893 he came to Green 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOO nAPIlICA L UKCOUD. 



37 



Ba\' to take charge of the thriving parish 
of St. John. 

Besides his many otiier accoinphsh- 
inents, Father Goepfert has attained no 
Httle distinction as an author, having writ- 
ten and pubhshed, during his sojourn in 
Ireland, a work of much celebrity, en- 
titled ' ' Life of the \'enerable Libermann, 
Founder of the Congregation of the Holy 
Ghost;" he also founded and edited till 
his departure from Ireland the popular 
monthly magazine, "The Messenger of 
St. Joseph." In spite of his hard studies 
and harder teaching, as well as the great 
responsibility confided to him. Father 
Goepfert is still active, hale and vigorous, 
and his healthy appearance predicts for 
him a long period \'et of energetic useful- 
ness and success as a minister in his new 
field of labor. 



Be. BI-JETT, M. I)., is the oldest 
active practitioner in the city of 
(h'een Bay. He is a native of 
the State of Maine, liorn in 
Franklin county in 1835, a son of C. H. 
and Mary fHunter) Brett, also of Maine 
nativity, the mother born in Franklin 
county. About the year i 86j the family 
came west, locating in Minnesota, the 
parents shortly afterward mo\'ing to and 
settling in the town of Henry, S. Dak. 
They were quiet, unassuming, farming 
people, in their honorable pursuit, desir- 
ing to live " far from the madding crowd's 
ignoble strife." The)- were the parents 
of nine children, as follows: B. C, of 
whom this sketch chieHy relates; Mrs. 
Lucy A. Baker (a widow), residing in St. 
Paul, Minn. ; Mrs. E. P. Baker, in Henry, 
S. Dak.; George E., in Mankato, Minn.; 
Frank R. and Mrs. G. F. Piper, both 
also in Henry, S. Dak., and Jennie M., 
Maud, and Mrs. Sarah Jordan, deceased. 
B. C. Brett received his elementary 
education in the schools of Franklin 
county and Augusta, Maine, and in 1857 
entered the medical department of Bow- 
doin College, Brunswick, same State, 



whence, in 1859. he went to the medical 
department of Dartmouth College, Han- 
over, N. H., where he gratiuated in the 
class of 'Oo. He then commenced hospi- 
tal and dispensar}' practice in New York 
City, diligentl}- devoting to it his entire 
time and attention until i86j, in which 
year he came to Highland, Iowa Co., 
Wis. Here, the Civil war being in pro- 
gress, he was offered a commission as 
assistant-surgeon to the Si.xteenth Wis. 
V. I., which he, however, declined; but 
later (same year) was commissioned as- 
sistant-surgeon to the Twenty-first Wis. 
V. I., which position he accepted. He 
joined the regiment at Mitchellville, 
Tenn., and served with it throughout the 
campaign in which it participated in the 
battles of Stone River, Chickamauga and 
minor engagements, as well as those 
which occurred during " Sherman's march 
to the sea." In January, 1865, the Doc- 
tor was commissioned surgeon in the 
Seventeenth Wis. V. I., but on account 
of the illness of his wife was obliged to 
decline. In 1865 he was honorably dis- 
charged from the service at Sav;innah, 
Ga. , and returned to Wisconsin. In 
1866 he commenced the general practice 
of his profession in the town of Brodhead, 
Green county, remaining there until July, 
1872, when he came to Green Bay. In 
addition to his regular practice Dr. Brett 
is A. A. Surgeon in the U. S. Marine 
Hospital Service, has l)een Health Officer 
of Green Bay fifteen years, and for nine 
years was U. S. E.xamining Surgeon for 
Pensions. 

On April 19, i860, Dr. B. C. Brett 
was united in marriage with Miss Lucy 
Wilson Eastman, daughter of William H. 
and Eliza Eastman, all of the State of 
Maine, who after the war of the Rebellion 
came to Green Bay; the parents are both 
deceased, the father having died January 
10, 18S7, the mother July 17, 1884. To 
Dr. and Mrs. P>rett were born children as 
follows: I'rank. who died in Green Bay 
August 2, 1879, at the age of nineteen; 
Fred N. (married), attending Rush Medi- 



3S 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGliAPHICAL RECORD. 



cal College, Chicago; Anii;i E., Jennie 
M., and James K., all at home. The 
parents are members of the Presbyterian 
Church. Dr. Brett is president of the 
Wisconsin State Medical Society, presi- 
dent of the Brown C'ljunty Medical So- 
ciety, a member of the Fo.\ River \'alley 
Medical Society, of the Brainerd Medical 
Society, and of the Menomonee River 
Medical Society. Socially he is a mem- 
ber of Washington Lodge, No. 2i, F. & 
A. M., and of Warren Chapter; is Sur- 
geon of T. O. Howe Post, G. A. K. ; and 
is a member of the Wisconsin Command- 
ery of the Loyal Legion of the United 
States. Politically he is an active Re- 
publican. 



X.\\"IER MARTIN was born Janu- 
ary lO, 1832, in the commune of 
drez-Doiceau, Province of Bra- 
bant, Kingdom of Belgium, emi- 
grating to the United States with his 
father and mother, brothers and sisters, 
and landing in New York, July 5, 1853, 
from which city he proceeded at once to 
Philadelphia. Here his father and mother 
remained about a \ear. whence they 
moved to Brown county, \\'is. , locating 
in the Belgium settlement, where they 
bought governnient land, and there they 
livecl, with their children, by farming and 
making shingles. They were honest, 
God-fearing people, and members of the 
French Presbyterian Church. The family 
trace their ancestry to the year 1665, and, 
originally, to the city of Paris, France. 
John Martin, father of Xavier, was 
born in the Parish of Dion-Ie-val, Depart- 
ment of the Dyle, on the 21st Brumaire, 
in the year XIII of the French Republic, 
which date corresponds with the i 2th of 
No\ ember, 1804. He died on his farm 
in I 870. 

Aseline Bosel, mother i>[ Xa\ier. was 
born in the city of Brussels, Belgium, in 
October, 1805. and died in the city of 
Green Bay, Wis., in 1874. John Martin, 
by his wife Aseline, raised a family of 



Tiine children, their names and births 
being as follows: Constant, born May 
I 1, 1830, lived in the city of Green Bay, 
engaged in the real-estate and insurance 
business until his death, which occurred 
June 16, 1894; Xavier, born January 10, 
1S32, now living in the citj' of Green Bay, 
engaged in the real-estate and insurance 
business; Martin Leon, born June 28, 
1834, died July 2, 1863, and until his 
death was engaged in farming and lum- 
bering; Pierre Joseph, born November 24, 
1836, died February 3, 1840; Desire, 
born August 23, 1839, died August 16, 
1855; Mar\' Eleonore (now Mrs. Joseph 
Dhynej, born November 23, 1841, is 
residing in the city of Green Bay; Alex- 
ander, born December 6, 1843. now 
residing at Bayticld, Wis. ; Elie, born 
.\ugust 12, 1848, is now residing in the 
cit}' of (MX'cn Ba}', engaged in the real- 
estate and insurance business, and is also 
a popular justice of the peace; Celina 
(now Mrs. I'rancois Hannon), born Janu- 
ary 29, 1852, is living on their farm in the 
town of Scott, Brown Co., Wisconsin. 

Xavier Martin came from Belgium to 
Philadelphia, Penn., in 1853, where he 
remained four \ears, and there studied 
the English language and literature under 
Prof. Gardner, a professor of languages 
and literature in that city. In 1857 he 
left Philadelphia and came to Brown 
count}', Wis., visiting the Belgian settle- 
ment, where his people lived. Here he 
was induced to locate, there being no one 
in the settlement who could speak, read 
or write the ICnglish language, and for 
li\e years Mr. Martin labored among the 
people of the settlement in the capacity 
of school teach'er, justice of the peace, 
town clerk, school superintendent and 
postmaster, and, in a great measure, 
through him, his energy and his influence 
in his official capacity, new highways were 
laid out, new schot>l districts were formed, 
new school-houses were built, and teachers 
provided. In the fall of 1862, at the 
general election, he was elected register 
of deeds for Brown county, consequently 



COMMEMUUA TIVK BlOHllAl'lIICA 1. liKCORD. 



39 



on the 1st of January, 1863, lie had to 
lea\e tlie Belgian scttlemLMit and imivc 
with liis fainil}- to tlic city of Cireen Hay, 
tlicif to assume tlu- (hitics of register of 
deeds, to which he was elected fur four 
consecutive terms (eis^lit years). In 1S71 
he estabhshed liis present business, that 
of real-estate and insurance assent, in 
which he has been engaged up to the pres- 
ent time, and he has been closely identi- 
fied with the liusiness interests of the 
city of Green I^ay for o\er thirty- 
one years. He has ser\ed his city 
in various official capacities. In 1875 
antl 1 S/') he was an active member of the 
city council; was president of same dur- 
ing the last year, and was chairman of the 
Finance Committee both years. In 1882 
he was elected city assessor by the city 
coinicil, an office he has continued to fill 
witli credit to himself and satisfaction of 
his constituents, having been elected and 
re-elected to that important office thirteen 
times, and is still occupj'ing that position. 
Mr. Martin has been thrice married: 
First time, in 1855, in Philadelphia, 
Penn., to Miss Mary K. Gray, the second 
time in 1873 to Miss Augusta Bliske, who 
l)ore him eight children, six of whom are 
li\ing, as follows: I\udol])h, Albert, Paul- 
ine, b'rederick, Fvclynn and Richard. 
The mother of these children died in 
Green Hay in 1887, and in 188S Mr. 
Martin married Mrs. .Amelia Dendoven 
(wcV Amelia Gosin), daughter of Dieudon- 
nez Gosin, who, in 1S58. came from Bel- 
gium to one of the lielgian settlements in 
Kewaunee county. Wis. In liis political 
preferments Mr. Martin is an active Re- 
publican. He is one of the founders of 
the Wisconsin Society for the Prevention 
of Cruelty to Animals, organized in 1S74 
and incorporated in 1882; was elected its 
first president, and has filled that office 
ever since. Socially he is a ineml)er of 
the Knights of Honor, and of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows. He is 
also a member of Washington Lodge No. 
21, of Free and Accepted Masons, and in 
Masonr\' has been elected and served as 



senior deacon, and junirjr and senior 
warden; in the chapter of Royal Arch 
Masons he has Ihhmi elected and served as 
scribe one year, king two years, and is 
now a loyal and select master in the 
Council of i\.o\al and Select Masters. 



CONSTANT M.AKTIN, late dealer 
in real estate, and insurance and 
general collection agent, was a 
natix'e of the Province of Brabant, 
Belgium, born May 11, 1830, a son of 
John and Aseline (Bosel) Martin. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in his native lan<l, and followed the rest 
of the family to the United States. Im- 
mediately on his arrival in Philadelphia 
he conmienced the study of the English 
language. In l^elgium he had been en- 
gaged as clerk, but in this country he at 
once commenced buying and selling land, 
and l)ecame one af the most extensive 
real-estate dealers in northern Wisconsin, 
largely interested in town property. In 
1853 Mr. Martin was united in marriage, 
in Philadelphia, with Miss Fannie Gillon, 
a natix'e of Brussels, Belgium, by whom 
there were two children, \'iz. ; Clotilde 
and Joseph, who both died in 1870 (as 
did also their mother), the girl at the age 
of fourteen years, the boy when two 
months old. In 1870 Mr. Martin was 
married, in Green Bay, to Mary Louisa 
Rosenberg, a native of Johnstown, N. Y., 
daughter of Peter and Louisa (Isham) 
Rosenberg, who came from New York 
State to Clinton, Wis. , and from there in 
1867 to Green Bay, where both died. To 
this seconil marriage of Mr. Martin were 
born two children, viz. : James C, engaged 
in the insurance Ijusiness with his father, 
and George, deceased in infancy. In his 
political preferences our subject was an 
Independent. In 1866 he was a member 
of the Assembly; in 1867 he was deputy 
United States assessor; in 1870 he was 
deputy marshal for the Northern District 
of Wisconsin; also, same year, postmaster 
at Red River, and was a member and 



4o 



COMMEMOHATIVE BWUIiAJ^llJVAL RECORD. 



chairman of the board. For five years 
he was town clerk of Red River; served 
as a justice of the peace five years; and 
for two years was school superintendent 
for Kewaunee county, ^fr. Martin was a 
resident of that county from 1859 to 1874, 
and of Green I3ay from 1874 until his 
death, which occurred June 16, 1894. 
From 1885 till 1892 he was an active 
member of the board of education in the 
city of Green Bay. This family trace 
their ancestr}- to the year 1665, and orig- 
inally to the City of Paris, France. 



W1:BSTER a. BINGHAM. Pre- 
senting as it does a worthy ex- 
ample to the rising generation, 
the life of this gentleman, which 
from earl}' boyhood has been one of as- 
siduous industry, untiring energy and un- 
questioned integrity, is well deserving of 
being sketched, however briefly, in the 
pages of this volume. 

Mr. Bingham was born March 25, 
1844, in Ogle county. 111., a son of Hol- 
land Weeks and Sarah S. (Goodrich) 
Bingham, both natives of Cornwall, Vt., 
the father born in 1804, the mother in 
i8io. They were married in the East, 
in 1836; moved, in 1838, to a farm in 
Ogle county, 111., and from there, in 1849, 
to \\'atertown. Wis., one daughter, aged 
eight years, and one son (our subject), 
aged five years, accompanying them. The 
latter was educated at the Watertown 
(Wis.) High School, and at the age of 
fourteen commenced the battle of life bj- 
carrying brick at twenty-five cents per 
day. He also during the summer vaca- 
tions worked in a m'achine shop; a part of 
the time, up to the age of seventeen, ran 
a stationary engine, and when he was but 
si.xteen \ears old he taught a country 
school near Watertown; by which it will 
be seen that his early life experience was 
of a decidedly versatile character. ]-5ut 
he was always equal to the occasion. He 
was possessed of vigorous natural abilities, 
and although his opportunities for acquir- 



ing knowledge were but few, jet he ap- 
plied his powers of (observation upon the 
things which were nearest to him, and the 
boy became father to the man. In 1861, 
at the age of seventeen, he enlisted in the 
First Wis. \'. C, in which regiment he 
experienced three years of constant active 
service in the Civil war, never being absent 
from his post of duty during any engage- 
ment in which the" First " participated. 
He received slight promotions in the non- 
commissioned line, and in 1864. at the 
age of twenty, by reason of expiration of 
term of service, was mustered out as regi- 
mental quartermaster-sergeant. Return- 
ing to Wisconsin, he entered upon a 
course of study at the Spencerian Business 
College, Milwaukee, and when his course 
was nearly completed secured a position 
in one of the departments of the college 
as teacher, which he held for a short time 
until a situation was open to him in a cer- 
tain large wholesale hardware house in 
Milwaukee, at that time one of the most 
prominent firms in the West. In this 
business he remained as salesman eight 
years, advancing from a salary of five 
hundred dollars to twenty-five hundred 
dollars per annum, and becoming very 
popular with the trade. In the fall of 
1872 he engaged in a general merchandise 
business in West De Pere, Brown Co., 
Wis., on a small capital, which was more 
than doubled the first two years, the sales 
having been pushed up to ninety thousand 
dollars the first year, in an ordinary coun- 
try store, and for several successive years 
increased until a steady and permanent 
trade was established, which has been al- 
most phenomenally successful from its 
commencement to the present time. The 
business has been conducted on the best 
and most secure business priciplcs, and 
no firm in Brown county stands higher 
either with customers or creditors. 

In 18S7 Mr. Bingham made a trip to 
California, in reality for recreation; but 
an opening for manufacturing presenting 
itself strongly, he became one of the 
members of a large corporation organized 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOCrRAPJlWAL RECORD. 



41 



for the pui'iiose of iiiaiinfacturiiii; tiic-rlay 
products, principally vitrified j'ipe for ir- 
rigation purposes, city sewers, etc. The 
full management of this company \\as 
soon placed in his hands, and for several 
years he has been the president and man- 
ager of the "Pacific Clay Manufacturing 
Company," of Los Angeles, Cal. The 
concern is in a most prosperous condi- 
tion, and has paid regular dividends to the 
stockholders each year, under his manage- 
ment. He retains his business interests 
in De Pere (which is really his home), and 
gives them as much personal attenticin as 
is needed. 

In 1869 Mr. Bingham was married in 
Milwaukee to Miss Fannie H. Bird, of 
Cambridge, Mass. , and three children 
have blessed their union, named respect- 
ively; Mary Homer, .Arthur Walter and 
Susan Abbott. In religious faith he has 
been an active member of the Congrega- 
tional Church from the age of si.xteen; in 
political predilections he is a Republican, 
but not an active politician, and has 
served on the l)oard of education of \\'est 
De Pcre, ten years, and as mayor of that 
city, one year. Now at the age of fifty 
years, and in the prime of life, Mr Bing- 
ham is in perfect health, with some of tha 
best years before him, as he believes, and 
he deserves to lake pride in a substantial, 
though modest, business record which 
stands without a blemish. 



M 



AKTIN VAX BEEK, owner of 
one of the finest farms in 
Preble township. Brown coun- 
ty, is well-known as one of the 
most industrious and progressive farmers 
of his section. 

He was born October 29, 1842, in 
Holland, son of John Van Beek, who 
was a carpenter by trade, at which he 
worked in his native countrj', being also 
employed as a plow- maker. In 1850 
John \'an Beek emigrated from Holland, 
on June 24, that year, landing in Green 
Bay, Wis., with his family of five chil- 



dren three sons and two daughters. On 
arriving here he had but t(>n guilders (four 
dollars) left, and inmiediately went to 
work for Judge Ellis (at a place near 
where Hagemeister's l)rewery now is), 
repairing a sawmill, and also at his trade. 
So limited were their circumstances at 
first that the family lived in a stable, and 
later for four months in a blacksmith 
shop, after which they removed to a house 
owned by Jtjshua Whitney's father. Thus 
Mr. Van Beek struggled along, and after 
some years was able to purchase a house 
and lot, and still later i 20 acres of land 
in Preble township. Brown county, part 
of which is now incorporated in the farm 
of our subject. John Van Beek passed 
from earth in 1S83, at Bay Settlement; 
his wife died May 23, 1880, at the same 
place, and they now lie buried in Bay Set- 
tlement cemetery. After coming here 
Mr. Van Beek visited his native country 
once, but was not content to remain 
there. From being a poor man he had, 
by hard work and honest industry, ac- 
cumulated a comfortable competence, 
and he was highly respected in his lo- 
cality. 

Martin Van Beek was deprived of 
educational advantages in his youth by 
the limited circumstances of his parents, 
who needed his help; but he was anxious 
to learn, and attended night school even 
after his marriage. During his later years 
he has been a great reader, and in this 
manner, and by observation, he has se- 
cured a practical education. When but 
a boy he was initiated into the details of 
the lumber business, becoming c]uite 
skilled in the care of saws, and was also 
expert at manufacturing shingles by hand. 
When a little older he did some sailing on 
the lakes and ocean. At New Franken, 
Wis., he found work as head sawyer in a 
shingle mill. He was completely at home 
in the lumber business, and during fifteen 
springs he "rode logs," at \\hich he had 
few equals, for \\hich hazardous labor he 
has been paid as much as seven dollars per 
day. But being of a roving disposition, 



42 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



he lias not been content to remain at 
home all the time, and, especialh' as a 
sailor, has probably traveled more than 
any other farmer in his neighborhood. 

On January 2, 1S67, Mr. Van Beek 
was married to Miss Catharine Bomber, 
who was born April 18, 1843, in Bel- 
gium, a daughter of Agelius I^omber, and 
came to the United States when thirteen 
years old; her parents resided in Green 
Bay. To tliis marriage have been born 
thirteen children, three of whom — Mar- 
garet A.. Joseph and William -are de- 
ceased. The others are named as fol- 
lows: Mary, Henry, John, Josephine, 
Joseph, Gertrude, Elizabeth, Samuel, 
Aloysius and William. At the time of 
his marriage Mr. Van Beek located in 
Green Bay, and shortly after went with a 
surveying corps, who were laj'ing out the 
course of the Green Bay, Winona & St. 
Paul railroad. Upon his return home he 
again engaged in the lumber business, 
remaining with one firm, Clouse & 
Featherly, for fi\e years, during which 
time his work was such that he gained 
some knowledge of the blacksmith and 
machinist trades. For two stunmers he 
was in the employ of Earl iS: Case, and 
received good wages, scaling lumber and 
"booming logs." He also commenced 
to learn the printer's trade in the Gazette 
office at Green Bay, but gave it up on 
account of his fiealth. During these 
years he had saved some monej', and 
built a home in Green Bay, which he 
subsequently traded for forty acres of 
land where he now lives, and to which 
he has added other forty acres. When 
he took up his residence on this land it 
was covered with stumps, was very 
swampy, and, altogether, in such poor 
condition that he found it necessary to 
tile almost the whole farm. But his 
labor has been well repaid, for to-day he 
has one of the best farms in Preble town- 
ship, the result of years of hard work and 
systematic management. While not a 
life-long farmer, he has, during his resi- 
dence here, proven himself capable and 



progressive in the agricultural depart- 
ment, paying special attention to the 
raising of garden truck. 

During the Civil war Mr. Van Beek 
enlisted in the United States service, at 
Oconto, Wis., but was rejected on ac- 
count of his youth. He afterward en- 
listed at Berlin, Wis., and was again 
rejected, this time on account of injuries 
received in a fall. Politically he is a 
stanch I'iepublican, and a strong sup- 
porter of the principles of that party, but 
he gives no time to party affairs, his own 
interests requiring all his attention. In 
religious connection he and his wife are 
members of the Catholic Church, in 
which he has been councilor some vears. 



E 



DWARD DECKER was born 
May 2, 1827, in Casco, Cumber- 
land Co., Maine, son of David 
and Eliza (Dunham) Decker. 
The progenitor of the Decker family in 
America was the great-great-grandfather 
of our subject, coming from England, and 
settling on the Kennebec river, in Maine, 
where he became a prominent and pros- 
perous citizen. His grandson, David 
Decker, removed to Cumberland county, 
Maine, in an early day, married Jemima 
Decker, a cousin, and they became the 
parents of the following children: Mary, 
David, John. William, Eunice. Charles, 
Nathan and Spencer. Of these, David 
Decker, was a well-known character in 
his community, was a Jacksonian Demo- 
crat, and had considerable influence in 
local and State politics. By occupation 
he was a merchant and miller, his mill 
property being situated on the Kennebec 
river; and as he was a capable business 
man he prospered, but he also met with 
many reverses. About 1857 he was in- 
duced by his son, Edward, to come west 
to Wisconsin, where he purchased a half 
section of land in Kewaunee county, near 
Casco, so named by his son, Edward, in 
honor of his birthplace. Here David 
Decker died in 1865 at the ags of sixty- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



45 



four years. His wife, Eli^ja (Dunham), 
was a daughter of Jesse Dunham, a na- 
tive of Boston, Mass., who resided in 
Otisfield, Maine. Domestic, kind-hearted, 
charitable, and possesse(i of many en- 
dearing quahties of head and heart, she 
had hosts of friends. To her and her 
husband were liorn eight chilciren, narne- 
\\: Edward, Ehza Ann, Stillman, Levi, 
Lucw Adehne, Jesse and Lizzie. She 
died in I 889, at the age of eighty years. 
Her family, the Dunhams, were generally 
noted for stability in l)usiness and social 
circles. 

ICdward Decker received in his boy- 
hooil but few advantages, even of the 
pulilic schools, and at the age of fourteen 
he left home and proceeding to Portland, 
Maine, there obtained a position, working 
for eight dollars per month. When six- 
teen vears old he went to Boston, where 
he clerked for his uncle in a general store 
two years. During his stay in that city 
Mr. Decker heard a good deal about 
Iowa, enough to induce him to set out for 
that State; but while in Milwaukee lie was 
persuaded to locate with a large party in 
\\'isconsin, and thus the State gained a 
\'aluable citizen. He landed in Milwau- 
kee, May 2, 1845, and after one )-ear's 
residence in Watertown, Wis., moved to 
Oshkosh, where he embarked in the lum- 
ber business, being the tirst man to run 
logs to that ])lace, in which connection he 
became well known. Under a treaty 
with the Indians, Robert Grignon had 
permission to l)uild a sawmill on Indian 
lands along the Little W^jlf river, and 
Mr. Decker contracted to stock the mill 
with logs, he receiving half of the lumber. 
This lumber was rafted and run down the 
river, where it was disposed of among the 
■early settlers of Winnebago county, and 
pieces of same are still to be found in the 
old houses of that section. Mr. Decker 
continued in the lumber business three 
years, and then built a hotel in Menasha, 
which he conducted for a short time. 
Selling this and other property he re- 
moved in 1S55 to Kewaunee count}'. Wis. 



(where he entered a large amount of land 
with the intention of establishing a set- 
tlement;, opened a store and cleared 
some land. In 1856 the count}' was or- 
ganized and county officers elected, but 
Mr. Decker declined to ha\e an}'thing to 
do with the organization. The county 
officers being inexperienced, however, all 
failed to (pialify in the following |anuar}', 
and he was requested by prominent busi- 
ness men in the county to organize the 
affairs and establish the different offices. 
Having set the machiner}' going, and hav- 
ing been deputized by the treasurer and 
clerk, he set to work to put things in run- 
ning order, and the business was soon in 
proper condition. At the end of two 
years he was elected clerk, and continued 
to serve as such many years, being re- 
elected often against his wish; he held the 
office until January i, 1869. In the fall 
of 1859 Mr. Decker was elected State 
senator, in which capacit}' he served one 
term. At the next convention his name 
was again used, but he refused to be a 
candidate, and when tendered the nomi- 
nation declinetl to accept it. In the same 
fall the Republicans and Democrats called 
a mass convention, and again offered him 
the nomination, which he, as before, re- 
fused. 

Regardless of part}' politics, he per- 
formed some deeds of daring and acts of 
charity that are entitled to honorable 
mention in the history of the State. Diu'- 
ing the Civil war the draft was inevitable 
in many counties in Wisconsin, and in 
some armed resistance was feared. The 
principal population of Kewaunee county 
was foreign, and resisted the draft; armed 
bodies of men discussed the situation, and 
excitement ran high. Troops had been 
ordered to the scene of trouble, l)lood- 
shed seemed unavoidable, and the feeling 
was bitter against the government. At 
this critical stage the cooler heads of the 
representative men of the State proposed 
Edward Decker as the only man who in 
all probability could act as United Slates 
deput}' provost marshal, and avert blood- 



46 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



shed and the dire consequences attendinj; 
it. He realized to the full the difficult 
task before him, but finally was persuaded 
to accept it. His record as county officer, 
friend, business man and neifjhbor, all 
combined to aid him, but it was weeks 
after accepting the office before any im- 
pression could be made on the wrathful 
inhabitants, who regarded him as an 
enemy to their rights and privileges. 
Many of his acquaintances refused to 
speak to him on meeting, and manifested 
marked hostility. He had stipulated that 
no armed force should be sent into the 
Territory, and had secured other rights 
and privileges which he could make use 
of if occasion demanded; so by degrees 
the hostility subsided, and his influence 
with the people was felt. The cooler 
heads saw the wisdom of his counsel, 
and eventually the obno.xious draft was 
avoided, money was subscribed liberally, 
and bounties were paid. Mr. Decker's 
full share in bringing this about will never 
be fully learned, but many an old farmer 
and father remembers the aid he received 
in that trying time. 

During all these years, besides attend- 
ing to his public duties, he looked after 
his settlement on Decker creek, which, 
as before mentioned, was named ' ' Casco " 
in honor of his birthplace. He eventually 
established a lumber mill, which is still in 
operation; owns 1,500 acres in a body at 
Casco, and 1,500 acres in the vicinity. 
His long service in the county office made 
him familiar with every acre of land in 
Kewaunee and Door counties, where he 
owns, altogether, over ten thousand acres, 
this land being accumulated by degrees, 
excepting the old homestead at Casco, 
where he bought three thousand acres at 
one time. After withdrawing from the 
county offices Mr. Decker intended to go 
into the railroad business, starting a road 
from Green Bay to St. Paul, and a com- 
pany was organized which obtained a 
charter. Associated with Mr. Decker 
were Col. C. B. Robinson, editor of the 
Green Bav Advocate, and Anton Klaus, 



a merchant and lumberman. The pro- 
ject was a bold one, and there is no doubt 
that, had it been carried out, it would 
have been a success, and the road would 
probably have been the first through the 
Northwest to the Pacific coast; but al- 
though aid was voted, no material pro- 
gress was made. In 1868 Mr. Decker 
concluded to embark in the undertaking 
in earnest; new directors were elected, 
and he was made president, but Provi- 
dence had ordered it otherwise. He was 
injured in a runaway, his left arm being 
so mangled as to necessitate amputation, 
he was disabled for over a year, and he 
consequently resigned the presidency, and 
the road was subsequently built by others 
to Winona. Minn., instead of St. Paul. 
Always active in business affairs, he has 
been interested in many deals, and has 
been a silent partner in various concerns. 
While residing in Kewaunee he had 
an interest in the large lumber mills there, 
which he subsequently sold to good ad- 
vantage. In 1872 he took up his resi- 
dence in Green Bay, and purchased a 
controlling interest in the Bank of Com- 
merce, of which he became one of the 
officers, and with which he retained his 
connection several years. Removing 
again to Casco, he built up quite an ex- 
tensive business there, also conducting 
from that place his interest in various 
enterprises with which he was identified. 
He became one of the main stockholders 
of the Kewaunee Exchange Bank, which 
has since been incorporated as one of the 
State Banks of Wisconsin, and of which 
he is now president. In 1881 he started 
a private bank at Ahnapco, called the 
Bank of Ahnapse. of which he is president 
and owns the entire stock. In 18S8. in 
company with James Keogh. he founded 
the Bank of Sturgeon Bay, of which he is 
also president. In February, 1891, Mr. 
Decker and his son David organized the 
Bank of Two Rivers, Wis., of which he 
is president and David Decker cashier. 

Though ever engaged with the many 
duties of the various commercial enter- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



47 



prises with which he was comiected, Mr. 
Decker still found time to devote to news- 
paper work. In June, 1859, he brought 
to Kewaunee a printing press, which he 
had purchased at Menasha, where it had 
been used to print a small weekly. None 
of the Kewaunee citizens knew of this 
enterprise till its arrival, and having a 
cousin who acted as his clerk, and who 
was a professional printer, Mr. Decker 
got him to set it up and started the Ke- 
waunee Enterprise, a paper politically 
Democratic; in January, 1869, it was 
sold to John M. Reed. In 1S85 Mr. 
Decker bought a half interest in the Green 
Bay Advocate, which has since been in- 
corporated as the Green Bay Advocate 
Company, of which he is president and 
principal stockholder. This paper is pub- 
lished both daily and weekly and is also 
Democratic. Mr. Decker has just com- 
pleted the building of a railroad from Casco 
Junction to Sturgeon Bay, called the 
Ahnapee & Western railway, of which he 
is president. The road, which is practically 
his own conception, is thirty-four miles in 
length, and is operated as a general freight 
and passenger line. 

Mr. Decker is the father of six chil- 
dren, viz. : George A. (of California), 
Mrs. Anna Curtin, David B., Edward, 
Nathan and Libbie, the latter of whom is 
a student at Grafton Hall. 

Although Mr. Decker's position in life 
makes him a conspicuous figure in this 
part of the State of Wisconsin, he is yet 
the most companionable and approach- 
able of men, and has an ever ready ear 
and a helping hand for those in distress or 
seeking advice in business matters. In 
summing up his life sketch it is but just to 
speak more fully of his relation to the 
business world of the State, for the men 
that compose it have universally a high 
respect for his integrity and moral worth. 
His success in life has led to many in- 
quiries regarding his methods in business, 
which are sound and safe, and peculiarly 
free from the vortex of speculation which 
has made a few wealthy men, but which 



has ruined sn many of the rcalJN' progres- 
si\'e and enterprising. Aside fnnii his 
proverbial square-dealing with rich and 
poor, it is his attention to details that has 
been the foimdation and rock of all his suc- 
cesses. The ser\ices he has rendered in 
developing the resources of the State, and 
more especial!}' those of Kewaunee and 
Door counties, will best lu- appreciated 
by a new and thinking generation, who 
will be more able, as time gives opportun- 
ity for reflectit)n, to truly comprehend antl 
revere the memory of its [lioneers who 
were its best benefactors. 



JH. EBELING, one of the most 
prominent millers in Green Bay, was 
born in i8:;r) in Holstein, Germany, 
a son of J. H. and Anna Dorothea 
fWinert) Ebeling. The father, who was 
also a miller, died in Germany in 1851, 
the mother surviving imtil about 1887. 
Of their eighteen children, Henry N. and 
J. H. (our subject) now reside in (a'een 
Bay. 

In 1864 j. H. libeling came to the 
United States, and in Mishicot, Mani- 
towoc Co., Wis., was engaged, in part- 
nership with Mr. Soenksen, in milling 
tmtil 1866, when he came to (ireen 15ay. 
Here he worked as a miller for a Mr. 
Hoeffel two years; then, in i86,S, went to 
New Franken, Brown comity, built a 
Hour mill, and under the firm name of 
Smith & Ebeling carried on the business 
until 1876, when the mill was destroyed 
by fire. In 1877 the present floin- mills 
were erected, Mr. Ebeling and H. A. 
Straubel being then the proprietors. The 
mills were built with four run of buhrs, 
and later rebuilt to the roller system and 
enlarged to a capacity of 300 barrels of 
flour per day, with an elevator attached, 
of 45,000 bushels capacity. The mills 
were run under the firm name of Ebeling 
& Straubel's mill until March, 1894, when 
Mr. Ebeling bought his partner's interest, 
and has since conducted the business on 
his sole account. Mr. Ebeling is jiresi- 



48 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOGliAPHICAL RECORD. 



dent of the Coliiiiibi;in 15akery Company, 
is a stockholder in the Brown County Fair 
& Park Association, and holds various 
other important business interests. 

He was married, in 1865, in Mishicot, 
to Miss Mary, daughter of Carl Frederic 
and Augusta (Kun/e) Altmann, all natives 
of Dresden, Germany. To this union 
were born four children, viz.: J. H., Jr., 
engineer at the mills; Frederic Charles, 
traveling salesman for the same; Marie 
C. ; and William Theodore, shipping clerk 
for the mills. Mr. Plbeling is in politics a 
Republican. His business qualifications 
are universally recognized, and it may be 
mentioned, to his great credit, that he 
started in his present lucrative trade with 
a cash capital of only one thousand dollars. 



CII.\KLi:S WEST DAY, of the 
city of De Pere, was born July i, 
1836, in the town of Limerick, 
Jefferson Co., X. Y. , and is a son 
of Otis and Elmira (Scribner) Day, both 
also natives of New York State, the for- 
mer of whom was a farmer by occupa- 
tion. Three children were born to Mr. 
and Mrs. Day in New York State, as fol- 
lows: Charles W., our sul)ject; Philander 
I., a butcher and fanner, of Wrightstown, 
Wis., and Frances, wh<j died in Wrights- 
town at the age of seven years. 

In November, 1849, Otis Day sold his 
farm and decided to come to Wisconsin, 
then the " Far West," which State was 
offering cheap homes at the time men- 
tioned. .\ccompanied by his family, he 
journeyed to Buffalo, N. Y. ; and thence 
via the lakes to Manitowoc; thence to 
Green Bay, in January, 1850, reaching 
Wrightstown, Brown county, where he 
entered a tract of eighty acres of land. 
The route from Green Bay to this land 
led through an unbroken wilderness, and 
from De Pere down was only a trail, which 
had to be cut through to form a road for 
the passage of his team. On his eighty 
acres Mr. Day erected the first habitation 
ever occupied by a white man in that re- 



gion — a cabin of logs covered with bass- 
wood boughs, which was occupied by the 
Da\' family seven or eight jears before a 
more substantial and pretentious residence 
was substituted. The sufferings of the 
family from sickness at that early day 
were terrible in the e.xtreme, and at one 
time Charles \\'. was the only member of 
the household able to be on his feet. He 
brought supplies from De Pere on his 
back, often through knee-deep snow, and 
on one occasion, returning from one of 
these trips, found his onh' sister a corpse. 
The growth of timber was very dense, 
and great labor was required in felling it. 
Shingles made bj' hand were the only 
source of revenue, and it recpiired two 
days' hard work to secure a load, that is 
a thousand, which after being hauled to 
De Pere, the nearest market, by o.\-team, 
brought but seventy-five cents in trade in 
goods at the store. As the timber was 
felled, an axe was used to make incisions 
in the ground, into which seed corn was 
dropped, and the natural fertility of the 
soil producing good crops, a comfortable 
living was graduallj- derived from this 
cereal. The death of Otis Day occurred on 
this farm June 20, 1882, and that of Mrs. 
Day May 7, 1890, and their remains now 
lie in Greenleaf cemetery. 

Charles West Day received such an 
education as the schools of his early days 
afforded, and has lived to see great changes 
in the conduct of these institutions, the 
advantages of which he has fully availed 
himself of for the benefit, at least, of his 
own children. He of course began life on 
a farm, but was early initiated into the 
mysteries of lumbering, the general voca- 
tion of his neighborhood. At the age of 
twenty he left his old home to begin the 
battle of life for himself, and has made a 
good fight. The first summer of his ca- 
reer was passed in company with Reuben 
Thompson in making shingles by hand; 
the following year he worked for a Mr. 
Blake, of De Pere, who was building cor- 
duroy roads, and the next winter received 
his first real start in life by clearing five 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPIIWAL llECOHD. 



49 



hundred dollars with a team of oxen he 
had purchased the year pre\ions. 

On July 3, 1S60, Mr. Day was mar- 
ried to Miss Juliette Chase, who was born 
June 14, 1S40, in the town of Charleston, 
Kalamazoo Co., Mich. Her parents, 
Henry and Persis (Averill) Chase, were 
New Englanders, but came from Canada 
to Michigan, and later, in 1856, moved to 
De Pare via Green Baj', four years after- 
ward removing- to W'rightstown. The 
marriage of Mr and Mrs. Day was sol- 
emnized by Squire Brown on the site of 
the "Old Agency House," a short dis- 
tance north of De Pere. After his mar- 
riage Mr. Day located on eighty acres of 
timberland bought of Lucien Wright, in 
partnership with H. S. \\'right, whereon 
he built a log shant\', and the tasty man- 
ner in which Mrs. Day kept the humble 
abode was the comment of all the neigh- 
bors rounil about. All the timber was 
cut from the land, which Mr. Day sold 
after passing one winter thereon, and 
he then moved to Greenleaf, the follow- 
ing winter locating on the old homestead, 
where he continued lumbering. Here a 
water-mill had been erected by Otis Day, 
which Charles W. converted into a steam- 
mill — something of a novelty in its da}' — 
which in later years was enlarged and im- 
proved. Mr. Day, in his time, has bought 
and sold thousands of acres of timberland, 
which he has resold after cutting off the 
timber, and to-day owns a tract of 500 
acres, of which 400 are mider cultivation. 
In August, 18S4, he removed to De Pere, 
where he has ever since resided, although 
his business interests lie entirely in 
Wrightstown, in and around Greenleaf. 

Politically a Republican, Mr. Day cast 
his first Presidential \-ote for Abraham 
Lincoln. He has never been an office- 
seeker, but has always been one of the 
advisers and counselors of his party in his 
section, and has filled various local offices, 
though on two occasions, when elected 
township trustee, he declined to serve. 
For twenty-nine years he was school 
treasurer of his township, four years of 



which he served after leaving the District, 
and was, in fact, legall\' disqualifieil from 
serving. In 1 SS6 he was elected to the 
State Senate, ami slt\ ed the term to the 
gratification of all concerned. In all his 
monetary transactions, involving thou- 
samls upon thousands of dollars, he has 
never had a lawsuit, which fact is in itself 
sufficient demonstration of the rectitude 
of his conduct. To the foresight, skill, 
industry and imlomitable energy of sucli 
citizens does Brown coiuit\' owe much of 
her prosperity. Mr. Day is not a mem- 
ber of a secret lodge or secret societv of 
any kind, preferring to spend his leisure 
time in the home circle of his interesting 
family, which is a true t\'pe of an ideal 
American home. 

Mr. and Mrs. Da\- have hail burn to 
them seven children, as follows; Ed- 
ward B., of Greenleaf; Persis E., now 
the wife of W. H. Earles, M. D., of Mil- 
waukee; Mary E., married to B. I. Bray- 
ten, of St. Paul; Alma E., who died in 
infancy; Carlton A., at home; Frederick 
E., who also died in infancy; and Lillian 
M., at home. 



HON. JOHN M. HOGAN. This 
gentleman is a well-known prom- 
inent farmer, of Preble township, 
Brown county, in whose career 
as a successful merchant and financier 
we find one of the best examples of safe 
conservative enter[)rise. 

Patrick Hogan, his father, was a na- 
tive of County Clare, Ireland, where he 
received a liberal education. When little 
more than a lad he emigrated to the 
United States, and in New York City 
learned the trade of hatter, which he fol- 
lowed for some time there. In that city 
he married Miss Isabella McGillan, a na- 
tive of Tyrone, Ireland, who came to 
America with a sister, both being then in 
their young womanhood, and to this 
union were born two children: John M., 
and Mary. When our subject was yet 
an infant his parents came west, and 



50 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



landing in Detroit. Midi., tlic mother 
and child were left there while the father 
proceeded farther westwanl to Milwaukee, 
Wis., where he purchased land in the 
neighborhood, situated in Town I2, 
W'ashington county. Later the family 
joined him, and on this farm they lived 
three years, at the end of which time they 
' moved to Green Baj', residing there un- 
til March, i860, when they came to 
Preble township and settled on the farm 
now owned by our subject. Very little 
clearing had been done on this piece of 
land at the time the family came to it, 
but hard work and industrious persever- 
ance soon converted it into a productive 
farm. The father resided here at vari- 
ous times, occasionally in Green Bay, 
where he died July 17, 18S7, his remains 
being interred in Allouez township ceme- 
tery. His widow, now seventy-four years 
of age, is living with our subject; she is a 
member of the Church of St. John the 
Evangelist, at Green Hay. The daughter, 
Mary, died when four and one-half years 
old, and is also buried in .Alloue^ town- 
ship cemetery. Mr. Hogan was a typ- 
ical self-made man, one who climbed from 
the bottom rung of the ladder of success 
to the top, totally unaided, and by his 
own indefatigable exertions and labor. 
John M. Hogan. the subject proper of 
these lines, was born, in 1S48, in New 
York City, whence when an infant he wa's 
brought by his parents to Wisconsin, as 
above related. .\i the common schools 
of his boyhood period he received a fair 
education, and was reared to agricultural 
pursuits, in which he was thoroughly 
trained. In iSSj. in company with 
Peter Tuyls, he embarked in general 
merchandising in Green Bay, their store 
being located on Main street, where they 
met >vith encouraging success, but failing 
health compelled his retirement. Selling 
his interest in the store, he for a time 
lived comparatively retired, occasionally 
buying and sellingreal estate, in which he 
also made a success. Two years after 
the death of his father he purchased the 



home farm, and believing it would i?n- 
prove his health, in the spring of 1890 
returned to it, and has remained there 
ever since, not doing any active work, 
however, as the farm, which now com- 
prises eighty acres, is looked after by 
others. In politics he is a Republican, 
but no partisan, as in county and town- 
ship matters he votes for the individual 
he considers best suited to the office, while 
in State and National affairs he invariably 
supports his party ticket. He has been 
called upon to serve his township in var- 
ious capacities, such as chairman of the 
board of supervisors some seven years, 
justice of the peace and treasurer of the 
school board, at all times acquitting him- 
self with credit and honor, and to the sat- 
isfaction of his constituents. In the fall 
of 1880 he was elected representative to 
the State Legislature, in which he served 
one term with marked ability. Much 
credit is due to Mr. Hogan for the envia- 
ble position in society he has elevated 
himself to, he being recognized as a lead- 
ing man in the county, and a wise coun- 
selor. .\t the breaking out of the war of 
the Rebellion Mr. Hogan was too young 
to enlist, being then but twelve years of 
age, but on May 26, 1864, when not quite 
sixteen years old, he enlisted at Green 
Bay without the knowledge of his par- 
ents, becoming a member of Company G, 
Forty-first Wis. V. I. He served with 
his command at Memphis, Tenn., and 
was on picket duty there when the Con- 
federate general Forrest made the attack 
on that place in 1864. Mr. Hogan com- 
pleted his term of enlistment, and on 
September 23, 1864, was honorably dis- 
charged from the service, in Milwaukee. 



PlIlLirr MULLER. In the life 
of this well-known gentleman there 
is presented a lesson for the youth 
of any land; something to be found 
in it of a nature encouraging to the young 
aspirant, who, without friends or fortune, 
is struggling to overcome obstacles in his 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAI'IIirM. RECORD. 



efforts to acquire a comfortable compe- 
tence, if not absolute wealth. 

Mr. Muller was born in Prussia, Sep- 
tember 6, 1 83 I, in one of the wine-grow- 
ing districts that luxuriate along the fer- 
tile banks of the beautiful ri\'er Moselle, 
and distant some eighteen miles from the 
city of Trier. He is the second child and 
eldest son of Matthias Muller, a well-to-do 
landowner in Germany, also a wine-grower 
and cooper, making his own casks for use 
in his business. YoungPhilipp was brought 
up to this industry, working steadily at it 
after leaving school, until he was nine- 
teen years old, when he decided to emi- 
grate to America, here to seek his fortune. 

On May i, 1850, in company with a 
cousin, Matthias Hoffman, he set sail 
from the port of Antwerp, Belgium, in the 
American ship "Edwina," and after a 
quick passage of thirty days, landed at 
New York, where he found his funds 
completely exhausted. His cousin, how- 
ever, kindly came to his assistance, sup- 
plying him with sufficient money to bring 
him on to Wisconsin, and after landing in 
Milwaukee, he and his cousin (for they 
were still companions in their journey) 
proceeded to Sheboygan, thence by foot 
to Manitowoc, where our subject found 
his first employment on American soil, 
commencing, as will be seen, in debt. 
His employer was one Richter, who kept 
several cows a short distance from Mani- 
towoc, and young Muller's duties were 
to attend to them, receiving the sum 
of eight dollars per month for his serv- 
ices, boarding all this time in Mani- 
towoc with John Raymer, a fellow-coun- 
tryman. On leaving Richter he went to 
Two Rivers and commenced work in the 
sawmill of H. H. Smith, at the same 
wages as he had previously got; but in 
two short weeks the terrible scourge, 
cholera, broke out, paralyzing work, and 
people fleeing from the place, one of the 
fugitives allowing our subject to occupy 
his deserted home, and here the latter re- 
mained, living as best he could. When 
the plague had abated, people began to re- 



turn to their liomes, the sawmill was once 
more starti.-d up, and Mr. MnlK'i- found 
work until the fall of the year, at which 
time the null was cIosimI. Purchasing a 
strong pair of boots and an axe, he next 
tried his hand at chopping cordwood at two 
shillings and sixjience per cord, but at 
the end of winter he fninnl cm settling up 
that he owed his euiploj-er eight <iollars 
after gi\'ing him his axe, which was not a 
very encouraging transaction. In the 
spring he again engaged tn work in Smith's 
sawmill at eight dcjllars jjer month, and 
found himself at the end of the season 
with just thirteen dollars in cash. I'l-oin 
that he again went tn lumbering in the 
woods for a short time; then, piu'chasing 
an axe and a cross-cut saw, cut cordwood 
for a time, after which for the remainder 
of the winter he made shingles, and on 
settling up in the S])ring he found that, 
after surrendering his tools to his em- 
ployer, he \\';is enabled to begin the sum- 
mer of 185.: simply out of debt. Work- 
ing again in a sawmill at nine dollars per 
month, he succeeded in saving by the 
commencement of winter about twenty- 
fi\'e dollars, and for the next few months 
he found various kinds of employment for 
no more than his board. 

Next year, leaving Two Rivers, he 
hired out at Neshoto at sixteen dollars 
per month, and at tlie end of something 
o\-er a \ear he had saved $160, with 
which sum he proceeded to New York in 
order to meet his parents, brothers and 
sisters and an old uncle, all of whom had 
just landed from Germany, and were 
without money to take them westward. 
Mr. Muller, however, brought them all 
to Wisconsin, thirteen in number, and 
when they reached Two Rivers there was 
not a penny left in the party, so Mr. 
Muller had to borrow two shillings where- 
with to pay the wharfage on the chattels. 
The family then went to live with a rela- 
tive in Two Rivers, but the junior mem- 
bers soon found work, the ^>oys at peeling 
bark, the girls as domestics. A farm was 
rented for the parents and the old uncle, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the youngest child going with thcin. In 
the following spring, in Mishicot town- 
ship. Manitowoc county, the father 
bought eighty acres of uncleared land, 
paying on account $35, which money was 
supplied by Philipp, saved by him out of 
his earnings in the lumber woods, where 
he worked at $18 per month. Later on. 
finding themselves unable to meet pay- 
ments falling due on this land, forty acres 
had to be sold in order to clear them- 
selves. There was not a single stick cut 
on the remaining forty acres, so there 
was a vast amount of work to be done to 
make a clearing. A log house, 16x24 
feet, was first built, and this was the only 
shelter for the family, at that time seven 
in number, for a long time. By i860 
sufficient improvements were made, our 
subject furnishing out of his hard-earned 
wages all the necessary means; and, in- 
deed, it may be said he was the mainstay 
of the family until they were able to sup- 
port themselves from the product of the 
farm, and then he began for himself. 

On December 7, 1861, Mr. Muller 
was married to Miss Magdalene Flem- 
ming, who was born May 5, 1842, in 
Luxemburg, Germany, a daughter of 
Frank Flcniming, who in 1856 came from 
Antwerp, Belgium, to New York, bring- 
ing his family, from there traveling west- 
ward to Wisconsin, and settling in Ne- 
shoto, .Manitowoc county, where the 
marriage took place, 'Squire Jacob King 
performing the ceremony. In Neshoto 
the young people commenced housekeep- 
ing, and after a five-years' residence there 
moved to Two Rivers, Mr. Muller work- 
ing there in sawmills; thence proceeded 
to Kewaunee, where he was employed in 
the same line of work, his wages being 
now $3 per day, for eight years working 
in the mill simimers and "scaling" logs 
winters, after which for nineteen years 
he was employed in sawmills onlj' — a 
total of twenty-seven years, eight years 
nniier one employer, the remainder with 
three different companies, never being 
discharged from anyone of them, and not 



leaving Kewaunee until the last log in the 
neighborhood was sawed. 

From there Mr. Muller came to the 
city of Green Bay, owning some lots 
there, but after a short sojourn re- 
moved into the country. In the fall of 
1877 he came to his present farm of 
ninety-three acres in Preble township, 
Brown county, situated four miles south- 
east of (jreen Bay, and here he has since 
resided, prosperously engaged in agricul- 
tural pursuits, including stock-raising. 
When he came to this farm it was in a 
very wild condition, covered with under- 
brush and fallen timber, but by dint of 
assiduous labor and untiring energy he 
has converted it into a lu.xuriant farm of 
fertile fielils. Twt) sons and two daugh- 
ters complete the happy family circle, 
viz. : Jacob, born February 6, 1863, in Ne- 
shoto; George, born March 18, 1866. also 
in Neshoto: Catherine, born June 15. 
1875, in Kewaunee, and Elizabeth, born 
August 21. 1877. also in Kewaunee. 
They arc all on the farm, the sons assist- 
ing the father in the general work thereon. 
Politically our subject is a Democrat, his 
first vote being cast for Franklin Pierce, 
and has sersed his township in various 
offices, such as road overseer for District 
No. 5, two terms. The familj' are wor- 
thy members of the Catholic Church, and 
enjov the respect and esteem of all who 
know them. 



HON. S. D. HASTINGS, Jk., Cir- 
cuit Judge of the District com- 
prising Brown, Oconto, Marinette 
and Door counties, was born 
June 19, 1 84 1, in Philadelphia, a son of 
Samuel D. and Margaretta (Schubert) 
Hastings, the former a native of Massa- 
chusetts, the latter of Pennsylvania. 

Samuel D. Hastings was reared in his 
native State, and as a representative of a 
business house was sent to Philadelphia, 
where he resided until 1845, when he 
came to W'isconsin and located in Wal- 
worth county, where he was an earnest 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



S7y 



worker in the cause of temperance, until 
1 85 1, at which time he removed to La- 
Crosse, Wis. In the fall of 1S57 he was 
elected State Treasurer of Wisconsin, and 
filled the office eif^ht years. On his elec- 
tion to this responsible office he removed 
to Madison, the capital of the State, and 
there he and his wife still reside. Since 
the expiration of his office as State 
Treasurer, in 1865, he has devoted all 
his attention to the cause of temperance. 
His children are three in number, 
namelv; S. D., our subject; limnia M., 
wife of H. Iv. Hobart, editor of the 
Rail:i'(ir Ai^c, of Chicago, 111., and Flor- 
ence L. , married to H. ^\'. Hoyt, princi- 
pal owner of the Gates Iron Works, of 
the same city. 

Hon. S. I). Hastings came to lirowu 
count}' in August, 1867, fmni Madison, 
where for two _\ears he had been 
in the practice of law; in 1883 he was 
elected to his present high pi:)sitioii, and 
was re-elected in 1889 — each term being 
for six years. He was a graduate of 
Beloit College and of the .\lbany (N. Y.) 
Law C-illege; was admitted to the bar of 
New York in 1865, and, with his eighteen- 
years' experience at the bar, was fully 
prepared for the duties of the circuit 
judgeship, taking his scat on the bench 
January i, 1884. The Judge was first 
married, in 1863, at Beloit, \\'is., to Miss 
Mary C. Kendall, a native of Milwaukee, 
and a daughter of the late J. G. Kendall, 
a pioneer of Beloit. Mrs. Hastings be- 
came the uKjther (;f three daughters, 
Lillias M. {the only one now living), 
and in 186S passed to the other side of 
Life's river. In 1873 the Judge chose for 
his second wife Miss Hetta Sue Clapp, 
whom he married in her native cit\', 
Kenosha, \Vis. Her parents were Na- 
thaniel P. and Sarah (Mc('oy) Clapp, 
natives of New York, and pioneers of 
Kenosha before Wisconsin was admitted 
to the sisterhood of States. The father, 
who was prominent as a stock dealer, 
was accidentally killed, while in New York 
with a shipment of cattle; the mother 



died in Green Bay in 1889. To this 
second marriage of judge Hastings have 
been born five children — Florence N., 
now agei.1 fourteen; S. U., Jr., now aged 
eleven, and three sons who died in in- 
fancy. Mrs. Hastings has one living 
sister, the wife of George G. Greene, of 
the firm of Greene & Yrooman, attor- 
neys-at-law. 

Judge Hastings is a Republican in 
politics; he was president of the Green 
Bay school board for years, and has 
been president of the board of directors 
of the city library since its organization 
in 1890; he is a member of the board of 
directors of the Electric Light Company 
of (ireen Bay, of the Kellogg National 
Bank of Green Ba}', and of the Oconto 
National Bank of Oconto. For se\-eral 
years he has been lecturer in the law de- 
partment (_)f the Wisconsin University at 
Madison. He has filled all these positions 
of usefulness with marked abilit}-, and 
few men of his _\ears in the State of 
\\'isconsin stand higher in the esteem of 
its citizens. 



EDWIN H.\KT was one of the 
earl}' pioneers of Brown count}'. 
Wis., having come here in 1830, 
in the emplo}' of the United States 
Government, to assist in the rebuilding of 
Fort Howard, and in other public works. 
He was employed b}' the government 
some years, having charge, part of the 
time, of the sur\eying force on the con- 
struction of military roads ivom Green 
Bay to Manitowoc and Calumet, as well 
as a lighthouse and fort at Mackinac 
straits. Later hi: took up his residence 
in Green Bay — in that portion of it known 
as Navarino — as a carpenter and con- 
tractor. During his active life he took 
many large contracts, and nearly all the 
old landmarks in and about Brown county 
are his handiwork. In 1829, prior to 
coming to Green Bay, he erected a Mission 
church on Mackinac Island, but in the 



54 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



fall of that year he returned to Cleve- 
land. 

Mr. Hart was born Ma\' 5, 1807, in 
Griswold, New London Co., Conn., a son 
of Judah and Abigail (Belden) Hart, both 
also natives of Connecticut, in which 
State they were married. In 1822 they 
moved westward to Ohio, first locating in 
Cleveland, and in 1824 settling on a farm 
in I-)rownhelm township, Lorain county, 
same State, where they died within three 
days of each other. The father served in 
the war of 1812. 

Edwin Hart, of whom this sketch 
more particularly relates, was fifteen 
years old when the famil}' moved from 
Connecticut to Ohio, and in Cleveland he 
learned carpentry (which was his regular 
trade), there remaining until coming to 
Wisconsin in the employ of the govern- 
ment, as related at the commencement 
of the sketch. In 1832 he was married 
in Green Bay to Miss Eliza J. Glass, a 
native of Clarksville, Ohio, and daughter 
of Joseph and Effie (Roger) Glass, who 
were married in Ohio, and came to Green 
Bay in 1828; the father, who w^as a fur 
trader, died in Green Bay, the mother 
passing awa}' in 1856 in Oconto. After 
marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Hart con- 
tinued to reside in Green Bay until 1852, 
removing then to Oconto, same State, 
where he embarked in the lumber, mill- 
ing and steamboat business, and where 
they still reside. This old pioneer couple 
had a family of eight children, a brief 
record of whom is as follows: (i) George 
E. resides in California. (2) Levi W. was 
killed in the railroad accident at Ashta- 
bula, Ohio, in December, 1S76, when 
about forty years of age; he was a travel- 
ing salesman at the time, with residence 
in Akron. Ohio, and on hearing of the ac- 
cident his wife, Mrs. Susie fMay) Hart, 
having some foreboding as to his fate, 
drove all the way to Cleveland in a cut- 
ter, to find her fears were only too well 
founded; when his remains were dis- 
covered in the wreck both arms and the 
right leg had been burned off, but the rest 



of the bod\', especially the face, was com- 
parativel}- uninjured. (3) Mary A. is the 
wife of Dr. S. A. Coleman, of Cleveland, 
Ohio. (4j Clifford B. is a member of the 
firm of H. \V. & C. B. Hart, owners and 
managers of Hart's Steamboat Line, 
Green Bay. (5) P21iza Jane is the wife of 
B. J. Brown, of Menominee, Mich. (6) 
Cyrus S. is editor of the Oconto County 
Rcfiorter. (j) Capt. H. W. is in partner- 
ship with his brother C. B., as above 
mentioned. (8) Franklin died at Oconto, 
Wis., in 1863. Mr. Hart in politics was 
originalha Whig, and since the formation 
of the party has been a stanch Repub- 
lican. Socially he is a member of the 
I. O. O. F. 



CAPTAIN H. W. HART, senior 
member of the firm of H. W. 
& C. B. Hart, owners and mana- 
gers of Hart's Steamboat Line, 
Green Bay, is a native of the town, born 
January 8, 1846, a son of Edwin and 
Eliza J. (Glass) Hart. 

At the age of six years he moved with 
his parents to Oconto, Wis., where he 
received his education. In early life, 
when a mere boy of fourteen years, he 
shipped on board a lake vessel in the 
capacity of cook, from which humble 
position, by energy and perseverance, he 
rose step by step, in the various ex- 
periences of a sailor's life, at the age of 
eighteen j'cars becoming captain of his own 
ship, the steamer "Eagle"; this vessel 
was built in Oshkosh and was rechristened 
in Oconto, running between the latter 
city and Green Bay for two seasons, after 
which it carried both freight and passen- 
gers for a time, and was then turned into 
a tug boat for raft towing. Hart's Steam- 
boat Line was founded in 1873, with a 
capital of $140,000, by Capts. H. W. 
and C. B. Hart, both able and ex- 
perienced steamboat men. They built 
the "May Queen" in Green Bay, and ran 
her on the old line for two seasons, after- 
ward building the "Northwest" and re- 



COMMEMOUA Tl VE BlOOIiAPUICAL UEC'OliD. 



55 



building the "May Oueen," which was 
burned at the dock in Green Bay in 1877. 
In the spring of 187S they launched the 
steamer "Welcome," anil some time 
afterward the " C. W. iSIoore," which our 
subject ran between Green 15ay and 
Manistique until 1888, when the "Fannie 
C. Hart" was built,, which he has since 
run between Green Bay and Cheboygan, 
Mich. The last-named boat was re- 
modeled in 1890; the "Eugene C. Hart" 
was built in 1890, and run on the same 
route with the "Fannie C. Hart," the 
company now owning four propellers — 
the "Fannie C. Hart," "Eugene C. 
Hart," "C. W. Moore" and the " Wel- 
come " — all stanch, speedy, safe and re- 
liable boats. The two brothers take 
great pride in the "Fannie" and 
"Eugene," which thev command in 
person. 

In June, 1868, Capt. H. W. Hart 
was married to Miss Hattie A. Wagner, 
a native of Ogdcnsburg, N. Y., daughter 
of Stephen H. Wagner, now a resident of 
Green Bay, and to this union six children 
were l)orn, viz.: Fannie C., wife of 
Frederick Brett, of Green Bay; Edwin 
W. ; Katie and Eliza J., who died of scar- 
let fever at the ages of six and four years 
respectively; Hattie A. and Julia B. 
Capt. H. W. Hart in politics is an active 
Republican; socially he is a member of 
the F. & A. M., Washington Lodge No. 
21, Warren Chapter, and Palestine Com- 
mandcr}', all of Green Bay. 



ELEAZER HOLMES ELLIS was 
l)orn August 26, 1826, in Brown 
county, \\'is. , at or near Green 
Bay. His Grandfather Ellis was 
a native of Connecticut, and was of Welsh 
extraction. He and his wife, who was 
also a native of Connecticut, removed to 
Herkimer county, N. Y., where Mr. El- 
lis died when still young; his widow pass- 
ed away at the age of about seventy-seven 
years, the mother of two children, Albert 
Gallatin, and Sophronia (Mrs. Holmes). 



Mr. and Mrs. Holmes removed to Brown 
county. Wis., in 1841; both have since 
ilied leaving many descendants, Albert G. 
E. Holmes, a merchant of Green Bay, 
being their eldest son. 

Albert G. Ellis, the father of Judge 
Ellis, was born August 24, 1800, in Ver- 
ona, N. Y. He received a common- 
school education, and at the age of four- 
teen years entered a printing office in old 
Herkimer, N. Y., there laying the founda- 
tion of a thoroughly jiractiral education, 
which proved of immense value to him in 
after life. He was full of ambition, and 
at the age of twenty-five sought a wider 
field of usefulness in what were then the 
wilds of Brown county. Wis. His first 
\'isit to this country was made about 
1 82 I, when he came with the Oneida In- 
dians, who were remove<l to Wisconsin 
from Oneida county, N. ^'. He was em- 
piloyed as a surveyor, and assisted in lay- 
ing out the land of the Indian Reserva- 
tion in Brown county, which then includ- 
ed the greater part of northern Wiscon- 
sin. He was familiar with Indian cus- 
toms, and after the survey was completed 
remained as a permanent citizen and soon 
became a valuable acquisition to the new 
settlements, being a man of more than 
ordinary ability, and of great force of 
character. He taught school at three 
different places in the neighborhood 
of Fort Howard and Green Bay. In 1S24 
Mr. Ellis returned to Oneida county; 
N. Y., where he married Miss Pamela, 
daughter of Elijah Holmes, of West 
Winfield, N. Y. , and the young couple 
came to Green Bay, Brown county, then 
called La Baye Verte by the French and 
the old settlers. They began housekeep- 
ing at or near Shantytown, three miles 
south of Green Bay. Mr. Ellis taught 
school for some time, and later engaged 
in various occupations until he became 
identified with the (irccii Bay Intelligencer. 
He was a practical printer, became asso- 
ciated with John V. Suydam in the estab- 
lishing of the paper, and with him shares 
the honor of founding the first newspaper 



56 



COMiMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in the Northwest territory. Soon after 
he severed his connection with the Grccii 
Bay Intclligciucr he was elected a mem- 
ber of the Second Session of the Third 
Territorial House of Kepreseutiiti\es, 
which convened at Madison December 6, 
1 84 1. In I.S42 he was re-elected, and 
had the honor of beinjj elected speaker of 
the House ; he was again re-elected in 
1843. In 1841 or 1842 Mr. Ellis was 
appointed, by the United States Go\ern- 
ment, Surveyor-general for Wisconsin and 
Iowa, the office then being located at 
Dubuque, Iowa, whither he was accus- 
tomed to travel on horseback; he still 
made his home, however, at Green Bay, 
and he rendered the government valuable 
services in both Territories. He also 
surveyed and subdixided many townships 
and sections in Wisconsin, embracing 
Manitowoc, Kewaunee, Door, Oconto, 
Brown and Outagamie counties. An un- 
tiring worker, he often, in running his lines, 
tired out even his hardy French-Canadian 
assistants. He also rendered valuable 
service in this county, and as his surveys 
were remarkably correct, he was consid- 
ered quite an expert in his profession. 
He was no speculator, or he could have 
become wealthy, for he knew every valu- 
able foot of land in the surrounding 
countr\'. In 1838 he removed with his 
family to Hill Creek, one and a half miles 
east of Green Bay, where he carried on the 
business of milling and farming, and he 
there owned a sawmill, a gristmill, and a 
cabinet shop, all of which, with the farm, 
he successfully ojierated for many \ears. 
He was familiar with mechanics' tools and 
machinery, and could turn his hand to 
almost every kind of work — a valuable 
accomplishment indeed. He was moder- 
ately successful from a financial point of 
view, but sold much of his land at $3 
an acre, before values in land were on 
the increase. He also made some Gov- 
ernment surveys north of Stevens Point, 
to which place he removed in 1853, 
making investments there in town lots. 
Shortly after liis arrival there he was ap- 



pointed receiver of the United States 
Land Office at that place, and he held the 
position several years. Among the prop- 
erties he bought there was a flouring mill, 
which he conducted for some time. He 
also started the Wisconsin Pinery, a 
paper Democratic in politics, which ex- 
isted until within a short time of this writ- 
ing; he was editor of the same for many 
years, but finally sold his interest. He 
was a very enterprising, puplic-spirited 
man, and at one time served as mayor of 
Stevens Point. He was an ardent mem- 
ber of the Episcopal Church, to which he 
gave liberal support, and he helped to 
build the churches at Stevens Point and 
Green Bay; he was one of the incorporat- 
ors and a vestryman in the church at the 
latter place. Mr. Ellis was not a member 
of an\' secret organization. Having the 
welfare of the community always at heart, 
his many acts of charity and brotherly 
affection toward humanity in general en- 
deared him to every one, and he died De- 
cember 23, 1885, honored and respected 
by all who knew him, at the advanced age 
of eighty-five years. He was a man of 
regular habits and good principles, and his 
whole life is a lesson to posterity. Mrs. 
Pamela Ellis was also an active member 
of the Episcopal Church, and was beloved 
by all, old and young. She died at Green 
Bay, March 18, 1847, aged forty-three 
years, the mother of six children, of whom 
Judge E. H. Ellis is the eldest, and the 
only survivor. 

Judge Ellis was educated in the pio- 
neer schools of Green Bay, and his father 
being anxious for him to study Erench 
and Latin, he procured good private 
teachers, some of whom resided in his 
family at the Hill Creek Mills for several 
3'ears. Young Ellis entered the law office 
of Hon. Henry S. Baird, a well-known 
attorney in Green Bay and vicinity, who 
was the president of the first Legislative 
Assembly of the Territory ')f \\'isconsin, 
and after studying for three and a half 
years was admitted to the bar by Judge 
Andrew G. Miller, in October, 1847. The 



COM.Uf.VonA TIVE BIOOn.iPUICAL llECORD. 



5} 



same autumn he set out, on liorseback, 
to look up a suitable location, and at the 
age of t\vent}-one years "hung mit his 
shingle" at Manitowoc Rajiids, then the 
county seat of Manitowoc count}'. Here 
he practiced for three and a half years 
with good success, and in the spring of 
1851 returned to Green Bay, where he 
opened an office and met with good suc- 
cess from the start. For many j-ears he 
practiced alone, and was uniformly suc- 
cessful. As his business increased he en- 
tered into co-partnerships at different 
times with the well-known attorneys, S. 
D. Hastings, Jr., now circuit judge, 
\\'illiam H. Norris, George (i. Greene 
and Carlton Merrill, the names of the 
firms being Ellis, Hastings lS: Greene, 
Norris & Ellis, Ellis, Greene i.\; Merrill, 
and Ellis & Merrill; at present Mr. Ellis 
is practicing with Mr. Merrill. In 1869 
our subject was elected circuit judge, his 
circuit including the counties of Brown, 
Outagamie, Shawano, Oconto and Door. 
He was twice elected without opposition, 
and held the office for eight successive 
years, when he resigned and resumed the 
private practice of his profession. Judge 
Ellis has gained an enviable reputation as 
a member of the bench and bar of the 
State of Wisconsin, being looked u})on as 
an able, conscientious and careful prac- 
titioner. His whole career has been a 
most honorable one, well worth}' the em- 
ulation of the youth of our nation. Our 
subject is a member of the Episcopal 
Church, and has been connected with the 
same for more than forty years. His pri- 
vate character is above reproach. 



JM. SMITH. The late J. M. Smith, 
of Green 15ay, was born in Morris- 
town, N. J., December 13, 1S20, 
and was the eldest son of Jonathan 
Smith, who was at that time one of the 
most progressive farmers in that region. 
He was a subscriber to the first volume 
of the first agricultural paper printed in 
the United States, ihe. Albaity Cidtivator, 



a full file of which was seen in the old 
home at Morristown a few }ears ago; and 
was also the first man, so far as is known, to 
)iut down an underdrain in the United 
States. It was made l)\' digging a deep 
ditch and putting large stones in the bot- 
tom, then lillini; in with smaller ones, 
and co\'ering with sods and dirt. This 
drain, si.\t\'-fi\-e }'ears later, is still doing 
good work. Under the training of such 
a father Mr. Smith naturall}' acquired 
habits of industr}' and forethought, and 
being a close student of everything that 
came in his way, he naturall}' did a good 
deal of independent thinking on his own 
account, ami looked forward to a time 
when he would have land of his own, and 
test its capacity to grow crops. 

He enjoyed the benefit of as good 
schools as were within his reach; but as 
he grew older, he became earnestly desir- 
ous for something better, and finally en- 
tered the nearest acadeni}', to prepare for 
college, hoping also to enter a law school 
when he should reach that point. But 
when ready to enter college, a dangerous 
accident to his father called him home, 
and changed the whole course of his life. 
He remained at home until he became of 
age, and made diligent use of his spare 
time in study of different kinds. Then, 
after a few months of teaching, he com- 
menced business for himself as a lumber- 
man and wood dealer in a small way, 
with such success that on the 14th of 
March, 1 S44, he felt qualified to take a 
partner, and was married, at Sparta, N. 
|., to Miss Emily B. Torrey. Two are 
better than one, if well mated, and cheer- 
ily they worked on for ten years together, 
with varying success, taking their full 
share of such disappointments as are 
common to those working their way, 
often under difficulties. But with sun- 
shine in the home, all sorts of things may 
be borne. 

In the spring of 1854, ten years after 
their marriage, they came with four sons 
to Wisconsin, and in July located in 
Green Bay, little thinking it was to be 



5S 



C02dME.\fORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



their home for the balance of tlieir lives. 
The chief productions of the place at that 
time were pine lumber and icebergs; and 
for a few j'cars Mr. Smith was principally 
engaged in lumbering; but in 1857, when 
the bottom fell out of the lumber market, 
he turned his attention to whatever he 
could get to do, to afford a living for his 
family, until 1861, and then came the 
terrible war. 

Ten children had been born to them 
(two were sleeping in the silent city), the 
eldest being at that time sixteen years 
old and the joungest ten months; but the 
country must have soldiers, and in Sep- 
tember of 1 86 1 Mr. Smith and the eldest 
son left the home in the care of the wife 
with her seven children, the eldest of the 
seven being but twelve years old, and 
went to help save the country. In five 
months he came home to die, as he 
thought; but he gradually improved in 
health until the fall of 1864, when he was 
drafted to serve another year, and again 
he joined the army, remaining therein 
until August, 1865, when the war was 
over, and he was honorably discharged. 
While he was absent, the mother and her 
sons did what they could at gardening, and 
soon after his return the market in the 
towns north of Green Bay was opened 
for the sale of vegetables, and as his 
health was not equal to any arduous labor, 
he went to work with his sons to try 
what might be done in that direction. A 
few acres of land were purchased at a 
hgh price, to begin on; but the demand 
for vegetables increased so rapidly that 
more was soon needed, and the garden 
increased in area from time to time, until 
it contained forty acres. By the help of 
true and loyal sons, the garden was 
finally paid for, and improved by under- 
draining and in other waj's, until, if there 
is another forty-acre piece of land in Wis- 
consin of equal value and productiveness, 
and as favorably situated for a market 
garden, it would be hard to find it. 

But it must not be imagined that all 
of Mr. Smith's time or energy was spent 



on the garden. He was, dunng nearly 
all of these years, very largely identified 
with the agricultural and horticultural de- 
velopment of the State, and did much in 
other ways, not only by personal work, 
but with his pen, having been a regular 
contributor to several agricultural papers 
for several \'ears; and was also an earnest 
worker in farmers' Conventions and Insti- 
tutes. He also, by special invitation, de- 
livered addresses before the American 
Pomological Society at Boston, and 
at the dinner at the celebrated Shaw's 
garden at St. Louis, as well as in many 
other places. He was one of the com- 
missioners from \\'isconsin to the Cotton 
E.xposition at New Orleans, and also a 
delegate from the Wisconsin Horticultural 
Society to the Convention of the Ameri- 
can Horticultural Society held in Cali- 
fornia. He was twenty-two years presi- 
dent of the Brown County Horticultural 
and Agricultural Society; four years pres- 
ident of the Northern \\'isconsin Agricul- 
tural and Mechanical Association, located 
at Oshkosh; and fifteen years president of 
the Wisconsin State Horticultural So- 
ciety, in which he was largely instru- 
mental in introducing among its workers 
many educated women whose valuable 
papers have helped to make our horticul- 
tural volume one of the best, if not the 
very best, published in the United States. 
Mr. Smith was not a politician in the 
common acceptance of the term, never 
having been a seeker after office; but he 
was thoroughly versed in political affairs, 
and acquainted by reputation with all the 
prominent men in the nation who have 
figured in political affairs since his early 
manhood. He was proud to call himself 
a Henry Clay Whig in his boyhood, and 
was one of the men who helped to or- 
ganize the first Republican part\- in Green 
Bay. He claimed the right to hold and 
enjoy his own opinions, but accorded to 
every f)ther man the same right. He 
was a member of the Episcopal Church, 
but very broad in his views, and honored 
every man and woman who showed in 



COMMEMORATIVE BJOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



59 



their lives, and in tiicir ilcalin^s witli 
their fellowmen, tiie spirit nf Chris- 
tianity, b}' \vhate\'er name they were 
called. . He was extremely fond nf music, 
havinr; been a leader in church choirs in 
his early manhood, and also in his later 
years, and a great man}' of his particular 
friends through life have been musical 
people. He was never better pleased 
than when he could gather a company of 
good singers around the organ in his own 
home, and wake the echoes with the 
ringing of the grand old anthems which 
were his particular favorites. Of little 
children he was very fond, and during his 
long illness often asked to have some of 
the little grandchildren brought in to see 
him. Having himself felt the pressure of 
hard times when he had a large family 
dependent on his efforts, he was sympa- 
thetic toward those who were trying to 
do their best, and still finding it hard to 
keep those dependent on them comfort- 
able, and always ready to lend a helping 
hand to lighten their burdens. 

He did not amass a large amount of 
money to leave to his children, but left 
them the heritage of an honorable name, 
unstained by any smirch of dishonor or 
treachery to any one, and his death, which 
occurred February 20, 1894, was felt in 
many homes whose inmates he had be- 
friended, as the departure of a near per- 
sonal friend. Not long after his death a 
farmer, who had often come to him for 
advice about agricultural matters, was 
heard to say: " I am worth thousands of 
dollars more than I should have been if I 
had never known J. M. Smith." He rests 
from his labors, but his memory lives in 
the hearts of many friends outside of his 
own home. 

Mrs. J. M. Smith was born in Bethanj', 
Penn., January 31, 1821. Her father died 
before she was old enough to appreciate 
his worth, but her mother was a woman 
of such rare qualities of mind and heart 
that she was able to govern a large family 
with great firmness, and yet with such 
loving gentleness that the desire to dis- 



obey her was a rare tiling anmug her flock 
of children. Mrs. Smith was early thrown 
upon her own resources, but managed to 
acquire what was considered in those 
days as a good common-school education, 
and at the early age of sixteen was given 
charge of a district school. The next 
four years were sjient alternately in teach- 
ing and attending school, when she set- 
tled down to the steady business of teach- 
ing, until Nfarch 14, 1844. when she be- 
came the wife of J. M. Smith. I. ike her 
husband, she had grown up with habits of 
industry and economy, and al\\a\"s thought 
it worth wiiilc to learn how to perform 
the many sorts of work that are likely to 
fall to the lot of women in the common 
walks of life. Consequently in the many 
seasons of trial through which she has 
been called to pass, the knowledge, thus 
carefully sti:)red away, has been a golden 
treasury from which she has often been 
able to draw for the benefit of others, as 
well as herself. 

The marriage proved to be a most 
happy one; the love plighted at the altar 
grew with the passing years, and was 
strengthened and intensified by the joys 
and sorrows which nearly fifty years must 
inevitably bring. Nine sons and two 
daughters were given to cheer and brighten 
the home, of whom seven sons and one 
daughter still remain. The children were 
always considered by both parents as 
God's best gift, and stood nobly by them 
through storm and sunshine; and are 
making, or we should say have already 
made, for themselves honorable places 
among their fellowmen. 



FI>:.\NK T. SMITH, now a resident 
of the town of Suamico, Brown 
county, is the third son of the late 
J. M. Smith, of Green Bay. He 
was born in Morristown, N. J., October 
27, 1849, and came with his parents to 
Green Bay, Wis., in 1854, where be 
lived until he removed to his present 
home. 



6o 



COMMEMORATI\'E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



He enjoyed such advantages as were 
possible in the common schools to which 
he had access at that time, but bore his 
full share in the hardships incident to the 
times from 1857 until the close of the 
war. He was too j'oung for a soldier in 
the army, or he would doubtless have 
been there; but all the heroism was not 
shown on the battlefields, and he with 
j'ounser brothers bravel\' stood by the 
mother while the father and older brother 
were at the front, helping to save the 
country. After his father came home 
broken in health, Frank T. , with his 
brothers, worked faithfully at whatever 
they could do, not only in the summer, 
but during the winter, to help to support 
the family, and to pay for the garden, 
until he came of age. After that time he 
worked on with his father on a salary, 
gaining much practical knowledge in 
methods of cultivating land. 

On June 9, iS/,^, he married Miss 
Clara Taylor, a native of Susquehanna 
county. Pcnn., and daughter of Samuel 
and Mary (Bruce) Taylor, the latter of 
whom died when her daughter Clara was 
twelve years old. From the union of 
Frank T. and Clara Smith have been 
born si.x children, namely: Clifford I., 
born April 15, 1875; Elsie M., May 2, 
1877; Bessie R., July 25, 1879; Emrie 
B., September 22, 1881; Celia T., Sep- 
tember 17, 1883, and Stanley B., June 
16, 1887. Seven years (1880) after his 
marriage, Frank T., preferring farming 
to gardening, left theemploy of his father, 
and purchased one hundred acres of land 
in the town of Suamico, where he now 
lives. Only a small part of the land was 
adapted for the growing of crops when 
purchased, but most of it is now in fairly 
good condition, while some of it is highly 
manured, and from now on he will find 
much plainer sailing than in some of the 
past years. He has alwa\s led a strictly 
temperate life, following in this particular 
the example of his father and grandfather 
before him. He and his wife and older 
children are members of the Methodist 



Episcopal Church, and are also faithful 
workers in the cause of temperance. In 
his political faith he is a Republican, and 
cast his first presidential vote fpr U. S. 
Grant, on the occasion of that warrior's 
second candidac\- for that office. But 
believing earnestly in Prohibition, and 
having an unfailing faith in the principles 
he advocates, he has since 1888 cast his 
vote in accordance therewith. 



D.WIl) McCartney. The stand- 
ard by which to judge a commu- 
nit\' is the character of its promi- 
nent citizens. Progress is rarely, 
if ever, the result of chance, but always 
the execution of well-laid plans based on 
a thorough comprehension of the laws of 
business. It is only by keeping in view 
the lives of men who are ever associated 
in the busy marts of commerce that we 
can judge of the importance of develop- 
ment, and the possibilities of progress. 
Thus it is, that from the commercial, 
more than the literary or political side, 
the most valuable lessons of life are to be 
extracted. In this connection, as a gen- 
tleman whose business qualifications have 
proven of the best, as indicated by the 
numerous enterprises he has brought to 
a successful issue, a brief biographical 
sketch is given of David McCartney. 

Some writer has said that the most 
prominent characteristics of the Scotch- 
Irish are stern integrity, the defense of 
libert)-, and the love of God. Of such a 
grand old race is the subject of this 
sketch, who is a native of County Down, 
Ireland, born near the city of Belfast, 
September 14, 18 14, of hard\-, stalwart 
Scotch-Irish ancestry, from whom he in- 
herits, no doubt, his wonderful vitality, 
strong indi\'iduality, courage and deter- 
mination. He is a son of William and 
Isabella (McCreary) McCartney, who 
about the \ear 1820, deciding to seek a 
new home in the New World, set sail 
from the shores of Erin with their little 
family, consisting of one son (the subject 



COMMEMORA Tl VIC UWGUA i'UlCA L liECOHD. 



63 



of these lines j and one dau,i,'hter. l-'roin 
the [lort of debarkation tliey made their 
way to Ohio, where for some jears in 
Guernsey county, later in Belmont county, 
the father followed agricultural |iiirsiiits, 
which had been his %'ocation in the mother 
countrj'. He died on the farm he last 
conducted, his widow passing awa\' some 
years later at Monmouth, Warren C(.)., 
111. The blo(jd running in their veins of 
that stern and rugged race of Cmenanters 
who left their Scottish mountains and 
glens for the North of Ireland, where re- 
ligious persecution could not follow them, 
the\' lived and died in that Presbyterian 
faith for which their forefathers had 
fought and bled. 

In Guernsey count}', Ohio, David Mc- 
Cartnej' recei\ed such education as could 
be acquired at the primitive pioneer 
schools of the period, at the same time 
learning the trade of stone-cutter. His 
father had two brothers in this countr}', 
both builders and contractors, and with 
one of these, John McCartney, he was 
emploj'ed at the commencement of the 
construction of the IJaltimore & Ohio 
railroad, his uncle Inning a contract 
thereon; and later he was gi\en employ- 
ment b\' his other uncle. James McCart- 
ne\', who had a contract for earlier work 
on the Philadelphia & Columbia railroad, 
afterward known as the Pennsylvania Cen- 
tral railroad. (At that time G. A. Thomp- 
son was ci\'il engineer for the compan\', 
and by merit rose to l)e president of the 
same road). Subsequently Mr. McCart- 
ne}' was employed on the construction of 
the Lake Erie & Pittsburg canal. In 1836, 
at the age of twenty-two years, he was 
married in Coshocton count}-, Ohio, to Miss 
Elizabeth Heslip>, and the young couple 
then took up farming pursuits in that 
county, where and on other farms owned 
by him they resided for about eight years. 
Abandoning agriculture, Mr. McCartney 
now embarked in the milling and mercan- 
tile businesses at Hendrysburg, Belmont 
Co., Ohio, in connection therewith en- 
gaging in stock buying and general trad- 
4 



ing. Hut his natural enterprising spirit 
was soaring \'et higher, and in search of 
fortune he sought other fields, turning his 
attention naturally to railroad contract- 
ing. Among tlie new roads on which he 
secured contracts mas be mentioned the 
Ikdtimore t\; Ohio, ("(.■utral Ohio and the 
Hempheld railroad (now part of the Bal- 
timore & Ohio; this railroad was built 
about 1854-55, and the failure of the 
company resulted in a loss to Mr. MrC.irt- 
ney of $So,ooo). Mo\'ing about the \ear 
1855 to Barnesville, Ohio, he there oper- 
ated a steam gristmill and a sawmill, 
which he owned in connection therewith, 
conducting other business, and at the end 
often years, in the spring of 1865, he 
came to Wisconsin. First locating in 
Oshkosh, he operated two steam sawmills 
there, Itnt at the expiration of two years 
sold his interests and removed to Ft. 
Howard, where he became largely inter- 
ested in lumbering, sawmilling and other 
enterprises, in\ol\ing the utilization of 
thousands of acres of pine land. In i88j 
Mr. McCartney retired from these inter- 
ests and established the McCartney's Ex- 
change Bank fa pri\'ate institution) at 
Ft. Howard, which in 1S92 was organized 
as a National Bank with a capital of 
$50,000, and is recognized as one of the 
safe and solid financial institutions of the 
State. 

In 1884, while visiting the Cotton 
Exposition at New Orleans, his attention 
was attracted to the State of Georgia and 
its resources; and judging that there was 
a good held for the profitable investment 
of capital, he in the year following pur- 
chased a tract of 3,500 acres of land, 
comprising three plantations, subsequently 
buying other tracts, consisting of 3,900 
acres, making a total of 7,400 acres. At 
Thomasville, the county town of Thomas 
county, Ga. , he Iniilt a comfortable resi- 
dence, where in tlu' lu\nr\' of balmy 
breezes and cheerful sunbeams he passes 
his winter months, in the enjo\nicnt of 
that ease and comfort which comes as 
the reward of years of industry and toil. 



64 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



The land he rents chiefly to negroes, who 
raise for the most part cotton, but por- ^ 
tions of the estate are covered with vahi- ; 
able timber, mosth' pine. | 

During the Civil war Mr. McCartney 
was appointed a brigadier-general in the 
Ohio State militia, and also a United 
States provost-marshal, serving in the 
last-named office one and one-half years. 
During the famous raid into Ohio made 
b}' the Confederate general Morgan, our 
subject was in command of a thousand 
militiamen at Barnesville, in Belmont 
county, Ohio, guarding a long railroad 
trestle, over which were carried daily 
supplies for the Union army, as well as 
drafts of soldiers on their way to the seat 
of war. An attack on this trestle by 
Morgan was daily expected, and to further 
his ends he resorted to the following ruse: 
In order to learn what force there was 
guarding this work, from which he was but 
eight miles distant, he cut the telegraph 
wire, and instructed his own operator to 
telegraph to Gen. McCartney asking how 
many troops he had to defend the trestle, 
at the end of the message placing the 
name of Gen. Burnside, who was in com- 
mand of the Union troops at Cincinnati. 
When the message reached Gen. McCart- 
nej', he happened to be in the telegraph 
office at Barnesville, reclining on a couch, 
and on reading over the dispatch he at 
once suspected it was a ' ' bogus " message. 
With the presence of mind which was ever 
ready to him, especially in moments of 
danger or seeming perplexity, he tele- 
graphed back that he had "sufficient 
force to guard the trestle, and enough 
men to capture Morgan's entire command 
should he come this way. " This clever 
thought of Gen. ^^cCartney, crystallized 
in the return message he sent, and which 
of course was received by Morgan, was 
no doubt the cause of the latter abandon- 
ing his intended attack on the trestle, and 
making a detour to the north. Who can 
calculate of what inestimable value this 
act alone proved to the Union cause! But 
for the coolness, courage and presence of 



mind of this one man. Gen. McCartney, 
who can tell what terrible disaster might 
have ensued .' The sequel is a matter of 
the history of the war. Shortly afterward 
Morgan and his entire command were 
captured, and he and his fellow prisoners 
passed through Barnesville, where they 
halted and were fed. Throughout the 
entire war the General was a stanch sup- 
porter of the government, giving liberally 
both of his means and influence. 

Twice married, our subject had, by 
his first wife, three children, namely: 
William, now of Guernsej' county. Ohio; 
Ellen, deceased wife of \\'illiain Hum- 
phrey ville; and Thomas Jefferson, in 
business at Golden, Colo. The mother 
of these died February i", 1845, and in 
1S47 Mr. McCartney married Miss Lena 
Eliza Harris, a native of Ohio, by which 
union there were three children as follows: 
Elizabeth, widow of Thomas Whelan, 
and now a resident of Fort Howard; 
Emma Belle, unmarried and living at 
home, and Laney Viola, who died un- 
married. The mother of these passed 
from eartii June 3, 1884. A lifelong 
Presbyterian, Mr. McCartney has been a 
liberal contributor toward its support, 
as well as to all beneficent institutions, 
particularly in his own city and in Green 
Bay. .\t his own expense he built the 
First Presbyterian Church of Fort How- 
ard, at a cost of about eight thousand 
dollars, and presented it to the congrega- 
tion. He is a member and trustee of 
same. In his political sympathies he was 
a Whig until the organization of the Re- 
publican party, when he enrolled himself 
under its banner, as a zealous and loyal 
supporter of its principles. 

Before closing this sketch, there is to 
be added yet another to the record of Mr. 
McCartney's many gigantic undertakings; 
for although more than an octogenarian, 
he is as enterprising as he was twenty 
years ago, and he feels that he has not 
yet completed his task of doing good to 
his fellowmen. As an individual enter- 
prise, he is building at Fort Howard an 



COMMEMORATIVE BIO(j]iAi'JIICAL IlKCoRD. 



electric railroad, and also putting in an 
electric system for lighting the city, all of 
which will be completed ere long. Self- 
reliance is and has been one of his strong- 
est characteristics, and in his business 
enterprises he has always relied upon his 
own judgment for results rather than the 
opinion and advice of others. He is a 
man of fine as well as forcible intellectual 
qualities, an extensive reader and close 
thinker, of a remarkably practical cast of 
mind. He is cautious, but firm in his 
judgments, and reliable; in manner he is 
social and friendly, and possesses quali- 
ties that readily win admiration and re- 
spect. His mental faculties to-day, when 
he has passed fourscore milestones on the 
highway of life, are as clear as ever, and 
with seeming unabated energy he is man- 
aging his far-away Georgia plantation of 
over seven thousand acres; at the same 
time is the head of a bank doing a large 
business, and moreover is conducting the 
construction of the important and com- 
plicated work connected with the putting 
into operation the electric railroad and 
electric lighting already referred to. For 
some thirty years he has been promi- 
nently connected with the public and pri- 
vate enterprises of Ft. Howard, and with 
its social, educational and mercantile in- 
terests. In brief, Mr. McCartney is a 
man of sound common sense, of great 
courage and resolution, and executive 
ability; a Christian gentleman, generous 
and liberal toward all beneficent institu- 
tions that he believes to be for the good 
of his city and the public at large; just to 
a fault, and ever thoughtful of those con- 
nected with him in social and business re- 
lations. May he live on in the enjoy- 
ment of life, the admiration of his many 
friends. 



C.\PT.\IX CLIFFORD BELDON 
H.ART, junior member of the firm 
of H. \V. & C. B. Hart, owners 
and managers of Hart's Steam- 
boat Line, Green Bay, is a native of the 



town, born Xo\ember 13, 1X39, a son of 
Edwin and Eliza J. Glassj Hart. 

In Green Bay and Oconto our subject 
received his education, attending the com- 
mon schools up to the age of twelve years, 
when he commenced sailing on the lakes 
between Oconto and Green Bay, and by 
his ability as a mariner, and close atten- 
tion to his duties, rose by degrees from a 
comparatively humble position to be cap- 
tain of his own steamboat. Hart's Steam- 
boat Line was founded in 1873, with a 
capital r)f $140,000, by Capts. H. \V. 
and C. B. Hart, both able and experi- 
enced steamboat men. They have now 
four propellers — the "Fannie C. Hart, " 
the "Eugene C. Hart," the " C. W". 
Moore, " and the "Welcome " — all as 
stanch, safe and reliable as their com- 
manders. The two brothers Hart are 
captains of the "Fannie" and "Eugene " 
in person, taking great pride in their boats. 
They run chiefiy between Green Bay, 
Wis., and Cheboygan, Mich., and during 
the season give employment to about one 
hundred men. Capt. C. B. Hart was 
also part owner of the schooners "Eva 
M. Cone" and "Union," both in their 
day plying between Green Bay and 
Chicago, and was captain of the "Eva 
M. Cone ' from 1857 to 1863, and of the 
"Union" from 1863 to 1865. From 
1865 to 1883 he was steamboating on the 
Oconto river, returning to Green Bay in 
the latter year. 

On December 25, 1862, Capt. C. B. 
Hart was united in marriage with Miss 
Hattie Ellen St. Ores, a native of Illinois, 
but reared in Oconto, Wis., daughter of 
Lewis and Maryette St. Ores, who in an 
early day came from the East to Oconto, 
where the father was engaged in the lum- 
ber business till 1862; he died November 
'3t 1893, preceded to the grave by his 
wife, who died in 1S76 of heart disease. 
To Captain and Mrs. Hart has come one 
son, Eugene C born December 7. 1880, 
who is at home with his parents. Politic- 
ally our subject is a Republican. In the 
fall of 1888 he joined Washington Lodge 



«6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBICAL RECORD. 



No. 2 1, F. & A. M., and at once became 
deeply interested in the workings of that 
fraternity, rising rapidly in the order 
until he attained thirty-second degree, 
being connected with Warren Chapter 
No. 8, Palestine Commander}', K. T. , 
and Wisconsin Consistor}'. He is also a 
member of Green Bay Lodge No. 259, 
B. P. O. P:., and of the I. O. O. F., 
Lodge No. 19, Green Bay, where he was 
initiated. 



JH. LE ROY. Among the promi- 
nent agriculturists of De Pere town- 
ship, Brown county, none is more 
deserving of mention than this gen- 
tleman, who is a worthy member of one 
of the early pioneer families of same. He 
is descended from hardy New England 
stock. 

Jonas Le Roy, father of our subject, 
was born August 12, 1819, in West Troy, 
N. Y., son of Isaac Le Roy, a native of 
Poughkeepsie, who was a fisherman by 
occupation, following same along the 
banks of the Hudson river. His family 
consisted of four sons, John, William, 
Jonas and Henry. Jonas received a 
limited education in the subscription 
schools of the home neighborhood, left 
home at the age of nineteen, after his 
mother's death, and went to Cheapside, 
Deerfield, Mass., where he learned the 
trade of cabinet maker under Capt. 
Thayer, and some time later removed to 
Greenfield, same State, where he was 
employed in the cutlery factory of John 
Russell & Co. On September 10, 1840, 
he was married in Greenfield to Miss 
Edith A. King, who was born January 
29. 1 82 1, in Sunderland, \'t., daughter 
of James H. and Lilly (Willcut) King, 
the former of whom was a shoemaker by 
trade. In April, 1824, the King family 
moved to Massachusetts, and they were 
residing in Greenfield at the time of the 
daughter's marriage. The young couple 
immediately settled in Greenfield, and 
there remained about fourteen years, Mr. 



Le Roy continuing to work in the cutlery 
establishment. Two sons were born to 
them in Greenfield, viz.: John M., who 
enlisted in September, 1861, at De Pere, 
Wis., in Companj- F, Fourteenth Wis. 
V. I., and was killed at \'icksburg May 
22, 1863 (his body was never recovered), 
and David S. J., who died when five 
years old. From Greenfield the family 
removed to Deerfield, where one child, 
J. H., was born, and later to Conway, 
same State, where they also had one 
child, Edith A., now Mrs. W. R. Mat- 
thews, of De Pere, Wis. In May, 1856, 
the family came westward to Wisconsin, 
journeying by stage to Adams, Mass., 
thence by rail via West Troy to Buffalo, 
N. Y. , at the latter place taking the 
steamer "Michigan" for Green Bay, 
where they landed May 28. The trip 
from Green Bay to De Pere was made by 
boat. 

James S. King, a brother-in-law of 
Mr. Le Roy, had preceded them to Wis- 
consin, where, with money the latter had 
sent, he had purchased eighty acres of 
land in Section 32, De Pere township, 
along the Dickinson road. Some of the 
timber had been cut from this land during 
two winters of lumbering on it, but other- 
wise it was still in its primitive state, and 
they immediately set to work to clear a 
small space, where a log cabin, the first 
building on the farm, was erected. On 
this place was born one child, William S., 
now of De Pere. They resided here for 
eight years, and then, in 1865, sold the 
place, and purchased the farm our sub- 
ject now owns and resides upon, of which, 
at that time but fifteen acres were cleared. 
Another child was born on this farm, a 
daughter, who died in infancy. In Octo- 
ber, 1887, Mr. Le Roy removed to De- 
Pere on account of failing health, and 
there lived until his death, which oc- 
curred September 8, 1892; he was buried 
in Woodlawn cemetery. He was origin- 
ally a Whig, afterward a Republican, in 
politics, and for twelve years held the of- 
fice of clerk of De Pere township, a 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBICAL RECORD. 



'i 



recurd which speaks for itself; for two 
years he was justice of tlie peace in the 
city of De Pere. but his faihng health 
compelled him to gi\e this up. In religious 
connection he was a member of the M. 
E. Church, with which his widow is also 
identified. Since his death she has con- 
tinued to reside in De Pere. They had 
lived a happy wedded life of over fifty 
years, and the golden anniversary of 
their marriage was appropriately cele- 
brated by the family. When they came 
to Brown county bears, deer and wolves 
still roamed the forests, and almost the 
entire country was yet in its primitive 
condition. Bears were often seen even 
on the farm, and freiiucntly carried off 
the pigs. A portion of ttie journey to 
their new home was made in an ox-cart, 
and for several years oxen were the only 
beasts of l)urden the pioneers had. The 
land was covered with white and red oak, 
beech, pine and maple trees: in those 
days not only the men, but the women 
assisted in the clearing, and many were 
the hardships and privations endured by 
those early settlers before they had hewn 
for themselves a comfortable home from 
the dense forest. 

J. H. Le Ro}' was borti I'^ebruary 7, 
1 85 1, in Deerfield, Mass., and in May, 
1856, came with his parents to De Pere 
tcjwnship. Brown Co. , Wis. , where he 
received such education as the district 
schools of that time affordetl. His older 
brother having enlisted in the Civil war, 
he was early put to work on the farm, 
and thus his attendance at even those 
primitive schools was limited to a few 
months each \'ear. He was thoroughly 
trained to farming, and resided on the 
home place until 1S7J, in the fall of 
which year he entered the employ of 
James S. Scott as clerk in a grocery store 
in De Pere, remaining there two years. 
He then attended Lawrence University, 
at Appleton, three months, after which 
he returned to his present farm. The 
following winter he acted as bookkeeper 
and measurer for Henrv Graves, at the 



Morrison Coal Ivilns, in Cdenmore town- 
ship. Brown county, but he has since al- 
ways made his home on the farm. He 
successfully conducts a general farming 
and stock-raising business, and in connec- 
tion with his agricultural operations runs 
a threshing machine. 

Mr. Le Roy was married, September 5, 
1878, in De Pere township, to Miss Susan 
.\. \\'inton, who was born in De Pere, 
daughter of Charles A. Winton, a native 
of Pennsyhania, who came to Brown 
county in an early day. The young 
coujile immediately took up their resi- 
dence on the farm, and here children as 
follows have been born to them: Edith 
A. (who is attending school at De Pere), 
Ellsworth G., Eva W., Ada P.. J. H., 
|r.. and Charles A., all li\ing. Politic- 
ally Mr. I^e Ivoy is a stanch Republican, 
and keeps himself well informed in the 
movements of his party, in whose welfare 
he takes great interest. He has been 
elected to various offices in his township, 
having served as assessor (two terms), 
school director, school treasurer, town- 
ship clerk (eight \'ears), United States 
census enumerator for his town in 1890. 
State census enumerator in 1885, and in 
each capacity discharging his duties with 
credit to himself and satisfaction to his 
fellow citi;;ens. He has also been called 
upon to act as representative to county 
conventions and assemblies, and he is one 
C)f the "wheel horses" of the Republican 
party in his section. Socially he is a 
member of De Pere Lodge No. 222. I. O. 
O. F., and Maple Leaf Lodge No. 107, 
K. of P., De Pere. Mrs. Le Roy, in re- 
ligious connection, is a member of the 
Methodist Church. 



T 



HOMAS ELDER SHARP, the 
well-known furniture dealer and 
cabinet manufacturer of De Pere. 
was born five miles northeast of 
Newville, Cumberland Co., Penn., in 
August, 1821, a son of James and Martha 
(Hanna) Sharp, of Scotch and Irish de- 



•6S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



scent respecti\ely. The father was a 
farmer, and also a captain in the Penn- 
sjhania niihtia, and both parents died in 
the Keystone State. 

Thomas E. Sharp hved on the home 
farm until sixteen or seventeen years of 
age. when he went to Lofjansport. Ind. . 
where an uncle and friends of the family 
resided, and began learning carpentry and 
cabinet making at a point about five or 
six miles north of that city. His mother 
and the rest of the family accompanied 
him (his father having died when subject 
was but an infant), but the mother sub- 
sequently returned to Pennsylvania. 
Thomas E. progressed rapidly at his trade, 
and was but a little over seventeen when 
he built a school house near Logansport, 
and also had manufactured several ar- 
ticles of furniture. \Mien twenty-one 
or twent\-tvvo he rcturneii east, and for 
eleven months worked in Pittsburg, four 
months in Philadelphia, three in New 
York. Philadelphia and Newcastle, Penn. ; 
thence he went to Cincinnati, and in 
1848-49. the cholera year, was in Louis- 
ville, Ky. He then returned, via Indian- 
apolis, to Logansport, and started a 
cabinet shop, remaining about six months. 
In 1S50, about the month of May, he set 
out west with a horse and bugg\-, reach- 
ing Chicago in the latter part of the same 
month, and there shot at a mark on 
stumps that would now l)e in the heart of 
the city, if they were still in existence. 
He then drove on to Milwaukee and thence 
to Fond du Lac, where he disposed of his 
rig; then went to Green Bay and thence 
came to De Pere. where he built a resi- 
dence and also did some cabinet work. 
He had first intended to enter the build- 
ing and cabinet-making business, but 
finally drifted into cabinet making only, 
and in 1S54 built a shop. He has also 
done something at boat building, pattern 
making, painting and other kinds of work, 
and has alwa\s been an industrious man 
and a skillful mechanic. 

The marriage of Mr. Sharp took place 
in De Pere, October 4, 1S53, to Miss 



Harriet Stewart, a daughter of Robert D. 
and Sarah (Carpenter) Stewart, who were 
among the earliest settlers of the city. No 
children ha\e been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Sharp, although a neice of Mrs. Sharp — • 
Alice A. Stewart — lived with them many 
years, and is now married to Dr. Porter, 
of Chicago. Mr. and Mrs. Sharp are 
members of the Congregational Church, 
and in politics he is a Republican. He 
has served as city treasurer of De Pere, 
and is considered to be one of the most 
solid inhabitants of the place. 



ROBERT 1). STEWART (de- 
ceased), born at Stewartsville, 
W'arren Co., N. J., March 5, 
1779, was of Scotch descent. He 
was married to Sarah Carpenter, October 
20, 1807, and died May 10, 1848; the 
death of his wife occurred May i, 1855. 
He landed at Green Bay June 14, 1836, 
lived in a house at Shant3'town, three 
miles distant, and was employed as super- 
intendent of the hjdraulic works at De- 
Pere, at three dollars per day. In 1837 
he moved his family to De Pere, and 
bought a claim of 160 acres on the west 
side of the Fox river, erected the first 
house in West De Pere, and was the first 
white man to make his permanent home 
there. He was supervisor for many years 
and also chairman of the board. He took 
much interest in schools, was an elder in 
the Presbyterian Church, and it was his 
constant habit to take his family and 
neighbers six miles to church at Green 
Bay on the Sabbath, by means of his 
sailboat. 

Robert I), and Sarah Stewart had a 
family of thirteen children, three of whom 
died in New Jersey. The ten who came 
with him to De Pere were William Max- 
well, who married Rachel Carpenter, and 
is now deceased; Elizabeth, who became 
the wife of \\'. W. Matthews, both now- 
deceased; Caroline M.. widow of Godfrey 
Miller, residing in De Pere; Mary, de- 
ceased; Joseph (deceased), who married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAniWAL RECORD. 



69 



Lora Lessey; Theodore (deceased), who 
married Mary J. Hamniond, who now 
Hves in Chicago, 111.; Ellen, who married 
Fred W. Newhall, and lives in Chicago; 
Harriet, horn December 28, iiS30, mar- 
ried Thomas E. Sharp; Charles A., mar- 
ried to Maggie McFarland, and residing 
in Chicago; Matilda, who married Will- 
iam J. Green, of Nyack, N. Y. , and is 
now deceased. 

Mrs. William Maxwell Stewart, widow 
of the eldest son of Robert D., narrates: 
"Mr. R. D. Stewart, in 1S36, beside 
farming, established a ferrj- across the 
Fo.\ river at his house, situate at that 
time about a half mile south of the pres- 
ent dam at De Pere, and during the ab- 
sence of the father and brothers Mrs. T. 
E. Sharp and others of the children would 
often take passengers across the stream 
in canoes, occasionally in the large scowe 
and, to tell the truth, the young ladies 
did not regret the al)sence of father or 
brothers on such occasions, as the passage 
money was applied by the girls to their 
own use for pin mone\-. When the family 
arrived at De Pere Indians were quite 
numerous." 

Thomas Stewart, the father of Robert 
D., was a native of Scotland, an(i settled 
in \N^arren count}-, N. J., in 1739; he was 
a farmer, owned 360 acres of land, and 
built a stone dwelling, around which after- 
ward clustered the \'illage named Stewarts- 
ville, in his honor. He served as judge 
of the court of common pleas, five years, 
and also as justice of the peace. He died 
in his stone dwelling at the age of eighty- 
three jears. His wife bore the maiden 
name of Rachel Dewees. When Robert 
D., his son, started for the West, he was 
accompanied by thirt}' others, including 
his own family, in their own boat, on the 
Delaware and Raritan canal, and so on to 
Philadelphia. Xew York and Buffalo 
(where he sold his boat), and thence by 
the steamer "Daniel Webster" to Green 
Bay, the trip from Easton, Penn., occupy- 
ing just three weeks. The half-mile front- 
age he purchased on the west side of Fox 



river, and on which the larger part of 
West De Pere has since been built, is 
known as Stewart's addition. 

The extraordinary career of this re- 
markable man extends beyond the limits 
of comprehensive comment. With a heart 
filled with lo\e and charity ior his fellow 
creatures, his ear was ever open to the 
plaint of those in distress, and his hand 
ever extended in aid of the suffering. His 
intuitive knowledge of the laws of trade 
and the sequence of demand and supply 
led him to adapt the means at hand in the 
primitive country in which he lived to the 
precise wants of the hour, as well as to a 
permanent de\'elopment of a prosperous 
future. His death was a severe blow to 
the community, and was indeed sincerely 
deplored. 



WILLIAM MAXWELL STEW- 
ART preceded his father, Rob- 
ert D. Stewart, in his de- 
parture from New Jersey for 
Wisconsin, in 1S35, and on his arrival at 
Green Bay acted as foreman for his uncle, 
John P. Arndt, in getting out lumber, 
and afterward had charge of a vessel be- 
longing to the same gentleman, freighting 
lumber and stone. 

W. M. Stewart was married at what 
is known as Carpentersville, N. J., in 
June, 1S34, to Rachel Carpenter, daugh- 
ter of Joseph A. and Sarah (Stewart) 
Carpenter. The Carpenters were of 
German origin, and descendants of the 
earliest settlers of New jersey. \N'hen 
William M. came west he left his wife in 
New Jersey, and the following },-ear, 1836, 
she followed in company with Robert D. 
Stewart's family. '\\'. M. Stewart had 
always been a farmer. In politics he 
was a Republican, and served as super- 
visor, besides filling several minor offices; 
he was an elder in the Presbyterian 
Church for a number of years. He died 
in September, 1S81. He and his wife 
were the parents of ten children, as fol- 
lows: Thomas, who married Augusta 



70 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAJ'JJICAL RECORD. 



Sheean; John P.. who was a Union sol- 
dier in the Civil war, and died at home of 
disease contracted in the service; Lyman, 
who married Annie E. Malone; Winslow, 
who married Julia Bene; Luella, who 
died in infancy; Ellen, who was married 
to James C. Ritchie; Elsie, single, at 
home; Robert D., who married Helen 
Hodgeson; and Joseph Carpenter, who 
married Matilda Stickles; Edward died at 
the age of ten years. 



WJ. FISK. This gentleman is 
president of the Kellogg National 
Bank at Green Bay, which in 
1 874 was organized out of the 
City National Bank, and he has been 
actively identified with the bank since 
1865; he is also one of the largest railroad 
contractors in the State of Wisconsin. 

Mr. Fisk was born in Brunswick, 
Ohio, in 1833, a son of Joel S. and Char- 
lotte (Green) Fisk, natives of New York, 
who in the year 1835 came to Wisconsin, 
landing at Sheboygan, whence he pro- 
ceeded on foot to Green Ba\-. I'^rom there 
he traveled, again on foot, by an Indian 
trail to Chicago, 111., returned east, and 
in 1836 came to Green Bay with his 
family. Here Joel S. Fisk found his first 
employment, in his new western home, 
in the general store of Mr. Whitney, 
afterward conducting a similiar establish- 
ment for his own account, and for a long 
time was a prominent figure in the mer- 
cantile and lumbering interests of this 
section of \\'isconsin. But he did not 
confine himself to these lines of business 
(which were of necessity the leading ones 
in the early days of a new country), for we 
find him in 1 84S filling the position of 
register of deeds in the Land Office, and 
he it was who in 1 850 platted what is now 
the thriving city of Fort Howard. He 
also served as postmaster at Green Bay 
for some considerable time. He died in 
1876, his wife preceding him to the grave 
by just six weeks. They were the parents 



of seven children, of whom the following is 
a brief record: (1) W. J. is the subject of 
this sketch. (2) Valentine S. enlisted in 
Kansas, at commencement of the war 
of the Rebellion, in the Eighth Kansas 
Infantr}', served throughout the entire 
struggle, and died at Washington, D. C, 
in 1872. (3) Elizabeth is the wife of 
Albert Johnson, and resides in Idaho. 
(4) Fannie C. died in 1875. (5) Kate P. 
died in 1863. (6) M. H. graduated in 
medicine at Ann Arbor Medical College; 
enlisted at .Ann Arbor in the ninetj'-days' 
service; is now practicing medicine at 
Wauwatosa; Wis. (7) Oneson, unnamed, 
died in infancy. 

W. J. Fisk received his elementary 
education at the schools of Green Bay, 
proving an apt scholar and diligent 
student. In his boyhood he evinced 
talent as a draughtsman, and at the early 
age of fifteen (in 1848) he made the maps 
for the Reservation of Lands for the im- 
provement of the Fox and Wisconsin 
rivers. For two years thereafter he 
served as clerk at Fort Howard, and 
then, being desirous of improving his 
education, attended college at Appleton, 
Wis. Returning to Fort Howard, Mr. 
Fisk here commenced trading in shingles — 
buying and selling; and as a natural tran- 
sition he soon embarked in the manufac- 
ture of that article, in course of time, 
however, abandoning that line for the 
lumber trade, in which he has since con- 
tinued, from day to day expanding his 
already vast interests. He began to sup- 
ply railroads, and his first contract was 
with the Chicago & Northwestern Rail- 
way Company to supply them with ties 
and timber for the construction of some 
fifteen miles of their road. The business 
was established in 1862 by W. J. Fisk, 
and in 1877, admitting two sons, the firm 
name became W. D. Fisk & Co., the 
business consisting in the supplying of 
wood, ties, telegraph poles, etc., to rail- 
way companies. Quite an army of 
laborers and teams find employment in 
the vast operations of the firm. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGltAPHICAL UEOORD. 



71 



In 1S55 Mr. Fisk was united in mar- 
riage at Fond du Lac, Wis., witii Miss 
Mary J. Driggs, daughter of John J. 
Driggs, a native of New York, who in 1 836 
came to Green Bay, where he carried on 
a mercantile business. He died some 
years ago. To Mr. and Mrs. Fisk four 
chikh'en have been born, viz.: Frank S. , 
who (Hed in 1881; Wilbur D. and Harry 
W. , both married and residing in Fort 
Howard, being members of the firm of 
W. D. Fisk & Co., of that place; and G. 
Wallace, also married and living in Fort 
Hnward, where he is bookkeeper for the 
Kellogg National Bank. In politics W. 
J. Fisk is a Kepublican. I'rom 1862 to 
1865 he ser\ed as postmaster at Fort 
Howard; during the term 1875-76-77 he 
represented Brown county in the Assem- 
bly, and was chairman of the Railroad 
Committee when the famous Granger- 
Potter railway law was rejiealed. 



REV. FATHER ANTHONY JOS- 
EPH VERBERK. Where emi- 
nent abilities and unlilemished in- 
tegrity, combined with unimpeach- 
able \irtue, derivable from the daily 
practice of religion and Jiiety, contribute 
to adorn the character of an individual, 
then it is most proper to be prominently 
set forth as an example to those who 
would make themselves useful to the rest 
of mankind. .And the writer cherishes 
the belief that he will jierforin this ac- 
ceptal^le service in giving a brief sketch of 
the reverend gentleman whose name here 
appears. 

Our subject was born in Holland Jan- 
uary 17. 1832, a son of Martin \'erberk, 
a cabinet-maker and jnunter by trade in 
the same country, wiiere he was born 
February 2, 1800. He (the father) was 
educated for a teacher of French, during 
the time of Napoleon's control of Hol- 
land, but after the fall of Napoleon aban- 
doned that profession for a trade. In his 
familv there were originally ten children 



— live sons and five daughters — which by 
1853 was reduced to two sons — Gerhard 
and Anthony Joseph — and three daugh- 
ters — Mary (now Mrs. H. Bremer, of 
Cleveland, Ohio), Joanna (who married 
John Rolder, and died in De Pere, Wis.), 
and Dora (now Mrs. Anthony Meulcn- 
dyke, of Menonnnee, Mich. ). In the 
spring of the year just named the family, 
resolving to seek a new home in the West- 
ern World, sailed f(.)r New York via 
Rotterdam and Li\erpool. P'rom their 
port of debarkation the party came west 
to Cleveland, Ohio, whither some of their 
friends had alread)' migrated, and from 
here, in 1856, part of the family, amongst 
them the subject of this sketch, canu' to 
Green Bay; but becoming dissatisfied with 
the locality they returned to Cleveland in 
July, 1857. In aftei- \ears the parents, 
in care of their son Gerhard, again came 
to Wisconsin, both dying in Do Pere, 
Brown county, the mother on .April 10, 
1874, the father on May 6, 1878. 

Rev. A. |. \'erberk received his ele- 
mentary education at the parish schtjols 
of his native town, pr(.)ving himself an 
apt and diligent scholar, studious antl re- 
flective. At the age of fourteen he entered 
college, where for six years he was a no 
less diligent student • of the languages — 
lioth ancient and modern — and studied 
philosophy until he was about twenty-one 
years old, when owing to his father's 
physical affliction, his studies were inter- 
rupted, and he had to assist in many 
ways at home till 1861, in September of 
which jear he came to Little Chute, AN'is., 
to visit an old Holland acquaintance. 
Father Spierings. Having been persuaded 
by this gentleman to resume his studies, 
Mr. Verberk on January 29, 1862, entered 
St. Francis Seminary, near Milwaukee, 
where he completed his philosophical and 
theological course. On December 27, 
1863, he was ordained to the priesthood, 
by Bishop Henni, in the Cathedral at 
Alilwankee, and appointed to his first pas- 
toral duties at Theresa, Dodge Co., Wis., 
as assistant to the priest stationed there. 



COyfMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



who was sick at the time. In September, 
1864. he was jjiven charge of his first con- 
gregation, which was in Freedom, Outa- 
gamie count}', and here he remained until 
March, 1865, at which time he was trans- 
ferred to Little Chute, where his old friend 
Father Spierings had been stationed. 
Here our subject labored among his flock 
till October, 1869, during which time he 
built a new house for the priest, and the 
new church building, of which for several 
years nothing had been standing except 
the foundation, was through his efforts 
and labor completed, with the exception 
of the work on the interior. F"rom Little 
Chute he was sent to St. Mary's Church 
at Appleton, at which time the parishion- 
ers, who were of several nationalities, all 
attended the same church, and it was dur- 
ing his incumbency here than the separa- 
tion took place. While in Appleton 
Father Verberk decided to pay a visit to 
his native land, and set out on his journey 
in June. 1872, proceeding to New York, 
visiting en route friends in Cleveland, 
Ohio, and Fort Lee, N. J. The voyage 
from New York to I^iverpool occupied 
twelve days, and in August he arrived in 
Holland, where he mot with an affection- 
ate reception, and lingered long and 
fondly about the hallowed spot of his 
happy childhood and boyhood days. His 
first intention was to travel through- 
out the continent and visit the Holy Land, 
but, a sickness that might be called "in- 
digenous" to Holland having seized him, 
he had to forego the anticipated pleasure, 
and return to the United States after a 
brief sojourn in his native country of 
about three months. 

On November 25, he started on his 
westward journey to resume his clerical 
duties in the Far West, and after a 
twenty-five days' passage from Liverpool 
landed in New York, the voyage having 
been protracted by an accident which oc- 
curred when they were four days out, 
necessitating return to port. Tarrying for 
some weeks in New York and New Jerse}', 
he then visited relatives in Cleveland, 



Ohio, and in the spring of 1873 arri\ed 
once more at Green Bay, Wis., whence 
he proceeded to the eliocese at Lacrosse, 
and for two years and a half had charge 
of the congregations at Baraboo, Sauk 
count}', and Eagle Point, Chippewa 
county. Being claimed by the bishop of 
Green Bay * as belonging to his diocese, 
he in November, 1875, was called to the 
temporary care of Wrightstown and other 
charges, and later, in February, 1 876, 
was transferred to Chilton, Calumet 
county, where was built under his pastor- 
ate a new church costing some twelve 
thousand dollars, and another for the 
Germans, costing from six to seven thous- 
and. In May, 1881, from the fact of his 
speaking the language of Holland, best 
understood by the Catholic congregation 
at Little Chute, he was recalled thither, 
remaining from 1881 to 1889. From that 
parish, where during his sta\' he com- 
pleted the yet unfinished church building 
and erected a new parish school, he re- 
moved in October, 1889. to his old charge 
at Chilton, remaining until 1892, when 
on account of failing health he resigned, 
in September taking up his residence in 
Dc Pcre. where he made his home about 
nine months, during which period of re- 
pose he employed a portion of his time 
writing for a Dutch paper called De Pere 
Standixrd, and the English Rclio of t/ie 
Valley. By the advice, however, of his 
physician, who recommended him to live 
more into the country, he came in May. 
1893. to the town of Hollanil. in Holland 
township, Brown county, where he has 
since led a retired life, at the same time 
filling the charge of St. Mary's Church, 
Hilbert Junction, by regular weekly visits 
and religious services whenever required. 



* The first resident inisionary priest at Green Bay was 
Father Van den Broek. and Fatlier Verberk is the only Hol- 
iand priest in Wisconsin to sec that venerable divine in life. 
This happened durine the winter of 1K47-I8. when Father Van- 
den ItrocK. after years of tnissionary work ainonc the Indians 
in the Fox River 'X'allev. was on a visit to liis native country. 
Father Verberk. at that time inakinK his collcce course, went 
to see tlie .iRed missionary for advise about joinini; tlie colony 
of Hollanders just then preparing to emigrate with Father 
\'an den Broek. Strange, that the college boy in after years 
should build a new church on the very spot, where the Pio- 
neer was laid to rest: 



COMMEMOHAriVE BIOORAPUWAL RECORD. 



73 



HON. PATRICK FINNEKTY, a 
leading representative citizen and 
prosperous farmer of Holland 
township, Brown county, by vir- 
tue of his popularity and usefulness in his 
county, deserves prominent place in 
this Biographical Record. 

He is a native of Brown count}-. Wis., 
born October 22, 1856, on the farm 
whereon he now lives in Section 14, Hol- 
land township, the eldest son of Thomas 
and Catherine (Keaton) Finnerty, natives 
of Ireland. Thomas Finnerty was born 
in County Sligo in 1820, the eldest in the 
family of Patrick Finnerty, a tenant 
farmer, who had by his wife, Catherine 
(Caggin), a family of ten children — sesen 
sons and three daughters. In the spring 
of 1 848 the family emigrated to the United 
States, crossing the ocean from Liver- 
pool in the sailing ship "Lord Elgin," 
the voyage occupying seven weeks. Land- 
ing in Boston, they proceeded from there 
to Vermont, locating for a time in Rut- 
land county. In November, 1849, the 
entire family came to Wisconsin via Buf- 
falo to Sheboygan, and in Holland (at 
that time Kaukauna) township, Brown 
county, settled in the dense wild woods on 
160 acres government land in Section 14, 
for which he paid ten shillings per acre, 
and entered in the name of Thomas, the 
eldest son. To reach this property the 
party traveled from Fond du Lac along 
the military road to a point south of 
Wrightstown, and from there had to lit- 
erally hew their way through the unbroken 
forest, there being neither road nor even 
path, the one they had to cut being the 
first. Here they built them a rude cabin 
and commenced to make a clearing for a 
farm. Patrick Finnerty, the head of this 
immigrant family, died in 1871, his wife 
passing away later at the home of their 
son Thomas. 

Thomas Finnerty, just mentioned, 
soon after their arrival here, in fact in the 
fall of the same year (1848), had to return 
to Ireland for some purpose, but in the 
following spring rejoined his parents and 



was one of the hardest workers in the 
clearing of the land. For two summers, 
however, after coming here. Thomas Fin- 
nerty worked at Kaukauna, for the Fox 
River Improvement Compau)', as a com- 
mon laborer, in order to earn means for the 
support of his parents and younger broth- 
ers and sisters, after which he commenced 
regular farim'ng on the home place, and 
in the course of time what was a dense 
inhospitable forest he converted into a fer- 
tile farm and comfortable home, the met- 
amorphosis representing years of toil and 
unceasing industry. In 1855 he married 
Catherine Keaton, a native of Tipperary, 
Ireland, and by her had children as fol- 
lows: Patrick, the subject jiroper of this 
sketch; Ellen, now Mrs. Hugh Finnegan, 
of Holland; Catherine, who died unmar- 
ried at the age of thirty-one years; Mary, 
living in Green Ba\'; and Bridget, at 
home. The family arc all members of St. 
Francis Church, at Hollanil. In his po- 
litical associations Thomas Finnerty is an 
ardent Democrat, and in National and 
State elections invariably votes that 
ticket, but in county and township affairs 
he supports the candidate lie considers 
best qualified for the office, regardless 
of party ties. In his township he has 
held the positions of treasurer and chair- 
man, as well as treasurer of the school 
board. 

Patrick Finnerty, the subject of this 
memoir, received a lil)eral education at 
the winter schools of the vicinity of his 
home, and being a diligent and apt 
sch<jlar, made remarkable progress with 
his Ixjoks. Schools in his boyhood were 
very different to what they are at the 
present time, and the lad, young as he 
was, saw by his own experience that vast 
improvements in the nurseries of the 
young mind were necessary if education 
was to keep pace with the phenomenal 
progress of the latter half of the nine- 
teenth century. Indeed, so aggressive 
was the stand he took, and so convincing 
were the arguments he advanced, that 
before he was twenty-one years old he 



74 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



received the appointment of clerk of the 
school board of his district, an office he 
has ever since held, al\va\'s laboring for 
the best interests of the educational in- 
stitutions, particularly those included 
within his own district. He was reared a 
farmer boy on the same farm he now 
conducts, all his instruction in this line 
of work being received under the pre- 
ceptorship of his father. Prior to his 
marriage, in 1889, he took a trip to the 
Pacific coast — his destination California; 
and traveling by the Union Pacific rail- 
road he stopped at many of the principal 
c\t\es en route. In the "Eureka State" 
he sojourned some ten months, visiting 
various interesting points, and in passing 
through Oregon spent some time in Port- 
land, returning to his Wisconsin home at 
the end of about a year. 

Politically Mr. Finnerty has been a 
Democrat from the time he cast his first 
vote, and has always been a wheel-horse 
of the party, being from early manhood 
recognized as a leader in the Democratic 
ranks in his township. He has been re- 
peatedly called to positions of honor and 
trust, all of which he has filled with honor 
to himself and satisfaction to his con- 
stituents. For two years he served as 
treasurer, and in 1 894 he was elected 
township clerk. In the fall of 1886, by 
a majority of votes, he was sent to the 
Assembly as member of the thirty- 
eighth session of the Wisconsin Legis- 
lature, the occasion being the second bi- 
ennial session, and he was the youngest 
man ever elected to the Legislature in 
Brown county. 

In February, 1S89, Mr. Finnerty was 
married at Milwaukee, Wis. , to Miss 
Ellen Desmond, a native of Brooklyn, N. 
Y., and daughter of Matthew Desmond, 
who settled in Milwaukee when Mrs. 
Finnerty was a child of about three sum- 
mers. Three children have been born to 
this union: Addie, Matthew and Thomas. 
The home farm, still comprising 160 acres 
of prime land, is contlucted under the 
immediate supervision of our subject him- 



self, and reflects as nmch credit on him 
as an agriculturist as have his public ser- 
vices as a statesman. 



IVl 



AirillAS REYNEX. Like 
thousands of other worthy men 
whose lot in their native coun- 
tr}' was simply to drudge and 
be ahvaj's poor, John Rcynen, father of 
Matthias, saw in the Western World a 
rainbow of promise. In the spring of 
1 85 I, with his wife and si.\ children, he 
left hard times and Holland behind, and 
sailed from Amsterdam in an English 
ship bound for New York city, arriving 
after a fifty-eight-days' voyage. Green 
Bay, Wis. , was their final destination, and 
they proceeded up the Hudson river bj- 
steamboat to Albany, where they were 
delayed a month by the severe illness of 
the head of the family. When he had re- 
covered they continued their journey via 
the Erie canal, and Matthias and his 
brother werepriviledged characters on the 
trip, being allowed to ride the horscswhich 
drew the canal boat. Upon arrival at Buf- 
falo it was learned that but one vessel, the 
old " Michigan, " was plying between that 
point and Green Bay, and as it took her 
two weeks to make the round trip, it was 
necessary to wait most of that time for 
her return; but they at length embarked, 
and in the fall of 1851 reached their des- 
tination. 

The family i>assed the first winter in 
Green Bay, but the following spring found 
them in De Pere, as tenants of Samuel 
Blake. After passing the summer here 
they removed to Little Chute, where the 
elder Reynen found employment on the 
canal, as he had previously done, carry- 
ing back to his family fifty pounds of 
flour upon his return. He continued to 
reside at Little Chute during his active 
life, finally locating at De Pere, where he 
died in 1.883, and his remains were in- 
terred in the Catholic cemetery at that 
place. His widow yet lives with a mar- 
ried daughter, on the same farm first 



COMMEMOUATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



75 



occupied by the family upon their arrival 
in this rej^ion. Their children, who are 
all lix'in.e;, are as follows; William, re- 
siding; in South Dakota; Matthias, whose 
name introduces this article; Gertrude, 
now Mrs. |ohn Coonen, of De Pere; Han- 
nah, now Mrs. William Vandervelden, of 
Cornelius, Oregon; Mary, wife of John 
Vandyke, of Freedom, Outagamie Co. , 
Wis.; Martin, of South Dakota; and the 
only death in this family has been that of 
the father. The chililren have all reared 
large families. 

Matthias Reynen was born in Holland 
March 14, 1838, and was consequently 
but thirteen years of age when he arrived 
in the land of his adoption. His father 
was able to afford him but a meager edu- 
cation in the old country, and after arriv- 
ing in the United States his only school- 
ing was included in a four-weeks' attend- 
ance at Albany, during the sickness of his 
father, as above mentioned. He showed 
remarkable aptness, and during that short 
period succeeded in mastering the three 
primary "readers" which a kind old 
gentleman had furnished him. By the 
time he reached Green Bay he was able 
to speak the English language fairly well, 
and the first money he earned was fifty 
cents received for acting as interpreter. 
The same spirit of determination has been 
of great value to him in the subsequent 
years of his life, for by his own sole efforts 
he has reached the position he now holds, 
as a substantial, respected and estimable 
citizen. His first employment in Wis- 
consin was peeling potatoes for Capt. Ed- 
wards, proprietor of the old ' ' Washing- 
ton House" (which stood on the site now 
occupied by the "Beaumont House"), 
and having performed the same kind of 
labor in his passage across the Atlantic, 
he was undoubtedly proficient. Contin- 
uing to reside with his parents until he 
became of age, young Matthias turned 
his earnings over to them, assisting them 
to the best of his ability to keep ' ' the 
wolf from the door" and become the pos- 
sessors of a home, engaging in various 



kinds of labor — fishing, gardening, etc. 
Until 1852 he carried the mail for Mr. 
Tyler between Green Ba\' and Manito- 
woc, one sunnner, when his horse had 
only an Indian trail to follow, and the boy 
had no definite idea as to the location of 
Manitowoc, frecjuently turning out to 
avoid wolves, bears, and other wild ani- 
mals. His instructions were, if the horse 
got disabled and swamped, to shoulder 
the mail bag and continue on foot; this 
happening on one occasion he left the 
horse in the swampy ground, and started 
to walk, but the animal succeeded in ex- 
tricating itself from the mudhole, and fol- 
lowing Mr. Reynen caught u[i with him 
and whinnied for his master before he 
had reached his destination. He at 
length secured a position with Mr. Wager 
and afterward with Wilcox & Wager, 
millers of De Pere, with whom he learned 
the milling trade, when the stone mill 
was built in De Pere, and continued to 
work at that place, at intervals, for twelve 
years, as well as in a similar capacity at 
other points; he is the oldest Hollander 
miller in the Fox River Valley. He was al- 
so employed more or less in the woods, and 
hand in hand along with hard work plod- 
ded along through the years, making a 
record as a toiler scarcely surpassed by 
a man of his age. He has been engaged 
at nearly all kinds of labor except military 
duty, and barely missed that, for he was 
drafted, but escaped through a mistake on 
the part of the enrolling officer, who 
spelled his name "Ryan." Mr. Reynen 
is unquestionably a leader of the self- 
made men of his section, and, in addition 
to his ability, being possessed of a won- 
derful retentive n-.emory, there is no 
doubt but that, with proper education, he 
might have made an honorable and dis- 
tinguished record in the professional 
world. 

On NoN'ember 16, 1S63, Mr. Reynen 
was wedded, in the old German Catholic 
Church at Green Bay, to Adelia Martins, 
who was born in Holland in 1843 and 
came to the United States with h er 



76 



COJJMEMORATIVK BIOGRAPUICAL KECORD. 



father's family in 1S50, the latter locat- 
ing near the home of our subject, in Al- 
ienee township, at the foot of Robinson 
Hill, the property now owned by Mr. 
Reynen. The children born to this union 
were: Minnie, now deceased; Fannie, 
now Mrs. Frank \'an Noss, of Green Bay; 
Mary, now Mrs. Charles \'an Noss, of 
the same city, G. \\'illiam, of .\lloue/. em- 
ployed in the railroad service; Martin, 
Tony, Ella and Minnie, at home; Frank, 
deceased; Peter and Lilly May, at home; 
and Dora, deceased. For a short time 
after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Reynen 
resided at Green Bay, but soon remo\ed 
to De Fere, where Mr. Reynen formed a 
partnership with Fred Lucke, and en- 
gaged for a few years in the milling busi- 
ness. He also purchased the • ■ De Pere 
House."' becoming its landlord. He had 
previously started up a new mill for other 
parties in Chippewa Falls, and, besides, 
built and conducted another at De Pere, 
which latter was burned in 1S83, the loss 
being heavy and the insurance small. 
After this disaster he located upon the 
farm of ninety-.seven acres upon which he 
has since resided, the homestead being 
generally known as "• Robinson Hill." 
From his pleasant home, erected in 1891, 
a delightful view of the Fox river is 
obtained. 

Politically Mr. Reynen is an unswerv- 
ing Democrat, and he has been elected by 
his party to various official positions at 
the different places where he has lived. 
While in De Pere he was a member of the 
city council several years, as well as of 
the county board of supervisors twelve or 
fifteen years, resigning upon his removal 
to Allouez. In the latter township he has 
been chairman of the town board for sev- 
eral years, and is the present member for 
Allouez on the county board, a positim 
in which he has always rendered credit- 
able service. During the panic of 1873 
he lost nine thousand dollars inside of six 
months, and his fire losses in 1S83 were 
ten thousand; but, notwithstanding these 
severe blows, he is vet comfortabh situ- 



ated, owning one hundred acres of the 
most desirable land in the vicinity of 
Green Bay, a property which is destined 
to be worth many thousand dollars in the 
not tlistant future. From his boyhood he 
has found it necessary to make an uphill 
fight. Instead of being assisted by his 
parents his efforts were lent to their sup- 
port, and it was a struggle for years be- 
fore there was perceptible gain. In deal- 
ing with his fellowmen his methods have 
been straightforward and honorable, and 
"Matt" Reynen, as he is best known, 
is respected and esteemed by a wide circle 
of acquaintances. He and his family are 
members of the Holland Catholic Church, 
in which he has been an officer for years, 
and to which his contributions have been 
most liberal. From out the Netherlands, 
which have sent sturdy men and women 
into the four quarters of the globe, there 
have come few, if any. who can lay 
stronger claim to the proud title, "a 
self-made man, " and he bears his laurels 
with becoming composure. 



CHARLES JOANNES, member of 
the firm of Joannes Bros., whole- 
sale grocers. Green Bay, Wis., 
is a native of Belgium, born in 
the town of Tervueren, about six miles 
east of Brussels, April 24, 1844, the 
eldest son of Eugene C. and Marie Eliza- 
beth (Vandersmissen) Joannes. 

In 1856 the family, consisting of 
father, mother and eight children, left 
their native land for the New World, 
taking passage on a sailing vessel at Ant- 
werp, and after a voyage of thirty-nine 
days landed in New "V'ork. From there 
they proceeded westward to Wisconsin, 
via rail to Buffalo, thence steamer to 
Green Bay, which they found to be a 
thriving village and important trading 
point. The family settled in Lawrence 
township. Brown county, on a small 
farm, which they commenced to clear, by 
hard work and untiring perseverance to 






'/"t u-'Z.'Cz^ ' /^ ^c 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



77 



make ;i new hunic in the then conipara- 
ti\e wilderness; but tlie fatlier was 
doomed never to realize his hopes and 
plans for the future, for early in the fol- 
lowing spring (1857J, in attempting to 
cross Fox river on the ice he broke 
through and was drowned, leaving a 
widow and seven children to survive him, 
the youngest child (an infant) having died 
a few months before this. He had lived 
in Brown county only about six months, 
yet during that short time had estab- 
lished himself in the estimation of all 
whom he came in contact with as an 
earnest, industrious man, above the 
average in intelligence and progressive- 
ness. All of the children that were old 
enough were sent to school soon after 
they were settled. The death of the 
father left the widowed mother alone 
among strangers with her children, the 
eldest being only about fourteen years 
old; but being heroic in nature, and 
possessed of an indomitable will power 
and a strong constitution to back it, she 
set herself to the task of rearing her 
children as well as circumstances would 
permit. The neighbors, being kind- 
hearted people, took great interest in the 
family, and helped them in many ways, 
five of the children finding homes among 
them, where they were required to do 
chores, assisting in farm work during the 
summer season and attending school 
during the winter months. In 1861 the 
family moved into Green Bay, the farm 
having been sold, and the money realized 
from it was invested in a small home on 
Pine street, where the Green Bay, 
Winona & St. Paul railroad office build- 
ing now stands. Here the family resided 
some years, the children, when old 
enough to leave school, succeeding in 
securing employment of one kind or an- 
other in Green Bay. 

Charles Joannes, who, as will be 
seen, was about twelve years old when 
the family came to Wisconsin, after 
spending five years on the farm, went to 
Green Bay, where he immediately secured 



a position with the late Dr. Henry 
Pearce, remaining there a little more 
than two years, doing cIkjics and attend- 
ing school. l<'roni there he entered the 
office of register of deeds as copying 
clerk under Xavier Martin, and there he 
remained two years, at the end of which 
time he entered the store of Bennett X: 
Williamson, jn'oprietors nf the then lead- 
ing dry-goods store in Green Bay, con- 
tinuing in their emjiloy until the winter of 
1867. At that time, being desirous of 
impro\ing himself in ronnnercial theory, 
he went to ("hicagn, where he entereil 
Bryant lv: Stratton's Business College, 
and after graduating from this school he 
received the appointment of assistant 
bookkeeper with Fielding Bros. lV Cc , 
manufacturers and joljbers of sewing 
silks, Chicago. At the enil cif three 
months he had earned the conlulence nf 
the firm, and was sent by them to their 
Cincinnati house to take full charge of 
their books there, while at the close of 
two years he became traveling salesman 
for the same firm, his territor}- co\ering 
almost the entire South; but in July, 
1872, he se\'ered his connection with 
Belding Brothers in order to embark in 
the grocery lousiness with his brothers in 
Green Bay. 

The firm of Joaimes Brothers, consist- 
ing of Charles, William, Mitchell and 
Thomas, connnenced business in a retail 
way in August, 1S72. William (at that 
time the only one of the four brothers to 
have any experience in that line) was sent 
to New York to buy their first stock of 
goods, which was liought for cash. The 
boys, being well known and respected, did 
a flourishing business from the start, ami 
soon became the leading retail grocers in 
the city. There was then quite a large 
jobbing business done in Green Bay, but 
the panic of 1873 soon followed, and 
proved ver\- disastrous to all the business 
interests in Green Bay, particularly to the 
wholesale grocery trade, it taking but a 
short time to close up all of the whole- 
sale grocery firms in the city. Joannes 



COMMEMOItATlVh: DIOGRAPniCAL ItECORD. 



Brothers, being then the leading retail 
grocers, were quick to realize the import- 
ance of trying to take care of as much of 
the trade, that had fonneriy been buying 
their goods at wholesale on this market, 
as possible; but with their limited capital, 
together with the panicky condition then 
existing, they could readily see that noth- 
ing but a strictly cash basis would now be 
safe to follow. This they adopted, and 
adhered to until conditions were more 
fa\-orable to again return to a credit sys- 
tem, from which time on their business 
increased very rapidly, so that in 1884 
they discontinued their retail department, 
and have ever since conducted an exclu- 
sively jobbing business. In 1891 their 
business had grown to such an extent that 
they found it absolutely necessary to in- 
crease their facilities, and they then 
erected their present four-story fand base- 
ment) building, 88 x 90 feet in dimensions 
(with granite front), with warehouses in 
rear extending to the channel of the Fox 
river, where all the largest lake steamers, 
having goods for the firm, land and unload 
their cargoes direct into these warehouses, 
thus saving the firm a large amount every 
year in cartage. They also have the track 
of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul 
railroad running between their store and 
warehouse, thus enabling them to being all 
car-load lots directly opposite their prem- 
ises for unloading. In connection with their 
grocery business they also own and oper- 
ate a very complete coffee and spice mill, 
and there are no better goods on the 
market than their Champion brand spices. 
Taking all things into consideration, the 
Joannes Brothers have, without a doubt, 
the most complete and best equipped 
plant for conducting a wholesale grocery 
business that can be found in the North- 
west, with a trade that is second to none 
in the State of Wisconsin. They now 
have seven traveling men on the road 
selling goods, which fact, however, hardly 
gives a correct idea of their business, 
fully half of which comes to them un- 
solicited, and they employ in their differ- 



ent departments no less than forty-four 
hands. In the accomplishment of this 
the brothers have had very little leisure 
time, and to-day, even, they are harder 
workers than any of their numerous em- 
ployees, and their success in life is largely 
attributed to the close personal attention 
they have always given every detail in 
their business, thej- never allowing goods 
to be misrepresented, so far as they are 
able to judge. 

On July 2, 1872, Charles Joannes, the 
senior member of the firm, was married 
in Cincinnati to Miss Hattie P. Lambdin, 
a native of that city, and daughter of 
William Thomas and Martha I'.Athern) 
Lambdin, who were born in Martha's 
Vine\ard, Mass., where \\'illiam Athern, 
the grandfather of Mrs. Charles Joannes, 
helped to build the United States frigate 
"Constitution." Mrs. Joannes received 
her education in the schools of Rising 
Sun, Intl., and is a lady of culture and 
refinement. She is a prominent member 
of the Congregational Church, and takes 
an active interest in the social life of 
Green Bay. As a business man, Mr. 
Joannes is recognized as possessing the 
utmost ability, push and energy, and as 
a citizen none stand any better. 



M 



ITCHELL JOANNES, member 
of the wholesale grocery firm of 
Joannes Bros., Green Baj-, is a 
native of Belgium, born in 
1848, and is the third son of Eugene C. 
and Marie Elizabeth (Vandersmissen) 
Joannes. 

Mitchell Joannes was but eight years 
of age when he left home to live with 
others. At the age of eight and one-half 
years he began working on a farm; four 
years afterward went to Ripon, Wis., 
where for two years he was employed at 
the same kind of labor. In 1862 he 
came to Green Bay, entered a physician's 
office as clerk, and was thus engaged for 
two years, at the end of which time he 
commenced clerking in the crockery 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIUAL RECORD. 



8l 



house i>f W'hccliick cV I'lKipnian, at 
whicli he continuetl until liis enhst- 
inent, in 1865, in Company ("., l-'ort}- 
first Wis. \". I., under the ninety- 
da\'s' call; was statiimed at Mem- 
phis, Tenn., ami was honorabl}' dis- 
charj^ed at the expiration of his term of 
enlistment; he sustained only one injury, 
and that was at ("hatham. 111., through 
an accident while cii i-initc for home. On 
his recovery, he was employed as clerk 
for eighteen months in (ireen Baj-, and 
was then appointed to a position in the 
postoffice, in the service of which, as 
clerk and assistant postmaster, he re- 
mained nine years, doing duty during the 
terms of Capt. D. M, W'hitnew Capt. C. 
R. Tyler and W. C. E. Thomas. He 
resigned this position to take an active 
part with his brothers, Charles and Will- 
iam, in the grocery business. [Business 
record of Joannes Bros, will be found in 
the sketch of Charles Joannes.] 

l>esides his interest in this e.xtensive 
concern, Mitchell Joannes has manifold 
collateral connections. He has been a 
director in the Citizens National Bank 
since the organi/ration of that institution; 
is a stockholder in the Columbian Bakery 
Company, of which he is a director aiul 
vice-president; also stockholder in and 
treasurer and director of the Green Bay 
and Fort Howard Water Works Com- 
pany. He is likewise a stockholder in 
the Green Bay Planing Mill, as well as 
in the Green Bay Pickle Factory, and 
both building and loan societies; he is a 
stockholder in the Brown Count}- Fair 
and Park Association, and director in the 
J. R. Thomas Machine Company, and a 
member of the Business Men's Associa- 
tion of the city. In politics he is inde- 
pendent, locally, \oting for such men and 
measures as will redound, in his opinion, 
to the best interests of the general public, 
and has served, with the same end in 
view, as alderman from the Second 
ward. In religion he is a devout Roman 
Catholic, and worships at the French 
Catholic Church. 
5 



The marriage of Mr. Joannes was 
celebrated at Green Ba)- Jul)- i, 1875, 
with Miss Fannie D. Goodhue, daughter 
of Charles F. H. and Delia (Alger) Good- 
hue, early settlers at Beloit, Wis. The 
father of this amiable lady died in Wood 
county. Wis., May 16, 1874, a much- 
honored citizen; the motlier makes her 
home in Green Bay with Mr. Joannes' 
familw This union was crowned by the 
birth of five children, of whom three are 
still living, viz.; Gertrude A., .Arliueand 
Harold V. ; the deceased are Guy Good- 
iiue, born May 17, 1876, died August 25, 
1876; and Nellie Genevieve, born August 
31, 1880, died June 23, 1S82. Mr. Joaimes 
has indeed been the "architect of his 
own fortune," having by his upright busi- 
ness methods won for himself a host of 
friends in the community of trade, and 
by his genial manners and pleasant ad- 
dress added daily to his list of patrons. 
He has always been among the foremost 
to aid l)y his means and enterprising 
spirit the building up of Green Baj- city 
and the county of Brown, of which he is 
recognized as one of the most substantial 
citizens. 



THOMAS JOANNES, member of 
the wholesale grocery firm of 
Joannes Brothers, Green Bay, is 
a native of Belgium, born March 
17, 1849, in Tervueren, a town situated 
some si.x miles east of Brussels, a son of 
Eugene C. and Marie Elizabeth (Vanders- 
misseni Joannes. 

Thomas Joannes was seven 3-ears old 
wlien the family came to the United 
States and to Wisconsin, and at the 
schools of Green Bay he received a fairly 
liberal education up to the age of fourteen 
years. On leaving school he commenced 
learning the trade of jeweler, and by the 
end of three years was so proficient at the 
business that he was given charge of most 
of the repairing in the store where he 
served his apprenticeship. About the year 
1866, al)andoning the jewelry business, 



82 



commemorath'e btograpuical record. 



he was given a clerkship in the postofficc 
at Green Bay, and after four years in that 
capacity was appointed, by United States 
Senator T. (). Howe, to the position of 
postal clerk in the United States mail ser- 
vice. He had charge of the first mail car 
that ever ran north of Green Bay, and his 
was the first appointment for that division; 
but after a faithful service of one and one- 
half years he resigned in order to take 
active interest in the grocery business of 
Joannes Brothers, with which he had been 
affiliated since 1872. [Business record of 
Joaimes Brothers will be found in the 
sketch of Charles Joannes.] 

From the time of the opening out of the 
wholesale branch, Thomas Joannes has, 
more particularly, had charge of the spice 
mills, besides attending to outside mat- 
ters, such as collections, etc. On Octo- 
ber 23, 1878, he was united in marriage, 
in Oshkosh, Wis., with Miss Emma M. 
Heath, a well-educated and highly-cul- 
tured lady, whose native place is Racine, 
Wis. She is a daughter of Joseph and 
Catherine (Norton) Heath, old residents 
of Oshkosh. To Mr. and Mrs. Joannes 
have been born three children, named 
respectively: Genevieve Regina, Mary 
Hortense and Leland Heath. The par- 
ents are members of St. John's Church, 
Green Bay, and in his political sympathies 
Mr. Joannes is pronouncedly independent. 
During the winter of 1893-94 he built one 
of the finest residences to be seen in Green 
Bay or vicinity, in which he takes a pro- 
per pride, for it is an ornament to the 
city. His success in life is due to hard 
work and good business management, 
which, coupled with conmion sense and 
sound judgment, have brought him the 
reward he so well merits. 



Wl LLI.\M EDW.\RI) KEL- 
LOGG, cashier of the Kellogg 
l^>anking Company at De Pere, 
Brown County, was born June 
1, 1835, in .Xmherst, Mass. He is a son 
of Sanford W. and Emily L. (Spears) 



Kellogg, the former of whom was at one 
time a resident of Amherst, Mass., and 
later a capitalist at Waukegan, 111., re- 
moving still later to Sauk Center, Minn., 
where he engaged extensively in general 
merchandising and flour-milling. He sub- 
sequently returned to Waukegan, 111., 
where he died in October, 1882. 

William E. Kellogg was educated 
partly at the high school of Waukegan, 
having previously passed the junior year 
at Notre Dame College, South Bend. Ind. 
After leaving high school he was em- 
ployed for a couple of years by a mer- 
cantile firm at Sauk Center, Minn., of 
which his father was the head, doing 
business under the title of Kellogg, Cha.'^e 
& Mayo; later was with Thomas, La/ear 
& Hayden, wholesale dealers in furnish- 
ing goods at Chicago, and then with John 
V. Farwell & Co., wholesale dry-goods 
men of the same city. In June, 1878, 
he entered the Kellogg National Bank at 
Green Bay, \\^is. , at the bottom of the 
ladder, and remained until October, 1881, 
when he was made cashier of the Rufus 
B. Kellogg & Co. bank at De Pere. of 
which institution he is now the hea\iest 
stockholder. The average annual de- 
posits in this bank up to the panic of 
1893 were about one hundreit and twenty- 
five thousand dollars, and although a 
slight diminution then took place, the 
deposits soon recovered their wonted 
volume. Throughout the most stringent 
season of the year named the bank never 
for a moment closed its doors, and never 
asked a dollar aid from any source — an 
illustration of the safe and conservative 
system of the bank, which has never yet 
lost a dollar by bad loans or investments. 
Since 1881 the affairs of the bank have 
virtually been under the control of Mr. 
Kellogg, and although this gentleman 
was but a novice when he took charge, 
the owners made but one visit of inspec- 
tion per year after the first two or three 
months, being thoroughly satisfied with 
the safe .system upon which the cashier 
was conducting its affairs. The manage- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



83 



ment hold the entire confidence of the 
public, and depositors feel that their 
funds are as safe in its custody as if 
locked up in a safety-deposit vault. The 
bank is a State bank, and was incorpor- 
ated in icS89 with R. B. Kellogg, presi- 
dent; L. D. Hurd, vice-president, and W. 
E. Kellogg, cashier, with a capital stock 
of twenty-five thousand dollars, being the 
outcome of a private bank established by 
Rufus B. Kellogg in 1878. The death of 
R. B. Kellogg, however, took place in 
September, 1891, and H. H. Camp suc- 
ceeded to the presidency of the Kellogg 
Banking Company. This gentleman was 
formerly president of the First National 
Bank of Milwaukee, and is now also presi- 
dent of the Milwaukee Trust Company. 

\i the death of Rufus B. Kellogg our 
subject was appointed one of the execu- 
tors of his estate of half a million, with- 
out bonds, and was also made guardian 
of his children. Rufus B. Kellogg was a 
practical business man, and when our 
subject started in with him, at the mea- 
ger salary of twentj' dollars per month, he 
was warned that promotion depended on 
his ability and attention to his duties. 
The result speaks for itself. 

The marriage of W. E. Kellogg with 
Gertrude M. Hutchinson was solemni;?ed 
June 7, 1882. at Waukegan, 111., the 
fruit of the union being Rufus H., born 
December 13, 1889, and Anna, born 
January 22, 1893. 



DANIEL WHITNEY (deceased). 
Something more than a simple 
announcement and a passing re- 
mark is due to the memory of one 
who was not only the founder of Green 
Bay, but for more than thirty years had 
his residence there, and was as familiar 
to the people as their own household 
gods. More than any other man, he was, 
in the earlier part of his career, ardently 
and actively engaged in developing the 
resources of the then wilderness of the 
Northwest, and in building up the city of 



Green 15ay. .\s one of the first settlers 
and pioneers of Wisconsin, there is due 
to his memory a place on the record of 
his adopted honie. In the prosecution of 
his early explorations, as pioneer, no one 
traveled as nuich, or labored as liard as 
he; and, in doing so, no man suffered 
more hardships, or t-xposure, or ran more 
desperate risks. He knew no fear. 
Wherever his duty or liis business called 
him, he went. Cold, storm, or night- 
time had no terrors sufficient to deter him 
from pursuing his object. 

Mr. Whitney was born September 3, 
1795, in Gilsum, N. H., a son of Samuel 
and Mar\- Whitney, the former of whom 
was a nati\-e of Massachusetts, born 
August 5, 1758, in Newton, whence in an 
early day he removed to New Hampshire, 
becoming a \'erv prominent man in the town 
of Gilsuni, that State. He there married 
Miss Mary Whitney, daughter of Capt. 
Joshua Whitney, a prominent citizen of 
Worcester, Mass. , and captain of a \ol- 
unteer company raised there, serving 
throughout the Revolutionary war. Sam- 
uel Whitne}-, father of our subject, was 
also a soldier in that struggle, a member 
of Capt. Flagg's company of "Minute 
Men." His son Daniel, of wIkmii this 
sketch jiertains, was reared in New Hamp- 
shire, and recei\ed his education in part 
at the schools of the neighborhood of his 
home, in part in Boston, Mass. In 18 16 
he paid his first visit to Green Bay, to 
"spy the land," and returning east again 
in 1 8 19, came here to make his perma- 
nent home in the new country, being 
twenty-four years old at the time. Here 
he established himself in mercantile busi- 
ness near Camp Smith, two and one-half 
miles above the present site of Green 
Bay, where the village then was; and this 
was the starting point of all his subsequent 
numerous enterprises. 

^^'isconsin, and all the west and north, 
was then a complete wilderness, inhabited 
only b\' wild Indians comprising within 
the limits of the present State at least six 
different nations, and other nations still 



S4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



more fierce and warlike held all the coun- 
try west of the Mississippi. This did not 
prevent Mr. Whitney from making many 
long journeys to the interior, and push- 
ing his in\estigations wherever he thought 
good locations for trade could be found. 
He explored the Fox river to its source, 
and the Wisconsin from the rapids to the 
Mississippi. In 1821-32 he was sut- 
ler for U. S. troops at Fort Snelling, on 
tlie St. Peter's river, Minnesota; estab- 
lished several trading posts on the Missis- 
sippi, where he supplied traders with 
goods, and had also a trading post at 
Sault Ste. Marie. During the winter of 
1822 he traveled on foot from Fort Snell- 
ing to Detroit, with only an Indian for a 
companion, to assist liim with his pro- 
visions and bedding, which the\- drew on 
a hand sled. During this whole journey 
(about one thousand miles) he met but 
one white man, and saw but two cabins. 
An incident occurred on this trip which 
showed the perseverance and daring of 
the man. In crossing one of the numer- 
ous rivers en route, he found the ice bad. 
The Indian guide became afraid, but Mr. 
Whitney crossed over, drawing the sled 
and load with him. The Indian would 
not follow, whereupon Mr. Whitney re- 
crossed, and in so doing broke through 
the ice (which was thin, the water deep 
and the current strong) with one foot. 
He provided himself with a rope from the 
sled and a cudgel, anti compelling the In- 
dian to lie down upon the ice, with the 
rope drew him over in safety, In the fall 
of 1824 he had a vessel, loaded with 
goods and provisions for Green Bay, frozen 
in near Mackinac. Such an accident in 
those times threatened serious conse- 
quences to the settlements, and, although 
starvation was impossible when fish and 
venison were plenty, yet manj' would suf- 
fer inconvenience, and Mr. Whitney a 
great loss, unless the supplies could be 
reached. As soon, therefore, as cold 
weather had insured a bridge of ice, along 
the shore, and across the rivers and bays, he 
fitted out an expeditiejn consisting of him- 



self and several French-Canadians, with 
horse-trains, made the trip to Mackinac 
on the ice, where the vessel was, and re- 
turned with all he could of the most 
necessary goods. In order to carr)' on 
his extensive operations, he went several 
times to Canada, and procured large num- 
bers of "voyageurs," men used to voy- 
aging and the trader's life. With those as 
companions and assistants, he traversed 
the country on foot, in the bark canoe 
and in the Mackinac boat, exploring new 
sections of country, and transporting goods 
to his trading houses. Man\' of these 
men are still in the county, and are num- 
bered among the most substantial farmers. 
From these early times, until the light of 
civilization shone across the country, un- 
til settlements were formed, and roads 
opened from the lake shore to the in- 
terior, and until the improvement of the 
Fox river had so far progressed as to ad- 
mit of partial steamboat navigation, Mr. 
Whitney was largel)' engaged in the trans- 
portation business. For many years all 
the supplies for Forts W^innebago and 
Crawford and the upper Mississippi, for 
troops, Indian treaties, etc., were con- 
veyed in boats from Green Bay by the 
Fox and Wisconsin rivers; and few per- 
sons, not familiar with those times, can 
form any idea of the immense labor and 
cost involved. 

Between 1825 and 1830 Mr. Whitney 
explored the upper W'isconsin. built mills 
at Plover Portage, and for more than 
fifteen jears was engaged in the business 
of manufacturing lumber, and running it 
down the Wisconsin and Mississippi rivers 
to the St. Louis market. This was the 
first lumbering establishment erected on 
the Wisconsin river, and probably the 
first on any tributary of the Mississippi. 
During the same period he also built a 
shot-tower at Helena, on the Wisconsin 
river, and inaugurated an extensive busi- 
ness at that point. From the time the 
Stockbridge Indians came into the State 
to commence their new homes, in 1827 
or 182S, until their removal to their 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



present locatioji in Shawano cijunt\', he 
kept a supply store among them, trans- 
acting also their business for them; and 
during the whole time, about thirteen 
years, as a strictly honest man antl a fair 
and liberal dealer, he possessed their 
entire confidence; and down to the time 
of his death these Indians looked up to 
him as their father and friend. He also 
supplied goods to Indian agencies, as will 
be seen by the following letter, written 
over sixty years ago: 

IxniAN Agkncv, 
Grken- Bav, July 21, '32. 
To Daniel Whitney: 

Dear Sir. — With the arms purchased from 
Messrs. Kircheval iS: Hamilton, tog-ether with 
your own, you will please to include some to be 
liad from Messrs. Law, Porlier A Gri!.!-non, in 
order that the whole number may be included 
in the one draft to be drawn on ac. of 
army. These arms I should be glad to have 
sent to the Agency in the course of tlie day, or 
early on Monday morning. 

(Signed) G. Bo\-D. H. S. Indian Agt. 

In 1831 he abandoned his residence 
near Camp Smith, and moved his family 
and store to Navarino (now Green Baj'), 
near the mouth of the river, where he 
passed the rest of his days. From his 
earliest acquaintance with the locality 
and surroundings of Green Bay, he enter- 
tained the most unbounded confidence in 
its capabilities and fitness to become the 
most important commercial town in the 
State, and, acting upon this faith, he as 
early as possible secured the land where 
the city now stands, and in 1828 or 1829 
laid out the town of Navarino, since 
incorporated as Green Bay, and com- 
menced building a city. In 1830 he had 
completed a wharf and spacious ware- 
house, a portion of the "Washington 
House," a school house, and some dwell- 
ing houses for his mechanics and labor- 
ers. From 1830 to 1840 he continued to 
build, and as fast as materials could be 
obtained erected eight or ten stores and 
a large number of dwelling houses to rent; 
in the meantime giving away a consider- 
able number of lots to mechanics and 
others who were desirous of building 



homes for themselves. He also con- 
tributed ver\' largely toward the comjile- 
ticju of the Episcopal church edifice — the 
first Protestant house of worship built in 
either the city or the State. This church 
edifice was always a special object of 
interest to him, and from its completion 
in I S38 until cares ended witli him on earth 
he never ceased to watch about it, and 
many a dollar has he e.\]>ended in repairs, 
from time to time, which no one but him- 
self ever noted or recorded, and for which 
the congregation can never cease to owe 
him a grateful remembrance. The fol- 
loNving is copied from a sketch of ' ■ Pioneer 
Life in Wisconsin," written Iiy Henry 
Merrill for the benefit of the State His- 
torical Society: 

At Shanteetown I met Rev. Mr. Cadle. who 
liad charge of the Episcopal Mission, delig-ht- 
fully situated on a hill back from the river in a 
beautiful grove: and Alexander Irwin and his 
lady, and Samuel, his brother, who were en- 
gaged in merchandise here ; Wm. Dickinson 
and others. Having letters of introduction to 
Mr. Daniel Whitney, I became well acquainted 
with him, and have considered him one of the 
most enterprising: men of the West. At this 
time he was doing- an extensive business in 
merchandise, reaching on to the Wisconsin 
river, where he had built the first sawmill upon 
the river at Point Pass, some seventy miles 
above the Portage, one on the Wisconsin and 
one on the Fox, a shot-toiver at Helena, and 
extending his business on to the Mississippi to 
Galena and St. Louis. Three years before he 
persisted in building and laying off a town, 
what is now the town of Green Bay. although 
he was laughed at and called crazy. But the 
trouble was. in many of his operations he was 
ahead of the times, and some of them did not 
prove good investments, although Navarino 
did not prove one of them, for the town of 
Green Bay is now a large and flourishing city. 
I afterward met him often, and roamed over 
the country with him on horseback, as all our 
traveling was accomplislied in that way in 
those days, sometimes without road and some- 
times on Indian trails, fording- streams, marsh- 
es, etc., etc., sometimes in the rain and some- 
times throug^h the snow, taking the ground for 
our body with our saddles for pillows, carrying 
provisions and blankets with us. I always 
found him a cheerful companion and an estima- 
ble man. He g-ave me at one time an account, 
the minutes of which I took down, of a journey 
of his from Fort Snelling, on the St. Peter's, 
to Detroit. Mich., in 1821, on foot in the midst 
of winter, as follows: December (1, 1821. he 
started in a canoe with two men, the ice run- 
ning thick in the river. His acquaintances 



S6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



tried hard to persuade him to defer starting 
until the river closed; but no. business called 
him. and he must jfo. They soon found them- 
selves in a bad fix, for the ice blocked up under 
the canoe so as to raise it six feet above the 
water. After g^reat exertion they got to shore, 
as he said, more pleased than he ever was in 
his life at getting on land again. They then 
started on foot, and got only nine miles the 
first day and encamped. The next day started 
down the river bank, packing their food and 
blankets on their backs, each carrying a gun, 
the weather extremely cold and the snow six 
inches deep. They were five days in getting 
to Lake Pepin. In crossing the lake Mr. Whit- 
ney broke through; the lock of his gun catch- 
ing on the ice was the only thing that saved 
him. The weather was .so cold some of the 
time that they had to stop and build fires to 
warm them.selves to keep from freezing. 
Thirty miles above Prairie du Chien they got 
out of provisions, but seeing a smoke they made 
for it and found Augustin Grignon encamped, 
an acquaintance from Green Bay. He was on 
a trading voyage among the Indians; he sup- 
plied them with provisions. In this way they 
passed through Pr;iirie du Chien to Fort Win- 
nebago, and from thence to Green Bay. where 
they arrived in twenty-one days from Fort 
Snelling. After remaining a few days he took 
a guide and started on foot for Chicago, where 
he arrived in ten days, and from there to De- 
troit in ten days more, making his tramp in 
forty-one days from Fort Snelling. and said he 
could then make his forty miles a day, and 
easier than to ride on horseback. 

During the last rtfteen jears of Mr. 
Whitney's hfe he pursiicti no regular busi- 
ness, but devoted his whole time to the 
care of an immense landed estate. His 
early life in the wilderness, upon the 
rivers, and upon the bay, is full of in- 
cidents, interesting, as showing the intre- 
pidity of his character, and his indomitable 
perseverance, under the most discourag- 
ing difficulties. On one occasion while 
returning home from Grand Kaukauna 
with horse and train, on the ice, in the 
night, his horse broke through. Being 
alone, and finding himself unable to extri- 
cate the horse without aid, in order to 
keep the horse's head above water he tied 
it to the train, and then went three miles 
for assistance, rather than let his horse be 
drowned, as most men would have done. 
He returned with help, and saved the 
animal. Whenever there was danger in 
the path, he was always at the head of 
his party, and never required a man in 



his employ to go where he was afraid to 
lead. He was never a candidate for 
office and never served in one. Honest 
and upright in all his dealings, he always 
possessed the confidence of his employes 
and dependents, and all who had any 
business transactions with him. His heart 
was ever kind, and the poor, the unfortun- 
ate, and the afflicted, in his death lost a 
friend who never forgot them. Many was 
the time that such, in their greatest want, 
found the needed supply in the doorway, 
or at the kitchen corner at nightfall, or 
at daydawn, without ever knowing the 
hand that relieved them; and oft had the 
Christmas-tide brought with it happiness, 
when else no merry Christmas jubilee 
would have found its way around the fires 
where no Yule log was wont to burn, but 
for his ever benevolent and open hand. 
Such will remember him with affection, 
and it is feared look in vain for one to 
take his place. He died November 4, 
1862, in the house where he had resided 
almost thirty years, at the age of sixty- 
eight years, and by his will left his large 
and valuable estate entirely under the 
control of his widow, as sole executor. 
Calmly he awaited the approach of death, 
which he saw slowly but surely approach- 
ing for many weeks; and spoke of it as 
unconcernedly as if he was expecting a 
friend to accompany him on a pleasant 
journey. And thus quietly passed away 
Daniel Whitney. If he had faults, let us 
forget them, and remember only his many 
virtues, and the sweet savor of his good 
deeds. In his political associations he 
was a lifelong Whig. 

Our subject was married at Middle- 
bury, Vt., September i, 1826, to Miss 
Emmeline Hcnshaw, a native of that 
place, born July 21, 1803, daughter of 
Daniel and Sarah (Prentis) Henshaw, na- 
tives of Connecticut, he born in Middle- 
town, she in New London, both dying in 
\''ermont. .'\fter marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
\N'hitney made their permanent home in 
Green Bay, where, October 25, 1890, she 
passed away. To them were born seven 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPniCAL RECORD. 



children, of whom the foUcjwing is a brief 
record: (Ij Daniel Henshaw, born in 
Shantytown, June 7, 1827, was married 
March 10, 1S63, to Miss Rosena Bader, 
and settled in Stockbridge, Wis., but died 
in Menasha November 17, 1866; they had 
two children: Emmeline Stillman, born 
October 28, 1865, now residing in Green 
Bay, and Daniel, born January 27, 1867, 
now living in Philadelphia. (II) Joshua 
resides in Green Bay, and sketch of him 
immediately follows this. (Ill) William 
Beaumont, born in Navarino (now Green 
Bay) April 4, 1832, the first male white 
child to see the light in that then village, 
resides in Philadelphia; was married first 
in Piqua, Ohio, November 21, 1854, to 
Miss Laura Margaret Clewell, who died 
May 4, 1884; to them were born children 
as follows: Mary C., November 4, 18^5, 
died in Newport, Ky. , August 28, 1857; 
Helen C, November 15, 1863, married 
to Francis Sedgwick Bangs, November 
9, 1 888, and resides in New York; Mary 
Douglas, born October 29, 1865, married 
November 19, 1 89 1, George M. Hender- 
son, and lives in Germantown, Penn. ; 
William Beaumont was married the sec- 
ond time at Chicago, November 23, 1888, 
to Miss Emma Graham Varian, by whom 
he has one child, Margaretta, born March 
13, 1892. (IV) Charles Richards, born 
September 27, 1837, died November 27, 

1 84 1. (V) John Prentis Kane, born No- 
vember 10, 1840, died October 30. 1841. 
(VI) Harriet Hayward, born October iS, 

1842, is still living on the old homestead, 
in the house she was born in. (N'll) 
Henry Clay, born April 12, 1847, died 
September 28, 1847. 



OSHUA WHITNEY. Were this 



gentleman asked to define the secret 



^ 1 of success in life, from his own 
standpoint and experience, his reply 
would be, no doubt, that it is hard work, 
availing itself of fair opportunities. Always 
and everywhere he remembers that his 



business career has been a successful one, 
and that to himself, and all Wisconsin 
men of his caliber, is peculiarly applicable 
the well-worn ma.xini, that "nothing is so 
successful as success." 

Mr. Whitney was born in the cit}- of 
Green Bay. Wis., in 1S29, a snn of Daniel 
and Emmeline S. (Henshaw) Whitney, 
a sketch of whom iinmediatel}' precedes 
this. He received his education in Gam- 
bier, Ohio, whither he was taken when a 
four-year-old boy. On leaving school he 
went to the Middlebury (\'t. ) College, 
where he studied five years, and then re- 
turned to Green Bay. He was engaged 
in the carrying trade on Fox river, and 
transported the first iron for the N. 
\^^ R. R. in this section, from Fond 
du Lac to Watertowii. I'or some 
time in the iron industry, his interests 
therein took him much abroad, and for a 
time he \vas a resident of Hartford, Conn., 
where he had charge of the Connecticut 
\'alley railroad. On his return to Green 
Bay he did not here remain long, as we 
next find him in Duluth, Minn., of which 
city he was a resident eight j-ears, finally 
returning to Green Ba)', where he has 
since continuously resided. 

On November 9, 1852, Mr. Whitney 
was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth 
Frances Irwin, a nati\e of Brown count}-. 
Wis. , daughter of Alexander A. and 
Frances P. (Smith) Irwin, and they have 
one child, Emmeline Henshaw, married 
to Walter A. Calhoun, of St. Louis, Mo., 
b\' whom she has a son named George 
Whitney. In his political preferences 
Mr. Whitney was originally an Old-line 
Whig, and since the organization of the 
party he has been a stanch Republican, 
at one time a member of the Know- 
Nothing part}-. In municipal matters he 
has been president of the council, and 
served as chief of the Fire Department. 
Socially he is a member of Washington 
Lodge, F. & A. M. A generous, liberal 
gentleman, the private life of Joshua 
Whitney is adorned with many beneficent 
acts. 



88 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD 



GKEGORIE DENIS. Among: the 
representative self-made men, and 
well-known capitalists of Brown 
county, few if any have been the 
architects of their own fortune to a degree 
such as has been attained bj- the gentle- 
man whose name is here recorded. 

Mr. Denis is a native of Belgium, born 
February 8, 1841, the eldest in the family 
of Justice and Josephine Denis, also Bel- 
gians by birth. The father in his native 
land was a well-to-do farmer, in comfort- 
able circumstances, but being desirous of 
seeing something of the New \\'orld, and 
perhaps bettering himself and family, re- 
solved to emigrate hither to prospect for 
a new home in the Far West, if he could 
find a suitable one. Accordingly, in 
1855, finding himself possessed of suf- 
ficient means for the purpose without hav- 
ing to convert any of his real estate into 
cash, accompanied by his wife and son 
Emil, he set sail from the port of Ant- 
werp, and on arrival at New York the lit- 
tle family at once proceeded westward to 
Wisconsin, where in Green Bay town- 
ship. Brown county, near the village of 
Robinsonville, Mr. Denis purcha.sed a 
farm. Here they lived for some time, and 
liking the locality and finding the property 
a desirable one, Mr. Denis concluded to 
remain, sending instructions to Belgium 
to have his property there disposed of and 
the proceeds sent to him. Shortly after 
their settlement here another child was 
born in the family, a daughter, named 
Fanny, who is now living in Wausau, 
Wisconsin. 

But we must now return to our sub- 
ject, Gregorie, who had been left behind 
in Belgium in the care of friends. He 
received a fairly liberal education at the 
parish schools of his native place, and 
being of studious habits and an apt 
scholar made good progress with his 
books. The party he had been left in care 
of by his parents was by trade a 
baker, who, shortly after young Denis 
commenced to make his home with him, 
became financiallv involved, ha\ing all 



his possessions seized by the authorities 
for debt, thereby making the lad prac- 
tically homeless. For some time Gregorie 
debated within himself what to do, and 
even at his then early stage of life his in- 
domitable will power and other charac- 
teristics began to assert themselves. As 
the flint show its fire only when it is 
struck, so this sudden stroke of misfor- 
tune at once awakened into action the 
dormant spirit in the lad. His mind after 
some deliberation being made up, he con- 
cluded to return to the old home of his 
childhood, where he first saw the light, 
and which yet remained in the family, 
there to await the summons from his 
father to set out f(U" the new home in 
America. The thought of having to leave 
the hallowed spot where in sunny daj-s 
he sported in childish glee, and trod in 
boyish pride, was a bitter one indeed; 
and as he surveyed the well-known sur- 
roundings of the old home, one of the 
most beautiful in that part of the country, 
shaded as it was by luxuriant shrubbery 
and fragrant with the perfume wafted 
from a million beautiful flowers, he could 
scarce restrain the tears from coming to 
his eyes. For some time he remained 
around the sacred spot, but was far from 
contented, although, being naturally in- 
dustrious, he emplo\ed his time well at 
whatever of use he could find for his hand 
to do. After a time an uncle kindl}' 
offered him a home, which he accepted, 
and there he remained until sent for by 
his parents, during the winter of 1855-56 
attending school again, the last of his edu- 
cational training. In .^pril following the 
summons came for his departure to 
America, and accordingly bidding a fond 
farewell to friends and old scenes so dear 
to him, he took passage at Antwerp on a 
sailing vessel for Quebec, Canada, which 
he reached after a voyage of thirty-five 
days. From there he at once came west- 
ward to Wisconsin, and had a happy 
meeting with his parents, his brother 
Emil and his little sister, Fanny, whom 
he had never yet seen. Here the lad 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



89 



worked industriously, assistinj; his father 
in clearing:; up the farm, and familiarizing 
himself with all the trials and vicissitudes 
incident to pioneer life. The country in 
Brown county was but sparsely settled at 
this time, and wild animals still roamed 
the forests, Indians being also numerous, 
though friendly. Our subject worked 
many a time for neighbors at one shilling 
per day, his father being able to earn no 
more than two shillings. The latter, who 
was an industrious, persevering man, 
without reproach and highl}' respected, 
died in i<S67, his demise being, no doubt, 
hastened by hard work and exposure; his 
widow, who passed her declining years 
at the home of her son Gregorie, was 
called from earth in 1891. and they both 
sleep their last sleep in Bay Settlement 
cemetery. They were consistent mem- 
bers of the Catholic church. Emil, the 
other son, is now a farmer in Green Bay 
township. 

In 1 861 the subject of this sketch was 
united in marriage at Bay Settlement 
with Mrs. Mary Depereau.x (;/<r Gosya). 
widow of Joseph Depereaux, and he at 
once located at that place. She was pro- 
prietor of a small restaurant there, doing 
a thriving business with the traveling 
public; but the business did not af- 
ford support to both, and our subject 
had to take employment in Appleton as a 
common laborer on the Chicago & North 
Western railway then building. Here 
for three months he worked at meager 
wages under contractors who paid but 
little for their help, and many a sleepless 
night he had from the violent aching of 
his bones and muscles, the result of the 
previous day's hard labor. During these 
three months of toil he succeeded, by 
dint of the strictest economy, in saving 
$.^5.00, with which sum he returned to 
his wife in the Bay Settlement. She in 
the meantime had saved some $30.00, 
and their combined capital they invested 
in a stock of groceries. Business was 
opened up in the log house then standing, 
but finding their capital still insufficient. 



Mr. Denis proceeded to Green Bay where 
he purchased one hundred dollars' worth 
of groceries from Louis Day, who, how- 
ever being unacquainted with Mr. Denis, 
was indisposed to credit him. However, 
a Mr. DePew, who hati confidence in 
the young man, and was disposed to be- 
friend him, (jffered himself as a surety to 
Mr. Day, and the goods were shipped on 
to the unpretentious store in Bay Settle- 
ment. Business continuing to increase, 
purchasers from a distance patronizing 
the store, which was beginning to enjoy 
a wide popularity, it became evident that 
both stock and premises would have to 
be enlarged. But, again, the lack of 
capital was the seemingly insurmountable 
obstacle, and the worthy business couple 
were not a little concerned about their 
future prospects. One day, howe\'er, 
two customers, who were at their counter 
refreshing themselves (for in addition to 
the store Mr. and Mrs. Denis also kept 
a sort of saloon) — Mr. Louis Van Dycke 
and a Mr. Croker, then cashier of the city 
bank, of Green Bay — got into conversa- 
tion with our subject, and on learning 
from him the circumstances just related, 
and having confidence in the young mer- 
chant, and in his abilit\- to conduct a 
much more extensive business, voluntar- 
il\" offered to give him letters of credit to 
certain wholesale merchants in Milwau- 
kee. Thus equipped Mr. Denis pro- 
ceeded to the "Cream City," ami made 
purchases of dry goods, boots and 
shoes, hardware, tinware, etc.. until he 
thought he had a sufficient stock, all 
selected with the same shrewdness and 
caution which ha\'e characterized all his 
dealings both before and since, and never 
thinking of taking any advantage of the 
unlimited confidence placed in him by his 
two friends. Great was his surprise and 
dismay when, on returning to his hotel, 
he found that his purchases summed up 
to about seven thousand five himdred 
dollars! The very thought of assum- 
ing so great an indebtedness with a 
capital of but a few dollars much per- 



9° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



turbed him, but after due reflection and 
re%'olving all the />n>s and coj/s in his 
mind, he concluded to allow the goods to 
be shipped, and trust to fortune and his 
own good business capacity for the re- 
sults. The freight on the goods itself 
was eightj'-five dollars, a large sum for 
him to payout at onetime, and then there 
was the expense of enlarging the store- 
room. But undismayed now, he put his 
shoulder to the wheel, and adopting a 
strictly cash trade, he soon did a pajing 
business, the magnitude of his stock alone 
bringing him hundreds of customers who 
came out of curiosity, but very few of 
whom left without purchasing something. 
His bills were met as they became due, 
business continued to e.\pand, the stock 
was added to with fresh lines as enquiries 
for various articles demanded, and in 
course of time Mr. Denis found himself 
the leading merchant in Brown county. 
His home for a considerable time was in 
the rear of the store, but the rooms being 
required for business purposes, he in 1889 
erected what is probably the finest coun- 
try residence in the county, elegantlj' 
furnished throughout with all modern im- 
provements. 

His mercantile business not affording 
sufficient opportunities for judicious in- 
vestments of his rapidly accumulating 
capital, Mr. Denis commenced a private 
banking and real-estate business. Here 
and there purchasing land, he at the 
present time owns, in Scott and Preble 
townships, between 400 and 500 acres, 
which, however, does not nearly repre- 
sent his possessions. In Green Bay he 
owns a residence on Pine street, a busi- 
ness block on Washington street, sixty- 
six feet frontage of desirable business 
property between Pine and Main streets, 
where it is his intention to erect a suit- 
able block. In all his investments and 
transactions his business acumen and 
sagacity have been particularly notice- 
able, and to these for the most part is his 
phenomenal success to be attributed. 

By his first marriage Mr. Denis had 



three children, viz. : Edward, who acts 
as private secretary, and has control of 
his father's immense business, taking 
charge of nearly all his transactions, a 
position for which he is well adapted, 
having received a good business educa- 
tion; Louis, who owns a prosperous 
butcher business in Milwaukee; and 
Joseph, in the employ of A. G. Spuhler 
& Co., of Green Bay. In 1869 the 
mother of these was called from earth, 
and was interred in the Bay Settlement 
cemetery. To her th(-)rough business 
capacity, judgment and tact, much of her 
husband's earlier success was due, and in 
his after prosperity he never forgot the 
onward struggle she so faithfully shared 
with him. For his second and present 
wife he wedded Miss Annie Schurger, who 
was born August 6, 1845, on Lake Michi- 
gan, to Mr. and Mrs. Casper Schurger, 
while they were f// route from Germany 
to Wisconsin. To this marriage there 
are five children, all living, as follows: 
Mary, Barbara, Annie, George (studying 
pharmacy at the North Western Ohio 
Nortnal School at Ada, Ohio), and Will- 
iam. 

Politically our subject has been a life- 
long Republican, and was appointed by 
the Grant administration postmaster at 
Bay Settlement, an incumbency he tilled 
with acknowledged ability, twenty-three 
years, his removal after that long period 
being due to political reasons only. He 
and his wife and family are all prominent 
members of the Catholic Church. The 
parents, deprived themselves of early 
educational advantages, believe in the 
thorough training of their children, who 
have all had excellent academical and 
other advantages. Mr. Denis has been 
remarkably and happily fortunate in his 
marriages. His worthy helpmeet possesses 
all the characteristics of a thorough busi- 
ness woman, and has been of invaluable 
assistance to him in his many and diverse 
interests. His success in life has well 
proven the truth of the adage: " Where 
there's a will there's a way," and his 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



91 



Strong" deterininution, indomitable will 
and never-failing courage, have placed 
him in a position to be recognized as, 
without a peer, the heaviest taxpayer in 
Scott township. 



REV. FATHER C. DE LOUW,the 
learned and pious pastor of St. 
Francis Roman Cathulir Church, 
in the town of Holland, Brown 
county, is a native of Holland, burn Au- 
gust 27, 1839. 

He is the }'Oungest in the family of 
fourteen children born to the late Martin 
De Louw, who was by occupation a manu- 
facturer of cloth in Holland. One son, 
Andrew, is now a priest at Moergestel, 
Holland; another son, John, is conducting 
his father's old business, and one daugh- 
ter is a Sister of Mercy. One of the sons 
and one of the daughters married, but, as 
the son had no children, with this genera- 
tion the family name becomes e.xtinct. 
The father reached the advanced age of 
eighty-three, the mother dying when six- 
ty-three, and her mother li\-ed to the 
patriarchal age of ninety-three. 

When six years old our subject com- 
menced attending the public school in the 
vicinity of his home, at the end of three 
years entering the French college there, 
from which he graduated with high honors 
after a four-years' curriculum, at which 
time he was not yet thirteen years old. 
He then for four or five years worked in 
his father's factory and was engaged in 
other business, but his inclinations lead- 
ing him more in the direction of the " Pie- 
rian spring, " he resumed his studies, at- 
tending a gymnasium in Jumet, a French 
village in Belgium, and here took a classi- 
cal course preparatory to entering college 
at Enghien, where he studied philosophy 
and theology, dogmatic and moral. Here 
he remained from 1859 till 1S66, on June 
6, of the latter year, being consecrated to 
the priesthood at Bruges, and until 1871 he 
served as a missionarj- priest in various 
cities in Belgium and Holland. 



In the year last named, deciding to 
come to America, he proceeded to Li\er- 
pool, England, ami there took passage 
on the steamship, "City of Eisbon," 
which, after a someuhat tempestuous 
passage, the vessel on one occasion en- 
countering a great storm, landed at New 
York. Our subject's destination being 
Green Bay, Wis., whither he had l)een 
called by Bishop Melchcr, he continued 
his westward journey via Chicago, arriv- 
ing in Green Bay November \(>. 1871. 
His first charge in his new field of pas- 
toral duty was the mission at Wrights- 
town, in Brown county, which in course 
of a short time he organized as a parish, 
becoming its first pastor, an incumbency 
he held two years from January 1 2. 1872, 
at the same time establishing the mission 
at East Wrightstown and also attending 
the mission at Sniderville. In 1874 he 
was transferred to Robinsonville, same 
county, and after one year's lalior in the 
vineyard there he attended occasionally 
five missions which were without priests, 
viz.: Dyckesville, Thierrij-Daams, Mar- 
chant, Little Sturgeon Bay and Delwich. 
Returning to Wrightstown in 1873 he re- 
sumed his charge there, remaining till 
1875, when he removed to Green Bay, 
having been given the pastorate of the 
Holland Church in that city. For three 
years he lal:>ored here with unremitting 
zeal, and then, in 1878, was transferred 
to Little Chute, Outagamie county, hav- 
ing been given charge of St. John's Nipo- 
moc Church. Here, by his piety and 
assiduous attentions to the spiritual wel- 
fare of his flock, he became much liked 
and beloved, but having been recalled by 
Bishop Krautbauer to his old Green Bay 
congregation he acceded to their request, 
and for three more years ministered there. 
On September i, 1S84, he came from 
Green Bay to his present charge, the 
Church of St. Francis, at Holland. In 
1886 he was made dean of the Diocese 
by Bishop Katser, but this office after 
three years he resigned. In 1876 he was 
appointed a member of the Bishop's 



92 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



council, one of four, since 1892 one of 
SIX, he being consulter for the Dutch ele- 
ment, for in the congregation three 
nationalities — Dutch, German and Irish 
— worship in perfect harmony. 

Since coming here F"ather De Louw 
has been the means of many improve- 
ments and additions being made in the 
church and parish, among which may be 
mentioned a winter chapel, besides re- 
pairing the main building, which was 
struck by lightning; a pipe organ costing 
thirteen hundred dollars, fully equipped 
with all modern improvements; and a 
new convent for the Sisters. St. Francis 
congregation, in early days known as ■ ' St. 
Francis Bush," was organized by five 
Holland families, early settlers in Holland 
townshi]), who ga\e forty acres of land, 
from the proceeds of the sale of which the 
original church building was erected, and 
on nine acres of this same land now stand 
the church, the rectory, schoolhouse and 
other buildings, l^'ather De Louw's cler- 
ical jurisdiction is of no small extent, and 
he finds ample scope for his characteris- 
tic zeal and energy, while here, as in all 
his previous incumbencies, he has gained 
for himself an enviable popularity and 
the well-merited love and esteem of his 
parishioners. 



M 



.\LCULM SELLERS, Fort 
Howard. It is always gratify- 
ing to true citizens of this Re- 
l)ublic to note the readiness of 
many men, born under foreign flags, to 
become loyal and patriotic supporters of 
the United States riovernment, when they 
adopt the country as their home. This 
can never be misconstrued as an act dis- 
playing lack of fidelity to their native 
land, for which they must ever hold the 
warmest affection, but it is evidence that 
they are men who recognize their duty 
as citizens in common with the native- 
born of the Republic, and do not hesitate 
to perform it. 



Malcolm Sellers was born October 
26, 1S19, in Guysboro, in the county of 
the same name in Nova Scotia, removing 
to Prince Edward Island when twelve 
years old. That he was diligent in ac- 
(juiring an education is plain from the 
fact that he began teaching at the age of 
fourteen, continuing two years. At six- 
teen he became a clerk in the mercantile 
establishment of McKeever & Walsh, 
shipbuilders, and six months later was 
placed at the head of the management of 
that branch of the firm's business, con- 
tinuing in that capacity for three years. 
His relations there were interrupted by a 
summons to the sick bed of his mother, so 
he settled his affairs and went home. She 
recovered, and the trustees of school affairs 
in his native place offered him a situation 
which he accepted and filled three years. 
At the end of that time he received a 
letter from the Lord Bishop, inquiring if 
he would go to Country Harbor and as- 
sume charge of a school and church at 
that point. He accepted the proposition, 
proceeded at once to the place, and re- 
ceived his credentials as catechist and lay 
reader from the Lord Bishop, and a general 
license as teacher and missionary, under 
the Colonial Church Society of London. 
He discharged the duties of this position 
for more than five years, and in the mean- 
time was married in Nova Scotia, in i S44, 
to Miss Isabella Archibald, daughter of 
Hon. Charles and Margaret Archibald, 
natives of Nova Scotia, and who resided 
there until their death. 

Desiring to find a wider field in which 
to exercise his abilities Mr. Sellers came 
to the United States in the spring of 1847, 
and after visiting a number of eastern 
cities concluded to push farther westward. 
He finally located at Beaver Dam, Dodge 
Co., Wis., where he engaged in the 
manufacture of mill pnnhicts and con- 
ducted a mercantile establishment in con- 
nection. It was natural that he should 
take an interest in public affairs, and in 
the fall of 1849 he was persuaded by the 
Whigs in his locality to become a candi- 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPHWAL RECORD. 



93 



date for the State Assembly. He was 
elected over four competitors, and entered 
the Legislature in the session of 1850. 
In 1 852 he accepted a position with Bean, 
Clinton & Powers, at Waukesha, and six 
months later took charge of a primary 
class in Carroll College. Among his 
pupils was Sidney A. Bean, who after- 
ward became colonel of the Fourth Wis- 
consin Cavalry, and was killed in action. 
His brothers, Weaker and Irving Bean, 
who were also gallant soldiers, were pupils 
of Mr. Sellers, as were James Proctor, of 
Milwauke< ; George Burchard, of Fort 
Atkinson, distinguished in the annals of 
Wisconsin, and Hon. Cushnian C. Davis, 
aiterward senator from Minnesota. Upon 
the close of his service at the College, 
Mr. Sellers became agent for the Mil- 
waukee cS: Prairie du Chien railroad on the 
route from Milwaukee to Waukesha, and 
was one of the first in the State to fill 
such a position. In his anxiet)' to please 
he over-exerted himself, and was attacked 
with hemorrhage of the lungs. \\'hen 
once more able to transact business he 
established a general store at Waukesha, 
and bought wool in the interest of manu- 
facturers, becoming the hea\iest dealer in 
that comniodit}' in Wisconsin. Coming 
to the State before its admission to the 
Union, he has been identified with and a 
prominent factor in its growth and devel- 
opment, while his acquaintance with men 
in business and political circles has been 
extensive. ■' He has," sa}s a writer, "ever 
maintained an active interest in the re- 
ligious and moral advancement of society 
where he has resided, and has been espe- 
cially prominent in Church and temperance 
work. He holds commissions from the 
American Bible Society, the American 
Sunday-school Union and other evangeli- 
cal organizations in the United States. 
For more than a half century he has been 
a declared advocate of temperance, and 
was one of the founders of the Republi- 
can party in Wisconsin. He has been 
one of its most ardent and enthusiastic 
supporters from its inception, aiding by 



voice, tiKiney antl ballut in its march of 
progress." 

When the gauntlet of battle was 
thrown down in Charleston Harbor, in 
April, 1861, Mr. Sellei's, who was then in 
Madison serving as clerk of the Judiciary 
Committee, was one tif the first to offer his 
services to Governor Randall. The lat- 
ter, knowing his weak pli_\sical condition, 
said to him, "Malcolm, you would not 
li\e a month in the ser\'ice; you are not 
fit for war, but stay at home and do what 
you can and I will give you any i>osition 
3'ou ask in the State." Under this 
arrangement he was assigned to the 
quartermaster's department, with head- 
quarters at Madison, and later was trans- 
ferred to the commissary department. 
Upon the call for additional troops he 
went to Waukesha and neighboring coun- 
ties to recruit soldiers, spending a jear in 
such service at his personal expense. If 
unable to demonstrate his unswerving 
patriotism on the field of carnage, he per- 
formed such services at home as stamped 
him with the undoubted seal of loyalt}', 
and won the gratitude of those who were 
cognizant of his labors. In 1869 he re- 
mo\ed from Waukesha to Fort Howard, at 
the instance of Hon. E. D. Clinton, to as- 
sist in the construction of the railroad from 
the latter place, by way of Shawano, to 
the Mississippi river. Through a re-ar- 
rangement of plans both his connection 
and that of Mr. Clinton with the enter- 
prise ceased, and in the years following, 
until 1874, he was engaged in lumbering 
and mercantile interests. His active busi- 
ness life practically ceased in the latter 
year, and he subsequently took up the 
work of assisting old soldiers to obtain 
piensions. In this line he became partic- 
ularly successful, and many a veteran has 
had reason to rejoice in the fruit of his 
labors. He has added insurance to his 
pension work with marked success. He 
has been a notarj' public as k)ng as Wis- 
consin has been a State, and is at present 
serving a third term as justice of the 
peace at Fort Howard. He also conducts 



94 



COMMhMOHATIVh- DlOGIlAPmCAL RECOHD. 



a livery business, in vviiich he is assisted 
by his son, Malcolm, who was previously 
for some time in the railway mail service. 
It was largely throuf^h Mr. Sellers' exer- 
tions and influence that Hon. T. O. Howe 
was the first time sent to the United 
States Senate. The followinj;:, taken from 
the Milwaukee Siii/iiu/ of November 4. 
188S, speaks for itself: 

FOKT How.AKD. Nov. 2. 
To the Editor of Tin Sentimt: 

On Wednesday of this week I received a cir- 
cular from James Morgan, the nominee of the 
Democratic party for iijovernor of this State, to 
which I sent the following reply: 

FoKT Howard. Oct., 31, I88S. 
IMdr .S/r;— Your circular reached me this morning, and in 
reply would say, if 1 had ten thousand votes 1 would not i^iyv 
you one under your present nomination. A Scotchman receiv- 
ing a nomination from the modern Democratic party, which 
has souKlit by all means on earth and in hell to destroy our 
Nation, is too much for me. As a true Scot, I cannot compre- 
hend what you are after. 

Yours truly, M. Skllers. 

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Sellers 
have been six in number, but of these 
only two are living: Maggie I. and Mal- 
colm A. Charles A. enlisted early in the 
war in Company F, First Wisconsin Cav- 
alry, was wounded at Pulaski, Tenn., and 
sent to the hospital, and finally came 
home wrecked physically and with his 
constitution undermined by disease and 
wounds, causing him to fall a victim to 
chronic diarrhea and inflammatory rheu- 
matism. His death occurred February 
20, 1876. Florence Victoria died when 
but four years of age, Martha lived to 
the age of twenty and died in the dawn 
of beautiful womanhood, and Ida P. 
passed awaj' at the age of nineteen years. 
On November lo, 1894, on the occasion 
of the "Golden Wedding" of Mr. and 
Mrs. Malcolm Sellers, friends to the num- 
ber of I 50 persons assembled at the Sell- 
ers residence in Fort Howard in the eve- 
ning, and presented Mr. Sellers with a 
handsome gold-headed cane, and Mrs. 
Sellers with a number of elegant and 
valuable presents. The guests were highly 
pleased, and declared that it was the 
pleasantest entertainment they ever at- 
tended. 

Mr. Sellers, while not a native of the 



United States, is in every possible respect 
an American. His parents, Donald and 
Margaret fMcKenzie) Sellers, were re- 
spectively of Highland and Lowland 
Scotch ancestry, his father coming to the 
American colonies previous to the war of 
the Revolution. In that struggle for lib- 
erty and independence he espoused the 
cause of his adopted country, enlisted in 
her army and served until the battle of 
Charleston, S. C, where he received a 
British bullet in his thigh and was sent to 
the hospital. He finally reached home, 
and after the war removed to Nova 
Scotia, where he married and located on 
a farm, " He reared ten children and died 
on his estate in i 848, in his ninety-ninth 
year. He was a man of vigorous temper- 
ament, and two years before his death 
walked from his farm to Guysboro, and 
return, a distance of twenty miles. He 
had no son who could perform such 
a feat. The ball lie received in the 
battle of Charleston moved down to 
a position below his knee, and was 
in his body when he was buried." 
The son of such a sire could not help 
being imbued with an intense love for that 
country for which his father fought and 
bled, and the record of the family in the 
scr\ice of the Nation is a proud one. In 
such men lies the hope of the Republic. 
May they multiply within her borders. 



HON. ROBERT J. McGEEHAN, 
State Senator from the Second 
Senatorial District of Wisconsin, 
comprising the counties of Brown 
and Outagamie, was born August 26. 1 S54, 
at Peel, Wellington county, Canada. His 
grandfather, Robert McGeehan, a native 
of Scotland, was married in County Down, 
Ireland, to Margaret Morgan, and in 1S18 
migrated with his wife and family to 
Guelph, Canada. 

John J. McGeehan, son of Robert, was 
but five years of age when the family 
reached Canada, where he was reared a 
farmer, and where he married Mary Ann 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPUWAL RECORD. 



95 



Drisciill, whowas born in CaiKida. IniS7o 
John J. and his family came to Wiscon- 
sin, and on March i of that year located at 
Wrightstovvn, where he pnrchased a farm. 
His son, Robert J., the subject proper 
of this sketch, was also reared to farminj;-, 
which he followed, in conjunction with 
sawniilliiig, until 1878, when he estab- 
hshed the agricultural implement business 
at De Pere, which he is still most success- 
fully conducting, handling large numbers 
of wagons, buggies, carriages, etc. In 
early Hfe he became an adherent of the 
Democratic party, and at once became 
most enthusiastic in its support. Although 
still a comparatively young man, he was 
recognized as being possessed of ability, 
and as a hard worker, and was soon 
elected by his neighbors to serve in many 
local offices of honor and trust. During 
the years 1884-85, he served as alderman 
of De Pere, and from 1887 to 1890 as 
member of the Brown county board of 
supervisors; he has also served for li\"e 
years as a member of the board of trus- 
tees of the County Asylum for the Chronic 
Insane, and is now president of the Brown 
County Agricultural and Mechanical As- 
sociation, an office to which he has been 
elected for a term of three years. In 18S9, 
while serving as supervisor, he was elected 
a member of the Wisconsin State Assem- 
bly for the Second District, and re-elected 
in 1890; in 1892 he was elected to the 
State Senate, which office he continues 
to fill to the entire satisfaction of his con- 
stituents. He never tires in his devotion 
to the interests of his fellow citizens or of 
his party; has acted as chairman of the 
Brown county Democratic committee; is 
also a member of the Democratic State 
Central committee, elected September 6, 
1894, and on several occasions has served 
as delegate to Democratic State and 
Congressional conventions. He is prob- 
ably as well and as favorably known as 
any public man in his portion of the State, 
and socially and fraternally stands very 
high, being now president of the Society 
of Catholic Knights, Branch No. 46, of 



De Pere, member of the Order of the 
Catholic Knights of .America, and also of 
the Business Men's Association of De- 
Pere. 

Mr. McGeehan was most happily 
married, October :;, 1 8S.:, to Miss Bridget 
E. Hines, who was born September 10, 
i860, at Kaukauna, Wis., and six chil- 
dren were the result of this union, viz.: 
Myra C, who died in infancy; (irover 
Thomas, born December 8, 1884; l£lmer 
James, born May 12, 1886; Mary Eliza- 
beth, born May 11, 1888; .Margaret 
Catharine, born April 17, 1890, and Ellen 
Earen, born October 10, 1894. Mr. Mc- 
Geehan owes his success entirely to his 
own imaided efforts, having, since he was 
eleven years of age, fought the battle of 
life with Nature's weapons only — intel- 
ligence and determination. 



JOHN C. NEVILLE, senior member 
of the well-known law firm o{ John 
C. and A. C. Neville, Green Bay, is, 
probably, the oldest legal practi- 
tioner in this part of Wisconsin, having 
come to Green Bay nearly forty years 
ago, when the now bustling city was in 
its infancy. 

He is anati\eof Dublin, Ireland, born 
July 27, 181 5, and was there reared and 
educated, remaining at the parental home 
until he was twenty-one years old, at 
which time, in 1836 or 1837, ^^^ f^'"'" 
grated to this country, landing in New 
York. From there he moved to Potts- 
ville, Penn., and in 1840 commenced the 
study of law in the office of Francis W. 
Hughes (who, later, became attorney- 
general of Pennsylvania), and was ad- 
mitted to the bar of that State in July, 
1842. Immediately thereafter he com- 
menced the practice of his chosen profes- 
sion at Pottsville, practicing in all the 
Pennsylvania courts, and remained in 
that city until coming to Green Iiay, De- 
cember 27, 1856, where he has since had 
his home, and built up one of the most 
lucrati\e clientages in northern Wiscon- 



96 



COMMEMORATIVE EWGliAPUlCAL RECORD. 



sin, in 1869 forming a partnership with 
J. J. Tracy, later, in 1874, receiving his 
son Arthur C. into the tiriii. In 1875, 
Mr. Tracy withdrew, and the firm has 
since been known by the above title. 

On April 11, 1843, Mr. Neville was 
married at Pottsville, Penn., to Miss 
Catherine D. Lawton, a daughter of 
Charles Lawton, all natives of New York 
city, whence thej' moved to Pottsville, 
where Mr. Lawton was engaged in the 
coal business, and where he and his wife 
passed the rest of their days. To this 
union were born in Pottsvile, six children, 
only two of whom are now living: Arthur 
C, who was si.\ years old when the 
family came to Green Bay, read law with 
Neville & Trac}', and is now a member of 
the firm, as already related (he was mar- 
ried in 1 88 1); and Sophia R., at home. 
The mother, Mrs. Neville, died in 1876. 
In his political predilections Mr. Neville 
has been a Democrat since qualifying to 
vote, and has been honored b}' his party 
with election to various positions of trust. 
For several years he was district attorney; 
was cit}' attornc}' in 1862, and in 1S80 
served as mayor of the cit\-, at which 
time Gen. U. S. Grant visited Green Bay, 
and was escorted through the city by our 
subject. In 1859 he was elected repre- 
sentative to the State Legislature, taking 
his seat in i860, but at the expiration of | 
his term of service he declined renomina- 
tion. Socially, Mr. Neville is a member 
of the I. O. O. F., in 1844 was admitted 
to the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, and 
since 1856 has been deputy grand master; 
he is also a member of the Daughters of 
Rebekah. In religious faith he is promi- 
nently indentified with the Episcopal 
Church, and he enjoys the respect and 
esteem of a wide circle of warm friends. 



GEORGE B. HESS, senior mem- 
ber of the Geo. B. Hess Milling 
Company, of Green Bay, Wis., is 
a native of Ohio, born in Carroll 
county in 1851. 



John D. Hess, father of our subject, 
was a native of Maryland, a miller b)- 
trade, carrying on a milling business in 
Uhrichsville, Ohio. He married Cath- 
erine A. Simmons, a lady of Connecticut 
birth, who died in 1886, he himself pass- 
ing away in 1S89. They were the parents 
of eight children. 

The subject of these lines received his 
education in the schools of his native 
place, and learned his trade in his father's 
mill and under his tuition. In 1874 he 
came to Wisconsin, and was engaged in 
the milling business for a number of }ears 
in compan\- with Thos. Smith, of Green 
Ba}', \Vis. In 1893 he, in company with 
Dr. H. A. Wolter and C. Massey, erected 
the "Star Flouring Mills," corner of 
Quincy and Cedar streets in the city of 
Green Bay, which has a daily capacity of 
two hundred barrels of fiour and ten tons 
of feed. The institution has been incor- 
porated, and is doing a fine business. 
Politically Mr. Hess is a Republican; 
socially he is a member of the I. O. O. F., 
Green Ba}' Lodge No. 19. 



WILLIAM FINNEGAN. Biog- 
raphy is history of the purest 
type, and to possess a history 
is that which distinguishes man 
from the lower creatures around him. 
They present the same appearance from 
age to age, unchanging in their instincts 
and habits, except in so far as they have 
been modified through contact with man; 
and, therefore, the histor)' of one gener- 
ation of irrational animals is the history 
of every other. But in the human race 
there is progressive change, which it is 
the part of history to both record and 
accelerate, and the duty of the living to 
perpetuate in biographical form for the 
benefit of coming generations. In this 
connection it is a pleasure to here pre- 
sent a brief review of the life of the gen- 
tleman whose name is here recorded. 

Mr. Finnegan was born November J2, 
1836, in the city of Philadelphia, Penn.. 




^^^^^.^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



99 



in what was then called Mojanieiising, 
on Bedford street (now known as Kates 
street), three doors east of Broad street, 
a son of Henr)- and Nancy (Smith) Finne- 
gan. The parents were of Scotcli-Irish 
origin, the father born in County Tyrone, 
a son of Henry Finnegan, and the ni(.)ther 
in Culdaff, near the most northern point 
of Ireland, lioth coming to this country 
when quite }'0ung, marrying, in 1827, in 
Philadelphia, where tliey had located. 

The father of our subject was reared 
to farming pursuits in the old country, 
and after coming to Philadelphia he kept 
teams working in brickyards, besides do- 
ing teaming for the corporation and for 
Stephen Girard, who gave him an old gig 
he used to ride in himself, which the 
recipient kept for a long time. In those 
days cows, hogs and goats were ' ' free 
commoners" in the southern part of 
Philadelphia; that is, they were allowed 
to run at large; and in this connection it 
is known that Mr. and Mrs. Finnegan 
kept cows, whose milk they sold, and also 
hogs which the}' fed on swill gathered 
from place to place in the city and con- 
veyed in carts made with water-tight 
bo.xes; the cows were allowed to run on 
the commons Ij'ing west of Broad street 
and south of South street. Mr. and Mrs. 
Henry Finnegan accummulated consider- 
able propert}- in small three-story houses — 
some ten or twelve in number — which 
they rented, and in 1S43 lis bought forty 
acres of land twelve miles west of the 
city, in Marple township, Delaware county, 
whither he moved April 4, 1S44, and here, 
August I, 1846, his faithful wife, at the 
early age of thirt}'-four years, died of 
dro]")sy brought on by hard work. She 
was the mother of three sons and two 
daughters, the latter of whom both died 
in infancy, and were buried in the Kandle- 
■son burying ground, Philadelphia, which 
at the present time is in the heart of the 
city. Of the three sons, John and Henry 
are living in Jones count}', Iowa, and 
William is the subject of this sketch. 
Some time after the death of the 



motlier of these Mr. l'"innegan mar- 
ried a much younger woman than 
himself, in the person of Charlotte Pat- 
ton, which event broke up the famil}', 
the two elder sons not living at home 
nnich afterward. After residing on the 
farm in Marple township the family re- 
turned to the city. In i860 the father 
moved to Iowa, where, in Jones county, 
he had previously bought a partly im- 
proved farm of 320 acres, from which he 
eventually retired to Fairview, where he 
passed the rest of his days in retirement, 
dying at the age of eighty-five years. 

Until the fall of 1857 our sub- 
ject worked in the brickyards at Phila- 
delphia, and in the following spring, ac- 
companied by his brother Henry, he set 
out for the then " Far West," arriving at 
Muscatine, Iowa, April i, 1858. Times 
being then particularl}' "hard," no work 
being obtainable at any price, they stayed 
around Muscatine until their money was 
all gone and William's trunk held at 
Stein's Hotel for $6.00, the balance he 
owed for board. Finding no work on 
land, they shipped on board a steamboat 
bound for St. Louis, Mo., in the capacity 
of roustabouts, and now in earnest com- 
menced their hardships. Arrived at St. 
Louis, they looked in vain for work until 
their hard-earned money was all gone 
again, so once more they shipped as deck 
hands, this time on a Missouri river 
packet bound for Leavenworth city, they 
intending to hire themselves out there to 
the government as ox-drivers across the 
Plains, as United States troops were on 
the eve of setting out for Utah Territory 
for the purpose of operating against the 
Mormons. When our young adventurers 
reached the fort (Leavenworth) they found 
to their disgust and disappointment that 
for every vacancy there were not less 
than fifty applicants alread}' on the 
ground, so there was nothing for it but to 
return to St. Louis by the same boat that 
brought them up, working on her as deck 
hands. While on the down trip the 
cylinder head of one side of the engine 



lOO 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



blew out, so that the vessel had to make 
the rest of the trip to St. Louis with one 
wheel; and when she did arrive it was 
found there were no funds to pay the 
crew with, and as the brothers had not a 
cent wherewith to pay for board while 
waiting for a settlement with the steam- 
boat people, they concluded to sell their 
claims, which they did to a lawyer, each 
getting about eight dollars, by which time, 
as Mr. Finnegan himself sagely remarks, 
he was "beginning to find out the value 
of monej'," and in all probability these 
hard knocks were the • ■ open sesame " to 
his future wonderful career of success. 
At this point things were getting des- 
perate, and something had to be done, at 
once. Henry still had his trunk, \\'ill- 
iam's was where he left it at the hotel in 
Muscatine; so the two agreed that Henry 
should pay his passage to Muscatine, and 
that William should try to make his way 
thither without paying. On arrival at 
Keokuk, however, he was put ashore, but 
just then another boat was leaving "for 
somewhere," which our subject immedi- 
ately boarded, not knowing at the time 
whether she was going up or down the 
river. On the boat were several rafts- 
men on their way to Prairie du Chien, 
Wis. , and he cleverly succeeded in get- 
ting "mixed up" with them, the result 
being that he finally, without let or hin- 
drance, reached Muscatine (for fortu- 
nately the vessel was going in that direc- 
tion) before his brother did. Here they 
found it necessarj' to live as economically 
as possible, and finding a family in the 
outskirts of the town who allowed them 
the use of their cooking-stove, they fur- 
nished their own victuals and slept wher- 
ever they could. Learning that there 
was some wood-chopping to be done at 
Fredonia, on the Iowa river, west of Mus- 
catine, they proceeded thither, and found 
that employers were paying thirty cents a 
cord for cutting big knotty black jack oak, 
while board, consisting of salt pork, corn 
bread, black molasses and rye cofTee, was 
$2.00 per week. Here our subject worked 



for two weeks, in that time not earning 
enough to pay his board, for being brought 
up in a large city he knew very little 
about chopping, and his hands would 
continually blister. In the meantime his 
brother had returned to Muscatine, in- 
tending to be gone about one week, but 
William did not sec him again for three 
months. Giving the "board boss" what 
wood he had cut, his axe and iron wedge, 
in payment for his board, our subject set 
out for Iowa City on foot, and now, alas! 
to use his own words, "became a genuine 
tramp, out of money, begging my food as 
I journeyed onward by day, and sleeping 
under the canopy of some straw or hay 
stack at night." All his clothes, except 
what he was wearing, were in his trunk 
at Muscatine, so he had no change of 
clothing whatever. After wandering 
through Iowa for more than a month Mr. 
Finnegan returned to Muscatine, and 
securing employment on a farm at five 
dollars per month, worked one month, 
after which he set out for Illinois for the 
purpose of hunting up his brother Henry, 
and falling in with James Vanatta, the 
latter took him to his home. Mr. \'an- 
atta is now living at Buffalo Prairie, Kock 
Island Co., 111., at the age of seventy- 
one years, and Mr. Finnegan has kept up 
a correspondence with him ever since 
they parted, some thirty or forty years ago. 
At Buffalo Prairie our subject found 
three months' work on a farm, for which 
he was to receive six dollars per month; 
but being unable to get cash he had to 
be content to accept three steers in lieu 
thereof. These he drove to Muscatine to 
sell, but all he could get for them was 
nine dollars cash for the three, six dollars 
of which he applied toward getting his 
trunk released from "Stein's Hotel." 
That winter he worked for James \'anatta 
for his board, and fluring the sunnner of 
1859 he worked land on shares, getting 
one-third of the crop for his labor. The 
wheat yield, however, was a failure, and 
corn was only half a crop. Mr. Finnegan 
traded his share of the corn crop for a 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



youn;L;' mare which he took with him to 
Iowa, to the farm his father liad bought; 
but two days after reaching this farm, the 
mare strayed away, and he never saw her 
again. On his father's farm he worked 
from December 25, 1859, till August 7, 
1862, when he enlisted in Company F, 
Twenty-fourth Iowa V. I., under 
Capt. Dimmit. He served through- 
out the entire struggle, being mustered 
out Jul}- 17, 1865. He took an active 
part in all the marches, skirmishes and 
engagements of his regiment, but was 
once taken prisoner in Louisiana, and 
held from November 15, 1863, until 
December 25, following, when he was 
exchanged. At Milliken's Bend, in the 
same ^>tate, he was once confined to 
hospital through sickness for several 
weeks, but with these exceptions he was 
on constant duty. 

After his return from the war Mr. 
Finnegan again worked on his father's 
farm for a time, but his stepmother's 
manner toward him becoming so unbear- 
able, he concluded to try his luck farther 
west. Consequently, on March 10, 1867, 
he left home with a light wagon and span 
of horses, with which he traveled across 
Iowa, arriving April 10 following at Lin- 
coln, Neb., which now prosperous city 
was said at the time to contain but 300 
inhabitants. Times were good there, 
work plentiful and wages high, and until 
the fall of that year Mr. Finnegan 
freighted lumber from the Missouri river 
to Lincoln; also hauled from Beatrice 
some of the stone that was used in the 
building of the capitol. In that fall 
(1867) he took up a pre-emption claim 
twelve miles north of the city (Lincoln), 
built a "dug-out," and lived therein 
throughout the winter, during the follow- 
ing spring breaking prairie and hauling 
stone for the State University then build- 
ing at Lincoln. In the fall of 1868 he 
proved up his claim and homesteaded 
eighty acres adjoining, making in all 240 
acres, and during the following two years 
he was occupied in farming and teaming. 



III the S])ring of 1870, in ci)uipan}- with 
L. K. Holmes, an uncle of his wife, he 
started a brickjard, made brick two 
years, at the end of which time he sold 
out his interest in the business to his 
partner, his farm to other parties, and 
with his wife started for Wisconsin, arriv- 
ing in the town of Howard December i 7, 
1872. In the spring of 1873 he com- 
menced operating a small brickyard on 
land owned by A. G. E. Holmes, molding 
the brick himself by hand and making an 
average of 8,000 for a day's work, con- 
ducting the yard entirely by hand fcr 
some seven years, ov until August, 1880, 
when he put in small steam-power, which, 
in 1882, he supplanted with large power 
machinery. At the same time he built a 
nKxlern brickyard, known as "Yard No. 
I," which is located on the Chicago, Mil- 
waukee & St. Paul and Green Baw 
Winona & St. Paul railroads, also on 
Duck creek, a navigable stream for light- 
draft boats. In 1890 he built "Yard 
No. 2," on the same stream, one mile 
below "Yard No. i," with a track from 
the Chicago & Northwestern railroad to 
the yard, a distance of three-quarters of 
a mile. In 1891 he purchased 124 acres 
of land in the cit}' of Fort Howard, and 
following year built on this land "Yard 
No. 3," which has a capacity of 60,000 
bricks per day. The total capacity of 
the three yards, when running full time, 
is from twelve million to fifteen million 
bricks per annum. 

On June 16, 1S72, at Trinity Episco- 
pal Church, Lincoln, Neb., Mr. Finnegan 
was most happily married to Miss Ella S. 
Oatle}', who was born in Oneida count\', 
N. Y., March 12, 1851, daughter of 
Albert B. and Lavantia (Holmes) Oatley, 
also natives of Oneida county, who came 
to Wisconsin in 1857, settling in Suamico 
township. Brown county, where they 
lived for twelve years, and now reside in 
the town of Howard. To this union were 
born five children, as follows: Holmes 
Adelbert, William, Jr., Ella Ruth, Edith 
Mav, and Anna Leona, the eldest of 



102 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Nvhoiii died at the a-^c of nine years, the 
jouiijjest when one jear and nine months 
old. Mrs. Finnegan is. a prominent 
member of the Episcopal Church, with 
which she united herself at the age of 
fourteen years, and is known far and 
wide as a good Christian lady, given to 
works of benevolence wherever her femi- 
nine sympathy can reach. Mr. Finnegan 
in politics is a sound Republican, and his 
first vote was cast for Abraham Lincoln. 
He is remarkable for his quiet, unobtru- 
sive manner, in all his acts proving 
himself the very beau ideal of a good, 
loyal and useful citizen. In local affairs 
he takes a deep interest, and although he 
has filled several minor offices in his town- 
ship he has never been an office-seeker. 
Besides being an expert in the manufac- 
ture of. brick, he is equallj- skillful as an 
agriculturist, and his tract of 250 acres is 
a model of neatness and comfort, giving 
every evidence of intelligent and system- 
atic management. His talents as a business 
man have tnade him a prominent figure 
in the business world, and have given 
him a solid standing as a substantial citi- 
zen, which his continuous transactions 
since 1873, without the slightest in- 
fringement of his word or infringement of 
his integrity, fully entitle him to. 



PHILIPP KLAUS (deceased). Men 
there have been, unversed in 
classics or science, without art, 
without eloquence, who yet had 
the wisdom to devise and the courage to 
perform that which they lacked language 
to explain. Such men have worked the 
deliverance of nations and their own 
greatness. Their hearts are their books; 
events are their tutors ; great actions are 
their eloquence, and in this category 
stand surely men of such a stamp as is 
the subject of this sketch. 

In the pretty little village of Bruttig, 
"on the Banks of the Blue Moselle," in 
Rhein Prussia, Germany, was born, July 



20, 1832, Philipp Klaus, of whom this 
sketch relates, and he there received his 
education, less a knowledge of the En- 
glish language. At the age of seventeen 
he left the Fatherland, in company with 
his father and four brothers, to seek a 
new home in the Western World, and on 
No\'embcr 11, 1849, landed in the then 
young town of Green Bay, Wis., thus be- 
coming, in fact, one of its German pio- 
neers. He quickly Americanized him- 
self, made rapid progress in the English 
language, and in course of time became 
one of the most active and energetic, as 
well as infiuential, business men of the 
town. 

His ancestors, as the name indicates, 
were Germans, and the village of Bruttig 
has known the family for many years. 
Here Grandfather Stephen Klaus was 
born, married, and at an advanced age 
died, leaving a good name as an heritage 
to his posterity — a name that has been 
honored and kept unsullied ever since. 
His son, Jacob, father of Philipp, also 
born there, was taught the trade of shoe- 
maker, and became a good workman. 
He was married in Bruttig to a young 
German woman, who bore him five chil- 
dren, all sons, and died at the birth of 
our subject. The names of the children 
are John, Joseph, Charles, Anton and 
Philij)p, of whom only Anton survives. 

Philipp Klaus was reared b\- his broth- 
ers, whose devcjtion for him, and their 
almost motherly care, often excited the 
admiration of the neighbors and others 
who knew the family. The boys also 
kept house, and did their domestic work 
well, while all of them learned to cook. 
When the eldest entered the German 
army, the next eldest took his place, and 
so on in rotation till it came to Philipp's 
turn, when, in 1S48. the father concluded 
to leave the Fatherland, and bring his 
five stalwart sons to America. On land- 
ing in New York they at once proceeded 
by boat on the Hudson river to Albany, 
thence traveled by cars to Buffalo, from 
which city they came by the steamer 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



103 



"Empire State" (at that time tlic finest 
boat on the lakes) to Milwaukee, Wis. 
Here they took passage on the old 
steamer " Lexington," which on a beauti- 
ful November morn, as the rising orb of 
day was tinting the heavens with ethereal 
hues, majestically entered the Fox river, 
and in due time safely landed the immi- 
grant family in Green Bay — the " ultima 
thule " of their long journey. 

During the first few years after his 
arrival in Green Bay our subject worked 
with his father at the shoemaking trade, 
and then betook himself to the pineries 
at Peshtigo, same State, where he re- 
mained until 1S55, returning to Green 
Ba}'. At this time he and his lirother 
Charles leased the "Green Ba)' House," 
a well-known hostelry in Green Bay, 
which they conducted till i(S56. The 
same j'ear Mr. Klaus built the old " Klaus 
Hall, " which was afterward sold to the 
proprietors of the Green Bay Advocate, 
and he then erected the present "Klaus 
Hall." Here he opened a general store, 
in which he met with the most encour- 
aging success. From about 1S74 till 
within a year or two ago he was chiefly 
engaged in the real-estate and insurance 
business, and for the most part in the 
real-estate line managed the affairs of 
large outside corporations or interests, 
among which ma\'be mentioned the great 
W. L. Newberry (Chicago) estate, while 
in insurance matters he represented the 
Phoenix, Mutual Life, the Charter Oak 
and other companies. These insurance 
agencies came to Mr. Klaus totally un- 
solicited by him, at the time he was suf- 
fering from the financial depression 
following the panic of 1873, and he was 
thus enabled to resume his real-estate 
operations, which had been temporarily 
discontinued from the same cause. Hav- 
ing by patient, quiet industry and 
laborious diligence accumulated a hand- 
some competence, Mr. Klaus for the last 
few years of his life resided in Green 
Bay, in the enjoyment of quiet retire- 
ment, with his faithful wife, still, how- 



ever, doing a little real-estate business, 
principally annuig friends and old ac- 
quaintances. Fur the last year or so of 
his life he was in poor health, and his 
death, on July 23, 1894, caused little sur- 
prise among his friends and accjuaintances 
in Green Bay, where he will long be re- 
membered as a most worthy citi/en. 

On Easter Monday, March 24, 1S56, 
Mr. Klaus was united in marriage with 
Miss Elizabeth Basten, daughter of Franz 
Jacob and Maggie Concen Basten, and to 
this union were born five children, as fol- 
lows: Christine, wife of A. M. Grau, of 
Milwaukee; Anna, who died at the age of 
fifteen years; Barbara, wife of A. G. 
Netter; Elizabeth, and Henry P., now of 
Milwaukee, of whom special mention will 
presently be made. In politics Mr. Klaus 
was a Democrat, and the citizens of 
Green Bay honored him by electing him 
to the office of city treasurer, which he 
filled with much acceptability for nine 
years, leaving an honorable record as a 
city official; later he was elected city as- 
sessor, an office he held two terms, de- 
clining re-election. He was a prominent 
member of the Cathedral Church at Green 
Bay, with which Mrs. Klaus is also con- 
nected. 

Henry P. Klaus, only son of Philipp 
and Elizabeth Klaus, received his ele- 
mentarv education at the Cathedral school, 
Green Bay, and at the age of thirteen 
years entered Marquette College. Mil- 
waukee, where he took a three-years' 
business course, graduating in August, 
1 89 1, with the class honors, and receiv- 
ing a gold medal from the college. Im- 
mediately on leaving college he looked for 
employment, and found it in a wholesale 
establishment in Milwaukee, in the capac- 
ity of receiving clerk. After a few months 
he was offered, and accepted, a position 
as bookkeeper for the Cream City Brewery, 
Milwaukee, where he was held in high 
esteem by his employers, and he is win- 
ning well-merited recognition among busi- 
ness men. At present he is at home, man- 
aging the affairs of his deceased parent. 



I04 



coiryrEiioRATiVE biograpuical record. 



ELISHA MORKOW. When an 
e\ei-busy man, from the feverish 
turmoil of politics, and the harass- 
ing cares of business, is retired to 
a peaceful, quiet and happy life, such an 
individual natural!)- excites the friendly 
en\y of his less-favored fellowmen. \\'ith- 
out ostentation or apparent conscious 
superiorit)', he mingles in the societ)- of 
his neighbors, and enjoys with them the 
affairs of the present, and a pleasant 
retrospect of a life well spent. 

Elisha Morrow, of whom we write, 
comes, on the paternal and maternal 
sides respectivel}', of Irish and English 
ancestry who settled in New Jersey prior 
to the Revolutionar}' war. He was born 
in Susse.x county, N. J., in 1819, a son 
of George and Maria fDavis) Morrow, 
who for some years resided in that county, 
where the father was engaged in the man- 
ufacture of iron, and died in 1826. His 
widow spent the rest of her days at the 
home of her son Elisha, in Green Bay, 
Wis., passing from earth in 1869. Our 
subject received his education at the 
schools of Sparta, N. J., and at about 
the age of fifteen commenced clerking in 
a store in that town, remaining there 
some three or four jears. In 1837 he 
came west, locating at Peoria, 111., where 
he had, living, three sisters married to mer- 
chants of the place. Near here he took 
up 160 acres of wild land at $1.25 per 
acre, eighty acres of wl.ich he cleared and 
farmed. At the end of three years he 
sold this property and bought several 
head of cattle, which he drove to Galena, 
same State, where he sold them. His 
next speculation was the purchase of 100 
head of cattle, driving them to Green 
Bay, Wis., where he arrived with them 
November 26, 1S40. At that time there 
was a fort at the place, several compa- 
nies of United States soldiers being sta- 
tioned thereat, and some of the cattle he 
sold to the Government, others being 
slaughtered and sold by the carcass, the 
venture proving fairly successful. Hav- 
ing bought an interest in a tannery at 



Green Bay, and liking the place, Mr. 
Morrow concluded to remain, and his 
home has since been here. In addition 
to the tannery he was for a long time 
more or less interested in the buying and 
selling of real estate, lumbering, farming, 
merchandising, etc. From 1S43 to 1851 
he ran stage lines from Green Bay to 
Milwaukee, Sheboygan and Madison. 

As a politician Mr. Morrow was origi- 
nally one of the most acti\e supporters of 
the Democratic party, and in 1845 he 
was elected to the Territorial Legislature, 
serving two successive terms of one year 
\ each. In 1847-48-49, under the admin- 
istration of President Polk, he served as 
receiver for the United States land oflice 
at Green Bay, which at that time was sit- 
uated on the corner of Adams and Chi- 
cago streets. .\i this time there was a 
great boom, and during Mr. Morrow's in- 
cumbency about two million dollars worth 
of property' was turned over. On leaving 
the land office he became largely inter- 
ested in the lumbering business and mer- 
cantile pursuits until 1873. In 1856 the 
course of events caused Mr. Morrow to 
change his allegiance from the Demo- 
cratic party to the new Republican one, 
he becoming one of the early adherents and 
organizers of that party in Wisconsin. He 
was prominent and active in the nomina- 
tion for President of J. C. Fremont, and in 
the subsequent campaign, attending as a 
delegate the first Republican State con- 
vention (of which he was elected presi- 
dent) held in Wisconsin; this was in June, 
1856, and the convention was held in 
Fond du Lac. In June, i860, he was a 
delegate to the Chicago convention that 
nominated Lincoln for President. Since 
the organization of the State government 
he has taken no part in public affairs, and 
since 1874 has been engaged in no busi- 
ness except agriculture, having one or 
two farms in the neighborhood of the 
city. 

In 1849 Mr. Morrow was married to 
Miss Maria Bemis, of Buffalo, N. Y. , who 
died in 1852, leaving two children, viz.: 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGBAPUIVAL RECORD. 



lo; 



Claude Beinis, born in 1S50, now in 
charge of a lumbering establishment at 
Barronett, Wis. , recently all burned out 
by the forest fires, and Maria, who died 
at the age of five years. In 1859 Mr. 
Morrow married, at Green Bay, Miss 
Josephine Amelia Sayre, of that town, 
by which union there are six daughters; 
Maria (Mrs. Lally, of Kansas City), Helen 
E. , Carrie (wife of R. H. Pierce, who 
was chief electrician for the World's 
Fair, and now living in Chicago), May, 
Jennie R. and Louisa L., the unmarried 
young ladies living at the pleasant family 
home in Green Bay. Mrs. Morrow is a 
member of Christ Church, Episcopal. 



ALBERT G. E. HOLMES, retired 
merchant, of Green Bay, was 
born in Oneida county, N. Y. , in 
1825, a son of Alvah and Sophro- 
nia (Ellis) Holmes. 

Alvah Holmes was a native of Con- 
necticut, and at eight years of age was 
taken to Oneida county, N. Y. , by his 
father, Elijah, who was also a native of 
Connecticut, but removed to Herkimer 
county, N. Y. , and later to Oneida coun- 
ty. Alvah Holmes was reared in New 
York, was a drummer boy in the war of 
1812, and in 1821, at his majority, was 
married; in 1840 he came with his family 
to Green Bay, Wis., where he was en- 
f;;aged in milling and farming. Here his 
wife died in 1S45, s^nd he returned to 
Oneida county, where his death took place 
February 8, 1871. He reared a family of 
seven children, viz. : Olive Ingalls, widow 
of Edson Sherwood, of the firm of Sher- 
wood & Holmes, Mr. Sherwood dying in 
Greing Bay in 1880, and Mrs. Sherwood 
taking up her residence in Howard town- 
ship. Brown Co., Wis. (she died Septem- 
ber 10, 1894); Albert G. E., our subject, 
the second in the famil}-; Clinton resides 
on the old homestead in Oneida county, 
N. Y. ; Lavantia C, wife of Albert Oat- 
ley, resides in the town of Howard; Leo- 
nidas K., who lives in Lincoln, Neb.; 



Asahel Brainerd, of Los Angeles, Cal., 
and Stephen Augustus, a resident of 
Herkimer count}', N. Y., died January 
26, 1S94. 

During the Presidential campaign of 
1840, A. G. E. Holmes took part in a 
Harrison log-cabin procession, going on 
horseback from Oneida county, N. Y. , to 
Buffalo, where the famih', including him- 
self, embarked on a steamboat for Green 
Bay. Our subject was then fourteen 
years of age, and had been fairly edu- 
cated in New York, to which privilege he 
added by further study in Green I-iay. In 
1853 he here engaged in the grocer}' and 
provision business under the firm name of 
Sherwood & Holmes; in 1877 Mr. Sher- 
wood retired, but the business was con- 
tinued, under the style of Holmes & Har- 
teau, until about 1S79, when Mr. Holmes 
disposed of his interest in the concern and 
engaged, in partnership with L. M. Mar- 
shall, in the lumber, shingle and general 
merchandise trade, which was successfully 
conducted until 1888, when Mr. Marshall 
died. The trade was then carried on by 
Mr. Holmes alone until 1892, when he re- 
tired entirely from business, after an ac- 
tive experience of over forty years. 

The marriage of Mr. Holmes was sol- 
emnized in the town of Brookfield, Madi- 
son Co., N. Y., in 1849, to Miss Antoin- 
nette R. Brown, a native of Madison 
count}', and daughter of Williams and Es- 
ther (Randall) Brown. Williams Brown 
was born in Connecticut, in 1783, coming 
to New York with his father, Asa Brown, 
when twelve years of age. He lost his wife 
in 1863 in Madison county, and just after 
this event came to Dane ccjunty. Wis., 
where his death occurred in 1 867. To Mr. 
and Mrs. A. G. E. Holmes have been born 
two children: Kittie, who died in 1872, 
and Albert, who is attending a business 
college in Green Bay. Mr. Holmes is a 
Republican; he was a member of the 
school board for three years, has served 
as alderman from the Second ward, and 
for nine years was county superintend- 
ent of the poor; he is a member of the 



io6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Knights of Honor and a charter member of 
Green Bay Lodge. Mrs. Holmes is a 
member of the Episcopal Church, Mr. 
Holmes himself being a constant attend- 
ant. The family are respected by all the 
community of Green Bay, and the busi- 
ness qualitications of Mr. Holmes have 
been made the subject of constant re- 
mark. He is patriotic and liberal in for- 
warding and sustaining the general in- 
terests and improvement of Green Bay, 
and is a factor in her moral and educa- 
tional progress. 



HENRY F. HAGEMEISTEK, presi- 
dent of the Hagemeister Brewing 
Co., Green Bay, which was or- 
ganised in 1 886 and incorporated 
in 1890, is a native of Green Bay, Wis., 
born in 1855. 

Francis Henry Hagemeister, father of 
subject, was born in Prussia, and in early 
manhood emigrated thence to the United 
States, locating first in Milwaukee, Wis., 
where he worked in a meat market for 
J. Nuimemacher. In 1866, along with 
four others, he organized a brewing com- 
pany in Green Bay, Wis. , later buying 
out the interests of the others. In Green 
Bay he married Miss Barbara Martin, a 
native of Wurtemberg, Germany, and 
they reared a family of si.\ children, as 
follows: Mary, wife of G. Walters, of 
Pittsburg, Penn. ; Henry F. ; Bessie; Min- 
nie; Albert, married, and residing in Green 
Bay; and Louis W., engaged in a boot 
and shoe business in Green Bay. [Since 
this was written Louis W. Hagemeister 
died F"ebruary 20, 1895.] The father 
died November 18, 1892, aged sixty-five 
years, eleven months; the mother passed 
away in 1882. Francis H. Hagemeister 
was a member and an officer of the Luth- 
eran Church; politically he was a Dem- 
crat, and at one time served as alderman 
in Green Bay. 

Henry F. Hagemeister, the subject 
proper of this sketch, received a liberal 
education at the public schools of his na- 



tive town, and at the age of seventeen 
j'ears commenced working in a brewery, 
a line of business he has been identified 
with ever since. In 1879, when twenty- 
four years old, he had the management of 
abrewrey, and in 1886, as above recorded, 
was organized the present concern, of 
which he is president, his brother Albert 
being secretarj" and treasurer. The plant 
in Green Bay is located on the East side, 
and, including the branch brewery at 
Sturgeon Bay, Wis., represents a capital 
of two hundred and twenty-five thousand 
dollars. 

A Democrat of the purest type, Mr. 
Hagemeister has not been inactive in the 
interests of either his party or the public 
at large. At the present time he repre- 
sents the First District of Brown county 
in the Legislature; has served his city as 
alderman four years; has been president 
of the council, and is now supervisor of 
his ward. Sociallj" he is a thirty-second 
degree Mason, a member of W'ashington 
Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. M. ; of Warren 
Chapter, No. 8; of Palestine Command- 
ery. No. 20; and of the Wisconsin \'alley 
Consistory; is also a member of the Golden 
Shrine, of the Order of Elks; and of the 
Knights of Honor. In all connections — 
business, political or social— Mr. Hage- 
meister has ever proved himself worthy of 
the high esteem and respect in which he 
is held by the community. 



LOUIS W. HAGEMEISTER, 
proprietor of boot and shoe estab- 
lishment, in Green Bay, and vice- 
president of the Hagemeister Brew- 
ing Co., is a native of Green Bay, born 
March 17, 1865; a son of Francis H., and 
Barbara ( Martin) Hagemeister, natives of 
Germany. 

The subject of this biographical mem- 
oir received his education in Green Bay, 
and on leaving school commenced to work 
in a brewery. In 1 890 he became a stock- 
holder in same, and in 1893 was appoint- 
ed vice-president of the Hagemeister 



COMXEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



107 



Brewing Co., which was organized in that 
year. In addition to the extensive plant 
in Green Bay, there is a branch brewery 
at Sturgeon Bay, the entire phmt costing 
in the neighborhood of two hundred thou- 
sand dollars; the industry giving employ- 
ment to from thirty to forty hands. In 
1893 he commenced in his present boot 
and shoe business, keeping a full line of 
everything in the trade. After learning 
the brewing business in Green Bay, Mr. 
Hagemeister went, at the age of twenty- 
one, to Detroit, Mich., and for twelve 
months worked in the E. W. Voight 
Brewery, receiving a diploma; after which 
he was for a time in Keeley Bros. Brew- 
ery, Chicago. Moving to Dallas, Te.xas, 
he remained with the Dallas Brewing Co., 
eighteen months, and then returned to 
Green Bay, becoming manager of the Stur- 
geon Bay Brewing Co., after which he 
was appointed manager of the bottling de- 
partment. In addition to city real estate, 
Mr. Hagemeister owns an interest in 130 
acres farm jiroperty. In his political 
preferments he is a Democrat, and he is 
a member of the K. O. T. M., Tent 
No. 25. 

The following account of the old home 
of the Hagemeister family is from the pen 
of Miss Bessie Hagemeister: " It is one of 
the old landmarks of Green Bay. Much 
of my knowledge was gathered from Mrs. 
Mitchell, mother of Mrs. Theodore Har- 
ris, and from others who had occupied it 
or knew of its history. The home is sit- 
uated at the corner of North Adams and 
Pine streets. Green Bay. It was erected 
in 1835 by the late Hon. Fred Ellis, 
father of Judge Ellis. Mr. Ellis contin- 
ued in possession of the property until 
about 1844, when it passed into the hands 
of one Rev. Davis, an Episcopalian divine. 
The next change in ownership occurred 
in 1858, when it was bought by Frank 
Hagemeister, and it is still in the posses- 
sion of the Hagemeister family. During 
all these years the home was occupied by 
other families, as tenants. In 1839 the 
parents of Charles White moved into the 



house, and resided there until 1 S44. 
Then for a short time it was vacant. 
During this period Rev. T. R. Haff, the 
present rector of Christ Church, Green 
Bay, and a few friends, while on an ex- 
pedition through the country for an out- 
ing, camped in the house for a short time, 
instead of pitching tents outside. Some- 
time between this and 1846 a family 
named Ste\ens li%ed there. In 1847 the 
late Col. Chapman and family became its 
occupants, and Mrs. Wheelock was with 
them as a member of the family during 
the time. In 1848 the owner, Re\-. Davis, 
moved in, Col. Chapman having vacated. 
In 1852 Mr. Davis died, but Mrs. Davis 
still made it her home till 1854, when 
Mr. Holmes moved in, and she boarded 
with his family until 1857. The next oc- 
cupants were Mr. Frank Lenz and wife. 
The old home then became a sort of 
country tavern, or, nmre properly, a 
boarding house, although Mr. Lenz occa- 
sionally entertained transients, and became 
quite popular as a stopping-place for fel- 
low countrymen of Mr. Lenz on their ar- 
rival in the cit}'; and it was here that Mr. 
and Mrs. Schellenbeck first stopped on 
their honeymoon. About this time the 
property was purchased by Mr. Hage- 
meister, and he lived there during his life- 
time. I have preserved all this historj' of 
the old home, in which I am deeply inter- 
ested." [Since the above sketch was put 
in type, we have received information of 
the death of Mr. Louis W. Hagemeister, 
which occurred February 20, 1895, at the 
old homestead. — Ed. 



REV. JOHN L. HEWITT. A. M., 
D. D. , pastor of the First Pres- 
byterian Church of Green Bay, is 
a native of England, born March 
4, 1843, in Oswestry, Shropshire, of an 
old family in that stalwart " little island," 
the name Hewitt frequently appearing in 
old-time annals. 

Grandfather Samuel Hewitt held a 



io8 



CO.VMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



government position, and was a man of 
prominence in his daj'. He and iiis wife, 
Elizabeth, were members of the Church 
of England, and were the parents of five 
children, named respectively: Samuel, 
Joseph, Thomas, Sarah and Elizabeth. 
Of these, Thomas was born in Wolver- 
hampton, Staffordshire, England, and 
was reared to the trade of mechanic, in 
which he became highly skilled. In Os- 
westry he married Miss P'lizabeth Jones, 
a granddaughter of Charles Devereux 
Price, who was a son of a London gentle- 
man of means, supposed to be a descend- 
ant of the Earls of Essex. Mrs. Eliza- 
beth Hewitt's father, Morris Jones, was 
a master builder by occupation, becom- 
ing successful and prosperous ; he came 
to the United States about the j'ear 185 1, 
and died in Racine, Wis. He had a 
famil}' of six children, of whom. Eliza- 
beth was born in Mellinochreg Hall, 
Welshpool, Montgomeryshire, North 
Wales, almost under the shadow of 
Plynlymmon, a picturesque mountain in 
Cardiganshire. She was well-educated 
in her native city, and a woman of the 
most refined taste, one who reared her 
family well and in true Christian faith. 
To her and her husband were born twelve 
children, six of whom survive. In 1856 
the family came to the United States, 
settling in Racine, Wis., where the father 
died in July, 1867. 

The subject of this sketch received his 
education in London, England, first in 
three different select schools, later in St. 
Luke's, Chelsea, and St. Mark's College, 
Brompton. He was thirteen years old 
when the family came to Wisconsin, and 
here he has since lived. In 1862 he en- 
tered Lawrence Universit3^ Appleton, and 
in 1870 was ordained a minister. Since, 
he has officiated at Waukesha, Kenosha 
and Milwaukee, at which latter place he 
was pastor of the Grand Avenue M. E. 
Church; subsequently he was presiding 
elder of the Milwaukee district, and pastor 
of Washington Avenue Church. In 1881 
he received the degree of Master of Arts 



at Lawrence Universit}', and, in 1891, 
while officiating as pastor of the Wash- 
ington Avenue M. E. Church, Milwaukee, 
that of Doctor of Divinity, from the Uni- 
versit}' of the Northwest. In 1892 he 
received an unanimous call to the pastor- 
ate of the First Presbyterian Church of 
Green Bay, his present incumbency, and 
was installed October 17, 1893. Of this 
church a local paper of October, 1893, 
sa3's the following: "The Green Bay 
Church in question is one of the oldest, 
if not the oldest. Congregational Church 
in Wisconsin, being over sixty years old 
as a church organization. The site upon 
which the society's buildings stood since 
organization was presented to the congre- 
gation by John Jacob Astor, in the days 
of his great fur deals. The deed to the 
land reads: ' From John Jacob Astor 
to the First Presbyterian Church of 
Green Bay,' etc., antl in that way the so- 
ciety received its name as a Presbyterian 
Church, although it has always beon a 
Congregational Church in doctrine and 
practice." Of the chief characteristics 
of the present pastor, the following is 
gleaned from a long-time acquaintance: 
' ' Dr. Hewitt was cast in a finer, gentler 
mould than many men, and yet he has 
also those manl}' qualities that we ought 
to find in every man, be he statesman or 
business man or clergyman. His sense 
of the fit and the beautiful is keen — he has 
much of the spirit of the poet in his 
thinking and living. His ideas of honor 
and integrity and duty are exceptionally 
strong. Mentally he has both depth and 
breadth. He is never afraid of new 
ideas, is receptive to any new truth, but 
has the faith that assures him the founda- 
tions of God stand unshaken amid man's 
changing opinions and speculations. 
* * * As a minister of the Gospel he 
has always emphasized the spiritual 
rather than the ecclesiastical or dogmatic 
side of the church and the personal life, 
and has been uniformly beloved as 
preacher, teacher, pastor and man. To 
this sacred and honored calling he has 



COMME.^rORA Tl VE JUIX! UAl'JIICAL UKCOltD. 



lOy 



devoted all of himself, and is splendidly' 
equipped for successful work." 

In 1866 Rev. Dr. Hewitt was married 
to Miss Kate Richardson, daughter of 
George Richardson, of Omro, \\'is., and 
three children have been born to them, 
to wit: Frederick J., in Milwaukee; May 
Belle, at home; and George P., a classi- 
cal student at Lawrence Uni\ersity. In 
his fiolitical preferences our subject is a 
Republican, with Prohibition tendencies; 
socially he is a Royal Arch Mason. 



HON. THOMAS RICHARD 
H U D D. Thers is something ex- 
ceedingly attractive in the volun- 
tary retirement of a man who, for 
several years, has taken an active and in- 
fluential part in the affairs of the govern- 
ment. He leaves public life in the full- 
ness of his strength, and while in the path- 
wa}' of political advancement. He e.x- 
changes the exciting scenes of political 
turmoil, which present the most power- 
ful attractions to the ambitious, for the 
peaceful labors of his profession, or other 
vocation, in the pursuit of which he, may- 
hap, finds time to ruminate on past 
events, on those that are passing, and on 
those which futurit_vwill probably develop. 
Mr. Hudd is a native of New York 
State, born October i, 1835, in Buffalo, 
a son of Richard and Mary (Harrison) 
Hudd, English people, the father a na- 
tive of Laylock, Wiltshire, the mother of 
Northamptonshire, born in the village of 
Barby. Richard Hudd was a painter and 
decorator, and in i S30 came to the United 
States, where he followed his trade until 
his death, which occurred in 1841, he 
having been accidentally drowned. He 
was descended from the land-holding 
class of England, and was a man of fine 
appearance, and good education, having 
been a student at the famous Eton school. 
His wife was daughter of Thomas Harri- 
son, who came to this country and for a 
time resided near Utica. N. Y. , but after- 
ward, in 1833, became a pioneer of Illi- 



nois, settling near Lisbon, Kendall county. 
He died of apojjlexy while taking a load 
of wheat to Chicago by wagon. He was 
a lineal descendant of Gen. Harrison, who 
was one nf Cromwell's right-hand men, 
and one of the judges who condemned 
Charles I. to death. 

Thomas R. Hudd was a lad of seven 
sunnners when his father died, and soon 
after that saij e\ent the widowed mother 
moved with her little boy to Chicago, 
where he attended school until he was 
about fifteen years old, when he left his 
books to assume the role of "devil" in 
the job-roc iin of the livciihii:; /nnnui/, 
Richard L. Wilson at that time being 
publisher, ami .\ndrew Matteson foreman 
of the job-room. From there he went to 
the ]\\-shTu Citi-:,-)i, where he learned 
typesetting and the trade in general, 
remaining in that office until 1853. In 
the meantime his mother, having married 
a Mr. A. D. Partridge and removed to 
Neenah, \\'is., induced the lad to rejoin 
her, which he did, and he soon thereafter 
became a student at Lawrence (Appleton) 
University, paying his way toward receiv- 
ing a good education by working at his 
trade in the office of the Appleton Cri-sii-ut. 
In 1855 he left college and commenced the 
study of law with R. P. Eaton, in Apple- 
ton, then with Smith & Ballard, the senior 
member of which firm, Perr\' H. Smith, 
afterward became well-known as a prom- 
inent railroad official of Chicago. In 
October, 1856, Mr. Hudd was admitted 
to the bar, and in the following Novem- 
ber was elected district attorney of Outa- 
gamie county. Forming a partnership 
with John J. Jcwett, they practiced law 
together in Appleton until 1863, when 
Mr. Jewett retired, and Mr. J. H. M. 
Wigman succeeded him in the partner- 
ship. When Mr. Hudd came to Green 
Bay, in 1S68, Mr. Wigman continued the 
Appleton office until 1870, when he re- 
moved to Green Bay, after which time 
the firm engaged in general law practice, 
extending to all the State and Federal 
courts. For a short time, in the heyday 



I lO 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



of his Congic.~-...iial work, and at the ex- 
piration of the Lth Congress, Mr. Hudd 
was a member of the law firm, in Chi- 
cago, of Case, Hudd & Hogan, which was 
intended only as a temporary arrange- 
ment, and was discontinued in October, 
1890. 

Mr. Hudd has served his adopted 
State well in public affairs. In 1861 he 
was elected to the State Senate, and in 
1867 to the A.ssembly; in 1876 he was 
again elected to the Assembly, and in this 
session he was prominently identified in 
the securing of the repeal of the ' ' Granger 
Law," which had become so obno.xious to 
the State. In 1877 he was again sent 
by his constituents to the Senate, and 
was successively re-elected to same until 
1885, in which year he was elected to the 
United States Congress, resigning his 
seat in the State Senate when he had 
three years yet to serve. This was the 
XLIXth Congress, and he was elected to 
the vacancy caused bj- the death of Jos- 
eph Rankin. In this Congress he served 
on the committee on Commerce, to take 
the place of Joseph Pultzer, who had re- 
signed in order to visit Europe. Elected 
to the Lth Congress, Mr. Hudd was ap- 
pointed chairman of the committee on 
Expenditures, in the Interior Department. 
This closed his most active life in the 
arena of politics, and he has since con- 
fined himself to the practice of his pro- 
fession, wherein he has a wide clientage 
and enjoys the distinction of being the 
leading criminal lawyer in this section of 
Wisconsin. In municipal affairs, also, he 
has been active, having served the peo- 
ple of his locality in many minor offices, 
among which may be mentioned that of 
president of the school board, several 
years. In 1 889 he was appointed by 
Gov. Hoar, one of three commissioners 
to represent the State of Wisconsin at 
the Centennial celebration of the inaugur- 
ation of George Washington as first 
President of the United States, which was 
held at New York in April, 1889. Dur- 
ing the Civil war he was commissioned to 



a lieutenancy, and mainlj- by his individ- 
ual e.xertion were organized two military 
companies in Outagamie county, but he 
was unable to take active service, having 
just been elected to the State Senate. 

Mr. Hudd has been twice married, 
first time, in 1857, to Parthenia S. Peak, 
who died in 1871, the mother of four 
children, as follows: Richard P., Sophia 
M. (now wife of William Beatty, of Colo- 
rado), Mary H., and Julia P. (now living 
in Washington, D. C). In 1872 Mr. 
Hudd married, for his second wife. Miss 
Mary Kiel, and four children, all daugh- 
ters, have been born to them, named as 
follows: Gertrude D. , Nellie. May and 
Maude, all at home. Mr. Hudd is a mem- 
ber of the F. & A. M., Waverly Lodge 
No. 51, Appleton, and in politics he is a 
stanch Democrat. 



WILLLUI C. HINSDALE, the 
popular and efficient agent at 
Green Bay for the American 
Express Company, is one of the 
ten oldest employees of that corporation 
in ^^'isconsin, and has earned for himself 
an enviable reputation as a courteous, 
painstaking official. 

He is a native of this State, born, in 
1847, hi the town of Kenosha, a son of 
W. L. and Isabella C. (Courtenay) Hins- 
dale, natives of New York City, whence 
they came in 1836 to South Port (now 
Kenosha), Wis., where, in company with 
a brother, Mr. Hinsdale was engaged for 
some jears in the lumber business, they 
becoming extensive traders in that line, 
and ultimately selling out to F. B. Gard- 
ner, of Chicago. Mr. Hinsdale then re- 
sided in Madison, Wis., one year, moving 
from there, in 1855, to Milwaukee, where 
he became the first treasurer of the Chi- 
cago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railroad, 
which in a few years he resigned to ac- 
cept the position of secretary of the North 
Western National Fire and Marine Insur- 
ance Company. His father was a well- 



COMMEMdUATIVK BIOG RAPIHCAL RECORD. 



known jeweler in New York Cit\-, where 
he passed his entire hfe. 

Isabella C. Coiirtena\-, mother of the 
subject of this sketch, was born in Ikilti- 
more, Md., and was a member of one 
of the early leading families of that State, 
English people who settled in the town of 
Goodhope about the year 1700. One of 
her remote ancestors on her father's side 
lost his life on account of claiming a right 
to the crown of England, and some of her 
later ancestry were engaged in the war of 
the Revolution in this country, others, 
again, in the war of 1812. Grandfather 
Courtena_v died in Maryland, and his 
widow came to Kenosha, Wis., with her 
brother, Hercules, who opened up a farm 
in Kenosha county, where he died; she 
passed from earth in the town of Kenosha 
about the j-ear 185 I. Mrs. Isabella C. 
Hinsdale died in 1892. 

William C. Hinsdale, our subject, re- 
ceived his education in Milwaukee, and 
after leaving school entered the employ 
of Marshall Ilsley, as bank collection 
clerk, and after four jears, or in 1869, 
entered the service of the American Ex- 
press Compan)', at Black River Falls, 
Wis., thence moved to Milwaukee, from 
there to Green Bay in 1871, passing 
through the \'arious grades of promotion 
"with flying colors." In 1S73-74 he was 
Express Messenger between Green Bay 
and Marquette, Mich., and other points, 
and in 1881 received the appointment of 
agent at Green Ba\-, his present incum- 
bency. In October, 18S1. he was mar- 
ried in Green Bay to Miss Minnie C. 
Gardner, a native of that town, a daughter 
of B. C. and M. E. Gardner, who about 
the year 1854 came to Green Bay, where 
the father followed his business, that of 
contractor and builder; he died about 
1880; the mother is yet living in Green 
Bay. To Mr. and Mrs. Hinsdale have 
been born two children, Florence and 
Isabella. In politics our subject is a Re- 
publican; socially he is a member of 
Pochequette Lodge No. 26, K. of P., and 
has passed all the Chairs. To his well- 



directed efforts — efforts that ne\'er know 
fatigue — Green Bay is indebted for as 
well-conducted an express system as ex- 
ists in the State. 



G 



E. T. KVBEIx., notary public, 
mortgage loan and real-estate 
broker, of Green Bay, \\'is. , was 
born in Saxony, Germany, in 
1828, a son of Theodore George and 
Caroline (Weygant) Kyber, the former of 
whom, a native of Saxony, died at the 
age of ninety-one; the latter was of Polish 
descent. They had born to them eight 
children, of whom the living are Carl, in 
Glauchau, Saxony; Frederick and Amelia, 
residing near Dresden, Saxony, and G. E. 
T. , who is the subject of this sketch. 

G. E. T. Kjber lost his mother when 
he was six years of age. He was reared 
and educated in Saxony and studied mili- 
tary science and architecture, which pro- 
fession he followed in the old country 
until he was twenty-two years old. In 
1850 he came to America, and in New 
York was employed for a short time in 
lithographic work and painting; then 
went to Central America and served as 
head steward of a large hospital, caught 
the yellow fever, and returned north. In 
1854 he came to Green Bay and opened 
a paint shop, which he conducted until 
i86r, when he was appointed notary pub- 
lic; in 1863 he was appointed, as a Demo- 
crat, auditor of the Volunteers Aid Fund 
in the office of the Secretary of State, and 
held the position until 1865; in 1867 was 
elected the first police justice of Green 
Bay. In 1S73 he moved to Allouez town- 
ship, where he has ever since had his resi- 
dence, and is now public administrator 
for Brown county. Mr. Kyber was mar- 
ried, in New York, in 1852, to Miss 
Susanna Muth, and to this union have 
been born eight children, of whom the 
living are: Fannie, wife of F. L. Erd- 
mann, of Green Bay; Virginia, Theodore 
G. and Frederick E. The mother of this 
family was called from earth in 1887 



C0MMEM0RAT1VI-: liJOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



since when Mr. Kyber has remained a 
widower. 

Mr. Kyber is a member of Herman 
Lodge No. 1 1 1, I. O. O. F., and also of 
the Turn Verein, of which he was one of 
the organizers. He is also a member of 
the Lutheran Church, lives fully up to its 
teachings, and is greatly respected for his 
moral walk through life. 



THOM.'XS J. McGRATH. senior 
member of McGrath & Anderson, 
leading firm of contractors and 
builders, of Green Bay, is a fair 
representative of those whose sagacity 
and capital have done so much toward 
the commercial and manufacturing pro- 
gress of the city of his adoption. 

A native of Canada, he was born 
January 15, 1859, in Emily, \'ictoria Co. , 
Ontario, to Michael and Mary Ann (Mc- 
Carthy) McGrath, the former of whom 
was a carpenter by trade. In March, 
1863, the father died, and in 1S75 the 
family, then consisting of mother and 
three children, including (jur subject, 
came toWisconsin and settled in Lebanon, 
Waupaca county, where the mother 
subsequently married Michael Ahearn, of 
that place, where they are now living. 
As will be seen, our subject was a lad of 
some si.xteen summers when the family 
came toWisconsin, prior to which he had 
received at the excellent public schools 
of Canada the onlj- literary education he 
was destined to have, which in after 
years he added to by close reading and 
general observation of men and things. 
At the age of eighteen he commenced to 
learn carpentry, at which trade he soon 
proved himself admirably adapted; and so 
quickly did he make himself prolicicnt 
that at the early age of twenty-two he was 
placed as foreman over men whose actual 
experience represented more years than 
he had lived. But he was equal to the 
responsibility, and proved himself an 
efficient and capable overseer. In this 
capacity his first employment was for 



contractors, but ere long he entered the 
employ of the Chicago & Northwestern 
Railway Company as foreman of bridge 
carpenters, the work at that time being 
done by this company on the St. Peter 
division in Minnesota. For six years he 
continued in this position, proving him- 
self well worthy of his trust — honest and 
capable. He then entered the employ of 
the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. 
Marie Railroad Company as superin- 
tendent of building construction, but at 
the end of one year he resigned to accept 
the position of superintendent of bridges 
and buildings for the Milwaukee & North- 
ern railroad, which about three years 
thereafter merged into the Chicago, Mil- 
waukee tS: St. Paul railroad. 

In 1890 Mr. McGrath commenced the 
since prosperous business of general con- 
tracting and building, and among the 
many substantial works in Green Bay 
that stand to-day as e\idence of his skill 
may be mentioned the Mason street 
bridge over the Fox river; an extension 
of one thousand feet dockage for the 
Murphy Lumber Companj', and elevator 
and dock for W. W. Cargill & Bro. In 
February, 1893, Mr. McGrath received 
as partner in his extensive business Mr. 
W. B. Anderson, since when the firm 
have completed the following contracts: 
Plant for "The Columbian Bakery"; ex- 
tensive coal-sheds for Barkhousen & 
Hathaway; the power-house for the Fox 
River Street Railway Company; 800 feet 
extra dockage for the Murphy Lumber 
Company; about 14,000 yards of cedar 
block paving on Washington street; 25,- 
000 yards cedar block pavement on 
Crooks and Walnut streets; bridge over 
the East river, connecting Allouez and 
Bellevue townships, in Brown county; 
bridge over East river on Mason street; 
and three and one-half miles of railroad 
for the Chicago & North Western Com- 
pany, in Michigan. 

At Mankato, Minn., on March 21, 
1880, Mr. McGrath was married to Miss 
Eleanor Fuller, a native of Lapeer, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



"3 



Mich., and daughter of Daniel and Mary 
J. i Arlow) Fuller. An interesting laniily 
of si.x clever children ha\e been born to 
this union, named respectivel)': Nellie 
M., Claude A., Violet M., Thomas R., 
Daniel F. and Alvin E. Politically Mr. 
McGrath is a stanch Republican, but has 
no time to spare for office, his business 
demanding and receiving his closest at- 
tention. He is a member of the F. & A. 
M., Washington Lodge No. 21, Warren 
Chapter No. 8, Warren Council No. 13, 
and Palestine Commandery No. 20. Mrs. 
McGrath is a member of the M. E. 
Church. 



NS. KIMBALL, division master- 
mechanic of the Chicago, Mil- 
waukee & St. Paul railr(_)ad, by 
virtue of his long residence in 
Wisconsin, covering a period of over 
thirty-six years, is not only well known 
but highly respected, especially in railroad 
circles, where he is prominent. 

He is a native of New Hampsliire, 
born November 21, 1S31, in the town of 
Warner, Merrimack county, a son of John 
and Hannah (Bean) Kimball, the former 
of whom was born and reared in Waltham, 
Mass. In early life, he. John, moved to 
New Hampshire, and in tlie town of War- 
ner established a paper-mill as well as a 
bookbindery, being proprietor of both. 
Senator Chandler, of New Hampshire, 
is now owner of the site on which these 
old-time industries stood. John Kimball 
and his wife passed the rest of their 
days in New Hampshire, dying in Man- 
chester in 1 841 and 1862 respectively, he 
at the age of lift}' years, she at the age of 
sixty-two; his maternal grandfather, 
Thomas Wellington, was a soldier in the 
Revolution, spent the winter at Valley 
Forge and crossed the Delaware with 
Washington. John Kimball served in the 
war of 181 2, in which conflict John Bean, 
the maternal grandfather of our subject, 
was also a soldier. 

The subject of these lines received a 



liberal education, in jnirt at the schools of 
Manchester, N. H., and in part in Hop- 
kinton Academ}', same State, chiefly, 
however, at the schocjls of the latter 
place. He was in reality reared to farm- 
ing, and for a time tended sheep on the 
Kearsarge Mountains, but in 1847, '^^^ the 
age of seventeen, he commenced to learn 
the trade of machinist in the Amoskeag 
locomotive shops of Manchester. N. H., 
which had just been started, remaining in 
them as long as they existed as locomotive 
shops, or until 1857. In January of that 
year he moved to Detroit, Mich., and 
for a short time was in the employ of tire 
Michigan Central Railroad Company, 
thence removing to La Porte, Ind., where 
he worked for the Lake Shore cS: Michi- 
gan Southern railroad. After this he 
was on a farm in Logan county. 111., for 
some eight months, at the end of which 
time, in 1858, he removed to Milwaukee, 
Wis., where he was given charge as fore- 
man in the repair shops of the Milwaukee 
& Mississippi railroad, which at that time 
extended as far as Prairie du Chien, and 
is at present a division of the Chicago, Mil- 
waukee & St. Paul railroad, on which he 
is now employed. Here he remained 
within one year of a quarter of a century, 
and in 1882, having accepted the position 
of division master-mechanic of the Mil- 
waukee & Northern railroad, came to 
Green Bay, where he still remains in the 
same capacity. In 1882 this was the 
Milwaukee & Northern railroad, but in 
1890 it was absorbed by the Chicago, 
Milwaukee & St. Paul railroad. He has 
therefore served continuously thirty-six 
years in positions of responsibility on the 
lines of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul railroad. 

In 1S53 Mr. Kimball was married to 
Miss Mary A. Edmunds, daughter of 
Enoch and Mary (Campbell) Edmunds, 
all natives of New Hampshire, where her 
father died, the widowed mother after- 
ward coming to Green Bay. where, at 
the residence of our subject, she passed 
away in 1892. To Mr. and Mrs. Kim- 



114 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ball has been born one child, Walter H., 
by profession a stenographer, married, 
and residing at Green Baj'. In his polit- 
ical preferences our subject is a Republi- 
can. In 1854 he joined the Masons, at 
Manchester, N. H., and he is a member 
of Washington Lodge No. 21, F. & A. 
M. , Green Bay; Chapter No. 7, Milwaukee; 
Palestine Conmiandery No. 20, of Green 
Bay (of which, he is past eminent com- 
mander), and of the Wisconsin Consis- 
tory, thirty-second degree ; he is also a 
member of the Mystic Shrine. Tripoli 
Temple, of Milwaukee. He and his wife 
are members of the Protestant Episcopal 
Church, with which he has been connect- 
ed for thirty years, and for several years 
he has been a vestryman and warden. 



FW. SCHNEIDER, photographic 
artist, at No. 310 North Wash- 
ington street. Green Bay, was 
born in Westphalia, Prussia, Janu- 
ary S, 1854. His parents were Anton 
and Mary Elizabeth(Schneider) Schneider, 
natives of Rhine-Province, Prussia, where 
the father died in 1859; in 1868 the 
mother came to Wisconsin and located in 
Kewaunee county, where she carried on 
farming and a cheese factory and store 
until her death in 1891. She reared a 
family of three children, viz: Charley, a 
farmer; F. W., our subject; and Helen, 
wife of W. Gauerke, of Brown county. 
F. W. Schneider was educated in 
Prussia until fourteen years of age, and 
after coming to America attended the 
evening schools, and a business college 
in Green Bay, Wis. In 1870 he settled 
in Brown county, and was employed in 
sawmilling and team driving till 1874, 
when he moved into Green Bay, where he 
learned his art, and in May, 1877, com- 
menced business on his own account, be- 
ing now the oldest gallery proprietor in 
the city, and one of its finest artists. 

Mr. Schneider was married in De- 
Pere, in 1876, to Miss Elainna M. Nuss, 
a native of Pennsylvania, and daughter 



of Michael Nuss, who settled in De Pere 
about the year 1866. This happy union 
has been blessed with three children, 
named respectively: .\lvin, Mabel and 
Fred. Mr. Schneider is a Republican in 
his political affiliations, and in his social 
and fraternal connections is affiliated with 
Green Bay Lodge. No. 19, I. O. O. F., 
in which he has passed all the chairs, and 
is also a member of the Encampment; is 
a member of the Royal Arcanum, of the 
Modern Woodmen, and of the Knights of 
the Maccabees. He has grown up with 
the city of Green Bay, has been a witness 
to much of its progress, and is now 
ranked among its most respected citizens. 



HON. W. J. ABRAMS. The life 
of the subject of this sketch pre- 
sents a striking example of enter- 
prise, industry and integrity, con- 
ducting to eminent success, and of politi- 
cal consistencies based on enlightened 
and moderate views — views at all times 
compatible with a generous toleration of 
the sentiments entertained by others, and 
commanding general confidence and es- 
teem. 

Mr. Abrams was born March 19, 1829, 
in Cambridge, Washington Co., N. Y. , 
and is a son of Isaac T. and Ruth (Hall) 
Abrams, natives of New York. The 
father, who was a business man of West 
Troy, N. Y., died in 1868, the mother in 
1870. Of their family of children only 
one grew to maturity, the son whose 
name introduces this sketch. His great- 
grandfather on the mother's side, Capt. 
Alexander Thomas, was commissioned in 
December, 1 778, by the General As- 
sembly of Rhode Island, a captain in 
Col. Topham's regiment, and it is rec- 
orded that he "drew regular pay." Our 
subject is a blood-relation, on his 
mother's side, of Lyman Hall, one of 
the signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, and, on his father's side. Mr. 
Abrams claims lineal descent from Lord 
Townley, of the English House of Peers. 




^-7-7 



,.i^~y- C'^-^.^-,'!- ' 



7 



'/T/j. GJ^a^-v/Mi 



CO^rMEMOIlATTVE DWGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



117 



W. J. Abranis, after receivinj; an 
academic education at Cainbiiiij^e and 
Troy, N. Y., entered the theoiof^'ical 
school at Wilhamstown, Mass. ; but, 
owing to impaired health he had to aban- 
don the course, and spent some years in 
travel, at the same time continuing his 
studies, for the most part in history, arts 
and general literature. In the latter con- 
nection it may be mentioned that he was 
the author, under various iioiiuiiis dc 
pluiiii of various essays, but his health 
would not permit of his continuing in such 
work as a profession. 

In 1856 he came to northern Wiscon- 
sin, and was engaged for a consideralile 
time in railroad surveys from Lake Michi- 
gan to Ontonagon, making his permanent 
home in Green Bay in 1861. He became 
identified with the Collingwootl, Sarnia 
and Buffalo line of steamers, and, until 
1870, none was more prominent in the 
development of the water transportation 
facilities of the town. In that year he 
directed his attention more especially to 
railroad enterprise, and was one of tlie 
promoters of the Green Bay & Lake Pepin 
railroad (ha\'ing made the survey and ob- 
tained its charter), becoming officially 
connected with same, for many }'ears 
serving as secretary. This road was sub- 
sequently merged into the Green Bay lS: 
Minnesota, and still later into the (ircen 
Bay, Winona cS: St. Paul. Mr. Abrams 
was also the leading promoter of the Ke- 
waunee, Green Bay & Western railrcjad, 
some thirty-five miles in length, built in 
1891, and has been president of llie com- 
pany from its organization. 

In 1854 Mr. Abrams was married in 
Montgomery county, N. Y., to Miss Hen- 
rietta T. Alton, a native of New York 
State, daughter of James Alton. Her 
mother, at the time of lier marriage with 
Mr. Alton, was the widow of Commodore 
Germain, commander of the " Ironsides," 
during the Revolutionary war. Mr. and 
Mrs. Alton are now deceased. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Abrams have been born three 

children, viz.: Two daughters- — Kate, 
7 



wife of Hamilton Townsend, in the real- 
estate business in Milwaukee, Wis.; and 
Ruth, wife of Dr. C. McVeigh Tobey, of 
St. Paul, Minn.; and one son — Winford, 
at home. Mrs. Ttnvnsend is a member 
of the Daughters of the Ri.'volution in 
Milwaukee, and secretary of the State di- 
x'ision of that order. 

During the Rebellion Mr. Abrams was 
an uncompromising war Democrat, and is 
still as ardent as he was when he cham- 
pioned the rights of the party in the halls 
of the State Assembly and in the Senate, 
in the former of which he served four 
years (from 1864 to 1S67J, and in the lat- 
ter two years (1868-69). Among the nu- 
merous official positions he holds or has 
held may be mentioned — vice-president 
of the Soldiers Orphans Home, at Mad- 
ison, Wis.; vice-president of the Fair and 
Park Association, in which he is a stock- 
holder, and a member of the Horticul- 
tural Society; mayor of Green Bay in 
1882-83, and again in 1885. Socially he 
is a retired meml^er of the I. O. V). F., 
and a member of the Royal Arcanum, of 
which he is supreme representative at the 
present time, and has been Grand Regent 
of the State. One of the most active, 
progressive, public-spirited men, Mr. 
Abrams has done as much to develop the 
almost ine.xhaustible resources of the Fo.x 
River Valley as any other man. 

Mr. Abrams has frequently appeared 
as a public spieaker, especially during po- 
litical campaigns, and his style is of a cliar- 
acter to command the respect and atten- 
tion of his audience. As a jniblic officer 
he has few superiors; as a railroad official 
he has a wide reputation for executive ca- 
pacity and able management of affairs, 
and it would be hard to find a man better 
adapted to organizing capital to promote 
such enterprises as he may become inter- 
ested in, his foresight and sagacity in 
financial matters fitting him especially 
therefor. His power o\er men — and 
hence his influence in social, political, and 
business matters — is of that quiet order 
that makes little outward show, yet is a 



iiS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPUICAL RECORD. 



potent factor in shaping the success of 
the community in which he resides. The 
State of Wisconsin is justly proud of such 
sons, and the record of their lives should 
be perpetuated in history, chronicled in 
steel and in words that endure forever. 



THOM.AS .\TKINSON, a respected 
;uk1 well-known citizen of Preble 
township. Brown county, is a na- 
tive of Ireland, born March lo. 
i<Si6, in County Sligo, son of Henry and 
Kate (Kavenj') Atkinson, the former of 
whom was a farmer and stock raiser. 

Thomas Atkinson received such an 
education as the .schools of the time and 
place afforded, and from boyhood was 
reared to farm life. In Jamiary, 1842, 
he was married to Miss Mary Flatlcy, 
who was born in 1S23, daughter of Dom- 
inick and Mar-^aret (Flynn) Flatlcy, and 
this union was blessed with children as 
follows: Margaret (now Mrs. John Mahon, 
of Preble), Henry (deceased in infancy), 
Kate (who died, unmarried, in Preble 
township) and Maria (who was a school 
teacher, and died in Preble township in 
young womanhood), all four born in 
Ireland; and Louis (at home), Philip (of 
Ironwood, Mich.) and Thomas H. (who 
died young), these three born in America. 
In January, 1848, Mr. and Mrs. Atkinson, 
w ith their family, then consisting of three 
girls, left Ireland, and shortly afterward 
sailed from Liverpool, England, on the 
"West Point," landing at New York in 
March, after a voyage of forty-one days. 
They first located in Cherry \'alley, 
Oneida Co., N. Y. , where Mr. Atkinson 
worked as laborer on a plank-road at that 
time in course of construction, remaining 
there over a year; then, in the fall of i S49. 
proceeding by canal from Rome to Buf- 
falo, X. Y., they took passage on a ves- 
sel bound for Kewaunee, Wis., thence 
coming to Green Bay on the tug "Jim 
Wood." The same fall Mr. Atkinson 
located on a small farm in Holland town- 



ship. Brown county, "all in the woods;" 
but after remaining there about a month 
returned to Green Bay, where he resided 
some years. In 1853 he was appointed 
lighthouse keeper at Long Tail Point, 
Wis., and was stationed there si.x years 
and one month, at the end of which time 
he removed to Fort Howard, where he 
opened out a grocery and saloon business. 
A few months later, in the spring of i860, 
he located on his present farm, and has 
here since continuously resided, having 
now 133.1 acres of prime land, which he 
has accumulated by years of industry and 
toil. On May 4, 1856, Mrs. Mary Atkin- 
son passed from earth, and May 29, 1857, 
Mr. Atkinson wedded, for his second wife, 
Miss Margaret Howard, who was born, 
in 1827, in County Limerick, Ireland, 
daughter of Michael Howard; she died 
January 22, 1877, without issue, and her 
remains now rest in Shantytown ccmeterj'. 
Our subject, as a member of the Dem- 
ocratic party, takes an active interest in 
politics, and has held the offices of super- 
visor and chairman of his township; in 
religious faith he is a member of the Cath- 
olic Church. He is well read, keeping 
himself closely informed on the issues of 
the day, and is highly respected where- 
e\er he is known. 



iOMAS DOUBELL BOWRING 
is a native of Reigate, county of 



T 

I Surrey, England, and was born 
January 13, 1 844, the son of 
Thomas and Susan (Doubell) Bowring. 
The father, with his wife and five chil- 
dren, came to the United States in 1851, 
locating at Lyons, N. Y. From there he 
moved to Detroit, Mich., where for the 
most part he lived until his death, wliich 
took place in 1885; his widow died in the 
same city in 1891. 

Thomas D. Bowring obtained his edu- 
cation partly in England, and partly at 
the common schools of this country. 
While attending school at Lyons, N. Y. , 



COMMEMORATIVE BIO.ORAPHWAL RECORD. 



ily 



he sustained an injury to his U'ft hip 
which crippled him for Hfc. He learned 
the art of photography in Detroit, where 
for about a year he was in business for 
himself; but in 1868 he moved to Green 
Bay to become operator for H. S. Clark. 
In 1869 he took charge of a branch gal- 
lery in De Pere, which, at the close of the 
year, he purchased, and has since been in 
business for himself. Mr. Bowring was 
married in 1874 to Miss Alice Arndt, 
daughter of J. W. Arndt, and there have 
been born to this union five chililren, 
named, respectively: .Alice Irene, 'i'homas 
Keuben, Randall, ^^'illiam Wallace and 
Elcey Arndt. Of these, Ivandall ilied in 
1883: the others are li\-iiit; with their par- 
ents. In local politics Mr. Jjowring is 
independent, supporting the men whom 
he thinks will best perform the duties of 
th(^ \arious offices; but in National affairs 
he has usually been in accord with the 
policy of the Democratic partv. He \\as 
treasurer of De Pere in 1877 78, and is 
the present supervisor from the First 
ward. He is a member of the De Pere 
Temple of Honor, was made a Freemason 
in Detroit in 1863, and is now a member 
of the De Pere Lodge, F. & A. M. 



WILLIAM ARMSTRONG, of De- 
Pere, is now retired on his 
means, although when he first 
reached De Pere he was the pos- 
sessor of the sum of only twenty-five cents. 
His indomitable energy and shrewd busi- 
ness qualifications have alone been the 
secret of his success, as will be found in 
the sequel. He is of Scotch-Irish extrac- 
tion, and was born in the village of 
Hathurst, N. B., January 14. 1821, 
son of William and Sarah (Ellis) .Xrm- 
strong, natives, respectively, of Aberdeen, 
Scotland, and Londonderry, Ireland, the 
former of whom, by vocation a lumber- 
man and ship-owner, took up his resi- 
dence in New Brunswick, where he and 
his wife passed their declining days. 



William .Vrmstrong recei\ed a fair ed- 
ucation at the connuon or district schools 
of Bathurst, and at the age of tvvent\-one 
years began work at lumbering at Paubo, 
in the district of Gaspe. Being ver}- apt 
and well educated, at the end of a year's 
life in the woods he was made superin- 
tendent of a gang-mill employing 300 
men, nati\es of Canada, of whom two 
only could write their names, and over 
this large number of men he held con- 
trol three years. In 1849, smitten with 
the gold fever, he started for Califor- 
nia, going by team to St. John, N. B. , 
thence by boat to ISoston, Mass. ; but the 
sea-going vessel had taken its departure 
before he reached that port. This cir- 
cumstance necessitated a change of plans, 
on the part of Mr. Armstrong, and, after 
working three months in a ship-xard in 
Boston, he found his wa\' to Albany, X. 
"\'. , where for three months he w.is em- 
ployed in canal-boat l)uildinf;. Imoiii Al- 
bany he went to Buffalo, N. ^'., by canal, 
thence by steamer, via the lake, tn She- 
boygan. Wis., and finally reached I )e- 
Pere, his jiresent residence, about Mav 
30, 1850, as before stated, with cmly a 
few cents in his pocket, and om.' sint of 
working clothes, as his trunks were de- 
layed and did not arri\e until two nr three 
weeks afterward. He fnund einplo}'- 
nient in a lumber-mill as head sawyer, 
and, after working three or four da\s the 
proprietor was heard to remark that there 
must be something wrong about that man, 
for, to judge by his good writing and fig- 
ures, he was evidently well educated and 
superior to his present (.'mploxMnent ; so 
he was set down as a rogue in hiding, an 
impression which did not last long, how- 
ever, although there was perhaps suffi- 
cient cause for it, as he had worked in the 
dirt and wet for two or three weeks with- 
out change of clothes, making him look 
very rough, a condition which was vvu\- 
edied on the arri\'al of his trunks. .After 
working a }'ear as head sawyer in the 
lumber-mill he subse(]uently ri'Uted the 
same, in partnership with James Morgan, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



Mr. Armstrong superintending thr^t inn- 
out of the logs and the general work of 
the gang in the forest. Having now ac- 
cumulated some money, our subject next 
purchased a tax-title to some heavily tim- 
bered pine land east of De Pere, which 
proved as prolific as any to be found in 
the State of Wisconsin; still, with his 
keen business eye, he saw that the price of 
lumber was going down, and for several 
years filled positions as superintendent 
for various lumber companies on salarj', 
until i860, from which time until 1862, 
the times being troublous, he wisely ab- 
stained from venturing his capital in busi- 
ness. In the latter year, however, he ac- 
cepted an appointment as deputy United 
States marshal for the northern (iistrict of 
Wisconsin, filled the quota of enlisted 
men, and then proceeded to make the 
draft for extra men over and above the 
volunteer contingent. Inthisdraft, which 
first occurred at Green Bay for the town of 
Washington Island, Door county, a singu- 
lar incident occurred: A blind man was 
selected to do the drawing, and Mr. Arm- 
strong gave the wheel containing the 
names of the men to be drawn, three 
turns; a somewhat prominent fisherman, 
standing near, demanded another turn of 
the wheel, until he said enough, and, on 
this being done, the first name drawn was 
that of Robert Nolan, the fisherman who 
had demanded a new turn of the wheel. 
For two years Mr. Armstrong filled the 
office of provost marshal, and in 1864 
started for the gold fields of Montana, 
where he secured a placer claim on Hen- 
derson Gulch, and wrought out $12,000 
in one season. He also bought an inter- 
est in a ranch on Burnt Fork, a stream 
that emptied into Bitter Root valley, from 
which he produced 250 barrels of flour, 
which was sold at forty dollars per barrel; 
1.500 bushels of potatoes, sold at seven 
dollars and fifty cents per bushel; 1,200 
bushels of oats, sold at five dollars per 
bushel, all spot gold; onions sold at 
twenty-five cents per pound, rutabagas 
at fifteen cents per pound, and other 



I'loducts in proportion. A portion of his 
produce was sent to the mines market, 
140 miles away, and the hauling was done 
b)- four six-yoke oxen-teams, and two 
four-horse teams, the rate of freight being 
four cents per pound. Mr. Armstrong 
also purchased beef cattle in large quan- 
tities, which he slaughtered and solil for 
food to the miners; and thus life was 
passed at the mining districts, to the great 
profit of Mr. Armstrong, his gain for his 
residence of two years on the ranch being 
ten thousand dollars, or more. He was 
always a favorite with the miners, among 
whom he was familiarly known by the 
sobriquet of " Uncle Billy," and enjoyed 
a monopoly of the trade of the camp, 
never hesitating to run out a line of credit 
to those who had not the ready means for 
cash payment. During the winter season 
he lumbered a little, whipsawed lumber 
at two hundred dollars per thousand feet 
for spruce, and also manufactured shingles 
at an immense profit. He built the 
first shingle-roofed house in Bitter Root 
valley, and at the end of the four years 
sold out the balance of his mining claim 
for one thousand dollars, and went to 
Fort Benton, thence by steamer to Omaha, 
and from that point came to De Pere. 
Here he was engaged two years at the 
furnace business; next was superintendent 
for the Fox River Iron Company for 
about ten Vears, continuing to put money 
in his purse and filling the position to the 
entire satisfaction of his employers. In 
1880 he patented a stump-puller, in the 
manufacture of which he was engaged 
eight years at De Pere. Of this valuable 
implement he sold upwards of three 
thousand, and, in addition, disposed of 
the right to manufacture in a large extent 
of territory. In 1889 he was appointed, 
by President Harrison, postmaster at De- 
Pere; but, at the expiration of the Presi- 
dential term, resigned, for political reasons, 
although no fault had been foimd by the 
general public with his performance of 
the duties of the oflirc. It will readily be 
perceived that Mr. Armstrong is a Repub- 



COMMKMOllA TlVh: II IOC, UAI'II iCAL IIKCORD. 



131 



lican ill politics, aiiil as suili lias bcrii 
elected three terms as akleniiaii, in which 
caj.iHcity lie is now serviiii;'. h'oi- one 
term, also, he served as president ol ICast 
Ue Pere vilhi^', :inil in all public oi'lices 
he has discharm-d his duties with credit to 
himself and to the ])ul)lie. In relif^ioii he 
is a birthrij^ht member of the Presbyterian 
Church, and in i .S74 was also :ulnntte(l, 
by profession of faith, as a nu-ndicr of the 
church at De Pere, of which liod\- he is 
now an elder, and has always li\ed up to 
its teachinj;s. 

(3n March 25. 1S51, Mr. Armstrong; 
was hap|)il\- married to Miss Rebecca 
Rogers, a nati\i'of No\a Scotia, and a 
daughti>r of I)a\id and Hannah (Iladley), 
Rogers, who ended their life pilgrimage in 
Mr. Armstrong's land of birth. 'l"o the 
union of Mi. and Mrs. Armstrong ha\e 
been born I wo children, \i/. : Alexanih'r, 
born January 4, 1S5J, married to Mary 
Hannah, and now residing in Chicago, 
111., and William S. , born January 2, 
1863, and now a resident of Cirei-n Bay, 
Wis. William Armstrong is, strictly 
speaking, a self-made man, ha\ing in- 
hcrit(>d nothing from his lather, \\iio was 
reduced from most eN<'cllent circumstances 
by the failure of Joseph C. Cunard, ship- 
builder and shi]i-owner. But Mr. Arm- 
strong has e\'er been a moral man, has 
been enterprising and industrious, and is 
now retired with a i'omfortal)le com- 
petence. 



CHAl'NCY N. ALDKICH, one of 
the earliest and best-known resi- 
lients of Preble township. Brown 
county, is a native of Cortland 
county, N. Y., born in tlu' town of Preble, 
May I I, 1825. 

His father, [onallian Aldrich, who was 
a farmer, first saw the light in \'ermont, 
where he married .Amelia Cains, and to 
this union were born children as follows: 
Jonathan, who died al)out 1S90, at Am- 
herst, Portage Co., Wis.; Penelope, who 



married Calel) Blancliard. ami dieil in 
I A'wis County, N. \ . ; ( )li\e, w ho w as fust 
maiMr<l to Horatio llow.iid. ,iiid later to 
William H. ISriice (slu' died mi the farm 
of our subject 1; .\melia, who niairieil 
I'raiicis Cilbcrt, and dieil at (iieiui l!ay; 
Delight, who was married to Ko\ al 
]acobs, and died m Michigan; \ alciit iiie, 
who died m C oopi/i slow n, Manitowoc 
Co, , Wis. ; Amasa ( 1. , w ho i\\rK\ m I'l cble. 
Cortland Co., N. Y. ; Asa 11., who <lied 
in Brown coimt\-, Wis.; Samuel M., who 
<lie<l on the farm of his brother, ('. N. ; 
(laiiis 1)., who died in Cireeii l>ay; 
( haimcy N., specialK mentioned liirther 
on; and Ke.wille K., (U^ceased in inlancy. 
The father of this family was a lik'-long 
agrii lilt ui'ist, and made his home in Ni'vv 
\dik State for many j'ears, dying .Xii^ust 
13, 18.18, in the town of Scott. Cortland 
eoiml\'; he was bin led in I'rcblc. same 
county. His wife, who snr\i\i<l him 
niaiu' \ears, passed awa\' |nne 1, 1 871, 
in Prelije township, lirown t"o, , Wis., at 
the home of lier son Chauucy N., andher 
remains now rest in a pri\'ate cemetery 
on his farm, wlu're she w.is laid at lu'r 
own recpiest. She was :i member ol the 
Methodist Chunh. Jonathan .\ldrich 
was a Democrat of the " [acksonian 
stri]ie,"and a \cr)' stanch adherent ol the 
party. 

Chaimcy X. Aldrich is the sole sur\i- 
Ncir of the iannl)' ol twelve (diildren born 
to Jonathan and Amelia ((iains) Aldric:li. 
He received such an education as the 
common scliools of his time aflonled. and 
was reared a farmer l)oy, residing at honu; 
up to the time of his father's death. The 
latter had re(]ueste<l him to go west to 
Pirown countw \\ is. , and make his home 
with his brothei'-in-law, William W. 
I'lruce, until he reached his majority, and 
after attending school one year longer he 
left his native place for the " ['"ar West," 
as W'isconsin was then considered. He 
madi: the journey by wagon to Syracuse, 
bv canal to lUiffalo, and thence by lake 
on the boat "Plinois," Cajit. Blake (her 
first tri])), to Mackinaw, where he waited 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



for a boat to Green Bay. He took pas- 
sage on the "Gov. Marcy, " and arrived 
at his destination October 24, 1839. His 
brother-in-law, Mr. Hrucc (above men- 
tioned), was a genera! merchant at Green 
Bay, and young .-Mdrich resided with him 
for seven years, engaged at various kinds 
of labor, driving team, working on the 
farm, and in fact doing anything that 
presented itself. 

At the age of twenty-two Mr. Aid- 
rich was united in marriage, at Green 
Bay, with Miss .\manda Porter, who was 
born at Coeymans, N. Y. , daughter of 
John Porter. Mr. Aldrich, in the mean- 
time, had saved a few dollars, and shortly 
after his marriage located on the farm 
where he has ever since resided, and 
which then belonged to his brother-in- 
law, Mr. Bruce. At the time our sub- 
ject came here there was not a building 
between the farm and Green Bay, and 
the roads had to be cut out as he went 
along The old house which he first oc- 
cupied is still standing. Here he has 
since made his home, with the exception 
of one year, when he lived in Stephens- 
ville. Outagamie county. Mr. Aldrich 
has been a farmer and stockman, and he 
has seen his land converted from its 
primitive condition, the forests sup- 
planted by fertile fields, all representing 
many years of harfl, unremitting toil. 
When he first located here wild animals 
abounded, deer and wolves being especi- 
ally numerous. His farm consists of 160 
acres of good laud. 

To Mr. and Mrs Aldricii have been 
born nine children, a brief record of them 
being as follows: Arthur X. is a resident 
of Larimer county, Colo. ; Amelia is the 
wife of John Cojipens, tf Humboldt town- 
ship: Olive is married to Henry Rock- 
well, of Preble township; Lavina married 
Charles Sidel. and died in Wausau.Wis. , 
leaving four children; Madison is a resi- 
dent of Preble township; Chauncy N. 
died when three months old; William is 
livim; at home; Delight is the wife of 
Fred I^ockwell. of Preble township; 



Porter lives at home. Politically a Demo- 
crat, .Mr. Aldrich has been one of the 
stanch supporters of the party in his 
township, and has been called on to 
serve in many positions of trust, such as 
chairman of the board, in which capacity 
he has served for twenty years, at various 
times, at one time holding the office when 
his jurisdiction e.xtended over what is now 
six townships. He has also served two 
years as township treasurer, and has been 
justice of the peace, filling every position 
with credit to himself and satisfaction to 
his constituency. In religious connection 
Mrs. Aldrich is a member of the Baptist 
Church. 



FKblD. P. GROSS, a well-known 
citizen of Fort Howard. Brown 
county, was born in 1863, in Mor- 
rison township. Brown Co., 
Wis., and was educated in the schools of 
the locality. His parents, John G. and 
Margaret (Moschel) Gross, were born in 
(iermany, near the "wild and winding 
Rhine," the father coming to this vicinity 
when a voung man, about 1852, and set- 
tling on a farm in the woods. F'or some 
years subsequent to 1 87 1 he was pro- 
prietor of a sawmill, and he and his wife 
are now residents of Morrison township, 
Brown county. Their children are: Car- 
oline, wife of Frank Falk, of Seymour, 
Wis. ; Louisa, wife of Joseph Leonard, of 
Medford, Wis. ; August, married and re- 
siding in Morrison township, where he 
operates a sawmill; John, married and 
resitling in Fort Howard, engaged in the 
saloon business; Fred. P, , the subject of 
this article; Maggie. wife of Daniel 
Schunk. of Morrison township; Sophia, 
wife of \^'illiam Peters, of Bulli(ni. Wis. ; 
Christina, wife of Charlcj' Furslenburg. 
also of Bullion, and Godfrey, residing 
in Fort Howard. 

Our subject resided on the home farm 
and was engaged in milling pursuits until 
April. 1S89, when he located at I'ort 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGHAPmCAL RECORD. 



[33 



Howard, embarking the following year in 
the saloon business on Broadway. He is 
a Democrat in politics, and in the spring 
of 1894 was elected su]iervisor of the 
Third ward, Fort Howard, his opponent 
being A. L. Gra}'. In 1890 he was mar- 
ried, in Morrison townshi)),to Miss Minnie 
Lapnow, a native of that township, 
daughter of Fred Lapnow, and they have 
two children: Laura and Minnie. Mr. 
Gross, with his wife, belongs to the Lu- 
theran Church, and he is a member of the 
F. & A. M. , Despres Lodge, No. 85, of the 
American Legicm of Honor, and of the 
Turnverein. 



JOHN COOK, fashionable merchant 
tailor, and proprietor of the ojiera 
house at De Fere, Brown county, is 
a native of that city, born March 2 I, 
1S56, a son of John and Catherme 
(Uwyerj Cook. 

The father of our subject was a na- 
tive of Germany, a tailor bv trade, and 
came to the United States with his par- 
ents, who settled at Tiffui, Ohio, in 1832. 
In 1848 he came tcj De Fere, and in 1849 
established a merchant-tailoring establish- 
ment. In 1858 he purchased a farm of 
fifty-eight acres one-half mile south of 
East De Fere, antl upon it uK.ixed his 
famil)', but retained his business in the 
village until his death. He was a Demo- 
crat in politics, served as chairman of 
the board of supervisors some eight or 
nine years, was a member of the Catholic 
Church, and was regarded as a man of 
the strictest integrity. ' His wife, Mrs. 
Catherine (Divyer) Cook, was born near 
Dublin, Ireland, and came to the United 
States with her brothers and sisters, set- 
tling in the northcu-n part of Illinois, in 
Lake county, in which State she became 
acquainted with Mr. Cook. Her death 
took place in i860, and her remains lie 
interred beside those of her husband in 
the Catholic cemetery, just south of 
Green Bav and cast of Shantvtown. Mr. 



and Mrs. Cook had born to them a family 
of three children, viz.: Mary, who mar- 
ried Albert Martens, of De Fere; Isadore 
William, who went to ('alifornia twenty 
years ago. and |ohn, the subject of this 
sketch. The last named was educated 
in the De Fere schools, and was taught 
his trade by his father. In the f:dl of 
1882 he began merchant tailoring on his 
own account, and has since been at the 
head of the trade in De Fere. On Ai)ril 
10, 1 888, he opened his opera house to 
the public, and has found it to be a profit- 
able iuN'estment; the building is a frame 
structure, with an auditorium 60 x 114 
feet, antl has a seating cajiacity for si.\ 
hundred persons, but. on e.xtraortlinary 
occasions, from nine hundred to one 
thousand can be crowded within its walls. 
In politics Mr. Cook is Democratic, 
in I S90 was elected alderman from the 
First ward of De Fere, and proved him- 
self so efficient that he was re-elected in 
1891 ; in religious faith he is a member of 
the Catholic Church. In the fall of 1888 
he was married to Catherine Rooncy, who 
was liorn in Canada, andonechild, Cyrill, 
has blessed this imion. Mr. Cook has 
led a life of integrity and industry, and is 
recognized as one of the solid men of 
De Fere. 



Ji;. L.\ST, general freight and pas- 
senger agent at Green Bay for the 
Green Bay, Winona ev St. Faul, the 
Kewaunee and Green ISay tS; Western 
Railroad Companies, is one of the most 
popular, c(.)urteous and obliging railroad 
officials to be found in the State. 

Mr. Last was born at Green I5ay, in 
1848, a son of |ohn and Sarah (Green) 
Last, the father a native of near London, 
England, the mother of New Yiu-k. Some 
time in the "thirties" John Last immi- 
grated to America, and coming to Wis- 
consin settled in Green Bay. He <licd in 
1884; his widow is still a ri'-^idcnt of 
Green I5a\'. After receiving a libei'al ed- 



'I 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ucation at the scliools of his nati\e town, 
our subject commenced active business 
life in the service of the American Ex- 
press Company as messenger between 
Green Bay and Oshkosli, Wis. This po- 
sition he held for about one year (1866), 
and then accepted a engagement as clerk 
for the Chicago & Northwestern Railway 
Company at Fort Howard, remaining there 
three years, at the end of which time he 
embarked in mercantile business in Green 
Bay. At the close of six years, his in- 
clinations tending more toward railroad 
work, he entered, as clerk, the general 
freight offices of the Green Bay, Winona 
& St. Paul railroad. In the fall of 1882 
he went to Chicago as general agent 
for the Milwaukee & Northern railroad, 
being located there until the spring of 
1883. We next find our subject in Den- 
ver, Colo., where he was in the service 
of the Claim Department of the Union 
Pacific railroad till 1887, in which }ear he 
returned to Green Bay. Here he was lo- 
cal agent for the United States Express 
Company some two jears, when (1889) 
he was appointed to his present position, 
to which, by his wide experience and gen- 
eral qualifications, he is admirably 
adapted. 



FllKDIXAXD GOFFART, justice 
of the peace, and one of the most 
extensi\e farmers of De Pere 
township, Brown count}', was 
born November 18, 1836, in Belgium, son 
of Peter J. Goffart. The latter was a 
gardener and store-keeper, and also fol- 
lowed the business of dyer, besides 
various other occupations. He had eight 
children — five sons and three daughters — 
of whom Ferdinand is tiie second child 
and eldest son 

Our subject first attended the village 
schools, and then for two years went to a 
graderl school, receiving a very fair educa- 
tion, all in French. It was the intention 
of his parents to educate him for profes- 



sional life, but, his father dying when he 
was sixteen years old, he was obliged to 
leave school and assist in the support of 
the family. Concluding he could better 
his condition by coming to the United 
States, he bade farewell to his home and 
friends, and in the spring of 1857 sailed 
from Antwerp on the "John Elliot," 
landing at New York after a voyage of 
fifty-six days. His destination was Green 
Bay, W^is. , and thither he proceeded from 
New York by rail and water, arriving 
August 8. The first work he did in the 
New World was on a piece of land in the 
town of Scott, Brown Co., W^is. , which 
he abandoned after some time, and hard 
work, and later he went to Bay Settle- 
ment; proceeding to Red River township, 
Kewaunee county, he jirospected for land; 
but, not being satisfied, he returned to 
Green Bay. In the following spring 
(1858) he came to De Pere township. 
Brown county, and here purchased about 
one hundred acres of land, paying there- 
for eleven hundred dollars. On this 
tract he erected a round-log house. 14 x 16, 
which was the first building on the place, 
and there was only one other house be- 
tween it and De Pere. He immediately 
set to work to clear up the land, which 
was densely covered with timber, princi- 
pally beech and maple, but he also found 
some pine, black birch, elm and ash 
trees; on one part of the land was a heavy 
growth of "sugar bush." After much 
hard work he succeeded in clearing space 
enough to put in a crop, the first being 
rye, and as the years passed the entire 
tract gradually became a well-culti\ated 
farm. In June, 1858, Mr. Goffart's wid- 
owed mother had come hither, bringing 
the remainder of the familv, but the 
greater part of the responsibility rested on 
Ferdinand. She died in Rockland town- 
ship. Brown countv, in 188S, and was 
buried in De Pere cemetery. 

On March 9, 1861. Ferdinand Goffart 
was united in marriage in Fremont coun- 
ty, Iowa, with Miss ]nlia E. I'rederick- 
son, who was born in Burlington. Racine 



COMMEMORATIVK DIOaHAPIIICA L UECOUD. 



125 



Co., Wis., and to this union were born 
twelve children, eit;ht of whom are now 
living, \v/.. : Sylvester, a resident of the 
State of Washingjton; Mary C, now Mrs. 
Oscar Barknian, of St. Paul, Minn. ; 
Adaline, a Sister in the convent at De- 
troit; Noah, residing;' in the State of 
Washington; Isabella, Sister in the con- 
vent at Chicago, 111. ; Sedonia, at home; 
and Emily and Julia, both of Detroit, 
Mich. Those deceased are Christiana, 
Charlotte S., Mary S. and Francis B. 
The mother of these died in 1882, and 
was buried in De Pere cemetery. On 
September 24, 1882, Mr. Goffart was 
married in De Pere, for his second wife, 
to Pelagie Bell, who was born December 
31, 1 85 I, in Belgium, daughter of Remy 
Bell, and came to the United States in 
1865. To this marriage were born chil- 
dren as follows: Victor B. (deceased), 
Rachel, Isaac, Rebecca, Moses, Zipporah 
(deceased), and Aaron. Immediately after 
his marriage to Julia Frederickson, Mr. 
Goffart went to South Dakota and took 
up a homestead at Elk Point, on the Mis- 
souri river, where he remained for nearly 
two years. He then removed to Iowa 
City, Iowa, and while there enlisted, on 
August 9, 1862, in Company G, Twenty- 
second Iowa V. I., for three years. He 
served to the close of the war, and was 
discharged in July, 1865, in Savannah, 
Ga. , being mustered out at Davenport, 
Iowa, and during his entire serxice he 
was never on the sick list, and was never 
wounded. Upon his return home from 
the army he \\'ent back to Dakota, and 
thence, after a residence of two years 
more, removed to Detroit, Mich., and for 
one summer acted as superintendent of a 
farm near that city. Then, in 1868, he 
came to his present farm in De Pere 
township. Brown Co., Wis., which at 
that time was in a totally unimproved 
condition, and here he has ever since 
made his home. He now owns 225 acres 
of excellent land, and is one of the most 
extensive agriculturists of his section. He 
has labored much and endured many 



hardships in the clearing and subduing of 
his land, and during his residence here he 
has seen the entire surrounding country 
transformed from a wilderness into fertile 
farms. He and his estimable wife are 
now about to live a retire<l life. During 
his service in the Civil war Mr. Goffart saw 
a great deal of the South; he is a well-read 
man and an observer, and is possessed 
of no small stock of general information. 
During the war he was a Republican, but 
he has since been a member of the Demo- 
cratic party, and is a strong supporter of 
its principles, always voting that ticket 
in State and National elections, but in 
township and county affairs he exercises 
his franchise according to the dictates of 
his own conscience. He has been elected 
to various offices in his township, has 
been member of the school board, clerk 
of same, and is at present serving as jus- 
tice of the peace, an office he has held 
with eminent satisfaction to all for the 
past fifteen years. He and his wife are 
members of the Catholic Church. 



ALEX. CLEEREMANS, alderman 
fn.iiri the Second ward, P'ort 
Howard, is now serving his first 
term in that capacity. He is also 
engaged in gardening, and for the past 
nine years has been janitor of the Second 
ward schoolhouse. He took the State 
census for a certain district in 1885, and 
has gathered statistics for the school cen- 
sus for eight years in succession. 

Mr. Cleeremans, who is a son of 
Frank and Josie (DeLangi Cleeremans, 
was born in 1850 in the vilhige of \\'eert 
St. Georges, Belgium, anil came with his 
parents to the vicinity of (uecn Bay in 
1867, the family settling on a farm in the 
forest of Scott township. The fatlier 



died in 1876, the mother in 1S71. 



Ak 



is one of the family of live sons, the other 
four being: Charley, a gardener of Fort 
Howard; John, working at the carpenter's 
trade in the same citv; P'rank, a farmer 



126 



COMMKMdHATlVE DIOGRAPIHCAL liECOUD. 



in Scott township; and Henry, a sawyer 
or setter in the mills at Oconto. Alex, 
received his education in Belgium, in 
both the Belgian and French languages. 
He aided his father in clearing and im- 
proving the Scott township farm, and 
after coming to Fort Howard, in 1871, 
worked in the McDonald mills, and for 
the government in the stone cjuarry. In 
1877 he went to Oregon, thence two 
months later to Nevada, where he worked 
in the mountains, getting out mining 
timber for McKay & Fair. He came 
home in the latter part of the same year, 
by wa)- of California and Oregon; from 
1880 till 1886 was tie inspector for the 
Chicago & Northwestern railroad, and 
now owns a fine garden tract of four 
acres within the cit\' limits. He was 
married, in 1 874, in Duck Creek, town 
of Howard, to Miss Sophia Simoens, who 
was born in Cleveland, Ohio, daughter of 
F'rank and Theresa (Hooters) Simoens, 
natives of Belgium, who sattled near Fort 
Howard in 1857, on a farm in Howard 
township. Her father now resides in Fort 
Howard; her mother died January i, 
1886. Of their eight children three are 
living: Nettie, wife of Bernard Vaner- 
beck; Mrs. Cleeremans; and Henry, of 
Fort Howard. The children of Mr. and 
Mrs. Cleeremans are: Celia, Joseph, 
Rosa, Angeline, Anna, Lucy. Willie and 
Laura. Mr. Cleeremans is a Democrat 
in ]Kjlitics, and was elected several times 
to Congressional and Senatorial conven- 
tions. He is a member of St. Joseph's 
Society of Green Bay, and, with his wife, 
belongs to St. Patrick's Catholic Church. 



PLTER HFKBICR, an energetic 
young farmer of Howard town- 
ship. Brown county, was born in 
New York, Mav 6, 1855. a son of 
John and I'lizabeth ,'Ftich< Herber. 

John Herber was born in Kotherburg, ; 
Germany, .April 14, 1816. left his home | 
at the age of thirteen years, and was em- 



ployed as a laborer through the country. 
On November 15, 1854, he married, and 
the same year startc(i for the United 
States via Liverpool, the \oyagc from 
that port to New York occui>yitig si.x 
weeks. .After working in a stone quarry 
in New York until 1856, he came to 
Wisconsin, and first settled in Eaton tosvn- 
ship. Brown count}', where he resided 
twelve years, cleared up a farm, for two 
years rented one, and then bought his 
present place of fifty-seven acres in How- 
ard township. This tract was partly im- 
proved, and for seven years he made his 
home in the log house then on the prem- 
ises, afterward moving into his present 
handsome and convenient dwelling. Mrs. 
Elizabeth Herber was born in Bavaria, 
Germany, January 23, 1824, but lost her 
parents when she was a little girl. 

Peter Herber is an only child, and has 
always lived under the parental roof. He 
was reared to the useful j^ursuit of farm- 
ing, and on October 25, 1881. married 
Miss Karoline Breuninger. a native of 
Green Bay, born October 2. 1857, and a 
daughter of Karl and Sophia (Huenger) 
Brueninger, the former of whom was born 
at Shrotsburg. W'urtemburg, Germany, No- 
vember 23, 18 1 8, and in 1 840 came to 
the United States, and for a year lived in 
the State of Delaware; he next went to 
Ohio, and four months later came to 
Wisconsin and settled in Green Bay, 
where his death occurred March 3. 1866. 
He was a son of John Breuninger, an old 
school-teacher, who was born in Kocher- 
stertien. and there died: his wife, Sophia 
C. Phaff. was born February 17. i^oo. 
in Hermersberg Castle, and her death 
took place October 9. 1834, at the place 
where her husband's death occurred. 
Karl Breuninger. as mav well be sup- 
posed, was a hiirhly-ediicated man, and 
wascniplovcd in clerical work. His wife, 
Sophia Huenger. w-as born in Saxony, 
and is now a resident of Preble township, 
Brow-n county. 

To the union of Peter and Karoline 
Hcrbor have been born three children, 



CO.VMKMDIIA Tl \'E BloaUAPHICAL RECORD. 



viz.: Henry J., October 4, iSS:?; Peter 
K., February 15, 1SS4; and Karl 1'., 
October 4, 1886. After hi'- niarriaf;e 
Mr. Herber settled dnwii on the old 
homestead, and has increased his posses- 
sions to eif,dity acres, v\'hich he (U'Notes to 
general farming'. ]^>oth father and son 
have been hard-\vorkinf,^ industrious men 
and worthy citizens, and to illustrate in a 
small way the hardships of pioneer life it 
may be mentioned that the elder Mr. 
Herber, on hrst settling, was obliged to 
pawn his coat in order to obtain ati a.\e 
wherewith to cho]) wood, so scarce was 
money in that day. In politics, both 
father and son are Republicans, the 
father luu'ing cast liis first Presidential 
vote for Abraham Lincoln, ami tht' son 
for Rutherford B. Ha\es. 



JOHN CONNELLY, inoprietor of 
the "Pine ("iro\'e Hotel," and a suc- 
cessful, self-made man, of IJe Pere 
township, ISrown county, is de- 
scended from Scotch-Irish ancestry. He 
was born March J5, 1840, in 'hiehi-c. 
Lower C'anada (now known as the Prov- 
ince of Ouebec), a son of Michael Con- 
nelly, who was a natixe of county Lim- 
erick, Ireland, 

\Mien a voung man Michael Coniielh 
immigrated to Canatia, wherc> he married 
Mary Hamilton, a native of County Don- 
egal, Ireland, and to their union were 
born fifteen children --four sons antl 
eleven daughters — seven of whom are yet 
living. Michael, who was a farmer in 
Quebec, in the fall of 1S65 came with his 
family to De Pere, lirown Co., Wis., later 
moving to Bay Settlement, same county, 
and here for some time worked in a saw- 
mill. He then remo\ed to Belle\iie town- 
shi]\ where he had purchased a partly- 
improved farm of 140 acres, and there 
made his home for a number of vears, 
finally returning to l)e Pere township, 
\vhere he and his wife are now ])assing 
• their declining years. Two of the daugh- 



ters. Mary Jane and Jennie, also came to 
I)e Pere in 1865. Mr. Connolly is a 
Democrat in jiolitics, but he takes no ac- 
ti\e interest in party affairs. 

lohii Comii'lly, the subject jiroper of 
these lines, li\ed with his parents until he 
reachi'd the age of se\enteen, at which 
time he commenced to \\'ork in the lum- 
ber regions. Up to that jteriod he had 
recei\ed no schooling wliatever, but he 
then attended a night school, where he 
received a fair common-school education, 
the instruction being in the P'rench lan- 
guagi', which he learned to read and write. 
He was two years in W'ilkinsoiiville, 
Mass., near Worcester, working in cotton 
fact<iries and mills; from there went to 
l,ower Canada and bought a farm of ninety 
acres, x\hich he sold, and then located in 
Belleville, Ujijier Canada (Ontario), where 
he again attended night school. On July 
17, 1865, Mr. Connelly was married in 
Belleville to Miss Mary McDermott, a 
native of Canada, daughter of Michael 
McDermott. At this time (jur subject had 
about one thousand dollars, every cent of 
which h(^ had saved from his own earn- 
ings. In Octoln-r, i8()5, he returnetl to 
De Pere, Wis., and worked f(M' (nie year 

, for Reed in a sawmill, thence going to 
Bay Settlement, in Scott township, I>rown 
comity, where he was employed for se\'en 
years as foreman and sujierintendeiit of a 
sawmill, and as foreman in the \\-oods. 
About 1867 he iiurchased 160 acres of 
land in Bellevue township. Brown county, 
and the family resided there off ,-uid on, 
never making a permanent home thi-re, 
however, until 1888, as Mr. Connelly's 
work took him to various places. I"or 
many years he was in theemployof Anton 
Clans and other lumbermen, and for four 
years resided at Angelica, Wis., where he 
was su]ierintendent of a sawmill. In 1871 

1 Mr. and Mrs. (\;nnelly, while residing in 
the town of Scott, lost ever\thiiig in the 

I great lire that broke out there on the 
night of October 7, and which drstroyed 



the sawmill, 
ino' bnildint; 



as well as rll th 
;, includin 



md- 



the boarding 



I2S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGllAI'lIlCAL RECORD. 



house, besides the cattle, horses, etc. 
Mrs. Connelly and her children escaped 
from the boardinj; house with nothini; but 
their night clothes, and, taking to the 
woods for their lives, succeeded, after a 
desperate fight with fire and smoke, in 
reaching a clearing, where they were in 
comparative safety; but the infant, Johnnie, 
whom the mother carried in her arms, was 
so injured by the heat that it died a few 
months afterward. Mrs. Connelly, as 
soon as possible, went to the home of her 
parents in Hellcviile, Canada, there to re- 
main till her husband should have a new 
home prepared, and in the meantime he 
and his crew were fighting the flames, 
which continued in great fury for three 
weeks. Prior to the fire Mr. Connelly 
had been working as engineer for a saw- 
mill in Brussels township, Door county; 
but as there was considerable danger of 
fire, of which there was a good deal 
throughout the woods at that time, he 
left there for Scott township, and the 
very night of the breaking out of the fire 
in the latter locality a conflagration burst 
out in Brussels township, which destroyed 
everything for miles around, no less than 
sixty people being burned to death, in- 
cluding the man Mr. Connelly had en- 
gaged to take his place; and our subject, 
on visiting the spot shortly afterward, saw 
sixteen charred bodies of his old comrades 
lying close together. 

After the fire in Scott township, Mr. 
Connelly put up a mill for Anton Claus 
on the spot where the burned mill stood, 
and this he superintended some ten 
months. His wife and children having 
returned from Canada by this time, he, in 
1888, moved with them to his farm; but 
after two years he removed to Little River 
in order to superintend the erection of a 
mill for Marshall & Holmes. After this 
he again returned to the farm, and re- 
mained there until 1891, in which year he 
ramc tw Pine Grove, where he now con- 
ducts the "Pine Ciro\e Hotel," of which 
he is pro|)rietor. He is the owner of 227 
acres of land, all representing years of 



hard work and thrift. His success has 
been the direct result of his own individual 
energy and good business management, 
coupled with industry and a strong deter- 
mination to win. His long and varied 
experience in the lumber business made 
him one of the most competent managers 
in that line, and at different times he had 
as many as one hundred men under his 
direction. 

Mr. Connelly has taken an active and 
leading interest in the welfare of his town- 
ship and county, and is recognized as a 
progressive, loyal citizen. He has served 
his community in various capacities, hav- 
ing been chairman and supervisor of Belle- 
vue townshii) for eight years, and for 
twelve years he was a member of the 
school board, acting as director and treas- 
urer. In his ])olitical affiliations Mr. 
Connelly was a Republican until 1884, 
since when he has been non-partisan, 
voting for the best man, regardless of 
party lines. He is not an advocate of 
free trade, but believes in tariff reduction. 
In religious connection he antl his wife are 
members of St. Francis Catholic Church, 
De Pere. They had children, as follows: 
Li/zie, wife of Henry Nachtwey, a mer- 
chant of Pine Grove; Rosa, Mrs. Frank 
Novakafsky, of Green Bay; John, de- 
ceased in infancy; and John, Edward and 
Arthur, at home. 



FK.\NK HllVRMAN. Among the 
early pioneer families of Preble 
township. Brown county, none 
arc better known than the Hcjt- 
man family, the first of whom to come to 
Wisconsin was John Heyrman fgrand- 
father of Frank Heyrman), who. about 
the year 1856, came to the United States 
from Belgium, where he was a well-to-do 
farmer. 

John Heyrman married in his native 
country, and there three sons were, born 
to him: Charles L. . who is mentioned 
farther on; J'>hn B., editor of a news- 



COMMKilOllA TIVK B lOUUAPIIICAL IIKCORD. 



paper at De Pere; and Joseph, now de- 
ceased, who was a ci\il engineer at Green 
Bay. The mother of these died on the 
ocean, wiiile the family were <•// roii/c for 
America, and was buried at sea. From 
the port of landing the father and sons 
came by rail to Chicag(.i. 111., thence by 
water to Green Bay, Wis., where they 
arrived May 4, 1856. Here they niacfe 
but a short stay while deciding on a place 
to locate, and then made a settlement in 
Preble tcnvnship, where Mr. Heyrman, 
who was a man of considerable means, 
purchased a farm of 160 acres, the same 
his grandson Frank Heyrman now re- 
sides on. At that time not a tree had 
been felled, nor a habitation of an}' kind 
erected by white men; but they soon 
had l)uilt a log cabin, in which they re- 
sided until i.SC)S, when it was supplanted 
by a more substantial residence, which 
still stands. The hind was ilensely 
covered with oak, pine, hemlock and 
maple trees, and, in the low places, ash 
trees, and wild animals were still numer- 
ous and troublesome. But the forests 
soon gave way before the axe of the pio- 
neer, and the cleared land not only af- 
forded support for the family, but yielded 
a comfortable income as well. On this 
farm John Heyrman passed the remainder 
of his life, dying August 25, 1874, a 
member of the Catholic Church, and he 
was buried in the Finger Church ceme- 
tery. Prior to his decease his two younger 
sons had left home and engaged in busi- 
ness, Charles L. alone remaining on the 
farm. 

Charles L. Heyrman was born Septem- 
ber 8, 1827, in Belgium, and, as will be 
seen, was nearly thirty years of age when 
he came with his father to the United 
States. In Brown countv, Wis., on Jan- 
uary 6, 1857, he was united in marriage 
with Miss Monica Van Lent, also a native 
of Belgium, and they immediately settled 
on the home farm with his father, and 
there made a permanent home. To their 
union were born six children, of whom 
Frank is the subject of this sketch; Mary 



is the wife of Martin Lindsley, of Belle- 
vue township; Celia is married to Julius 
Lamal, of Humboldt township; PZdward 
died in 1893 at the age of twenty-four 
years; two sons died in infancy. Mr. 
Heyrman was very successful, and became 
one of the leading farmers in his town- 
ship, continuing to live on the home farm 
until his death, which occurred Septem- 
ber 8, 1889, when he was just sixty-two 
years oki, and his remains now rest in the 
I'^inger Church cemetery. He was a 
Catholic in religious faith, and one of the 
founders of the Church of the Holy Mar- 
tyrs of Gorcuin, in Preble township, of 
which for many \oars he was a leading 
member. Mr. Heyrman ser\'ed as super- 
visor (jf his township; in his political 
preferences he was a Democrat, invari- 
ably supporting that party in State and 
National elections. l)Ut in township and 
county affairs he was non-partisan, the 
fitness of a candidate being more im- 
jiortant to him than party connection. 
Since his death his widow has resided on 
the home farm with our subject; she is a 
devout member of the Catholic Church. 
Frank Heyrman was liorn November 
25, 1858, in Preble township. Brown 
county, on the farm he now owns and 
resides on. He attended the first school 
ever held in his district, the "hall of 
learning " being a log cabin, and was 
among tlie tirst pupils the day it was 
opened, the teacher being Miss Aldrich, a 
daughter of C. N. Aldrich, of Preble 
township. At the same time he received 
thorough training to agriculture, uiuier the 
direction of his father, on the home place, 
where his whole life has been passed. On 
February 19, 1889, our subject was 
united in marriage with Miss Clara De- 
Greef, who was liorn in Humboldt town- 
ship. Brown county. November 27, 1865, 
daughter of Anton De Greef, who came 
from Belgium. Three children have been 
born to them, viz. : Louis, John and 
Kate, who represent the fourth generation 
of the Heyrman family who have lived 
on the farm. Politically Mr. Heyrman is 



'3° 



COMMKMORAriVK IIIOGRAPIIICAL llKCOliD. 



a Democrat, and one of the leadinj;' mem- 
bers of the party in his township, where 
he has held various offices of lionor and 
trust. For two years he served in the 
important position of chairman of the ; 
township, and has also been assessor, 
proving himself an efficient an<l trust- 
worthy official. He kecjis himself in- 
formed on the mo\ements of iiis party, 
and is well read on all current topics, 
finding a great help in his excellent mem- 
ory. Though still young he is a respected, 
worthy representative of the farming 
community in Preble townshi)), and is 
foremost in e\ery movement of interest 
or benefit to his section. 



NII:LS HANSEN, contractor and 
builder, I'ort Howard. This 
gentleman, who was born in 1840 
in Denmark, is a son of J(jhn and 
\'albiug (Holm) Hansen, anil one of a 
family of nine children — five sons and 
four daughters — of whom seven are now 
living, all married: Peter, who lives in 
Prussia, and Johan, in Denmark, both 
blacksmiths; Niels, of Fort Howard; Iver, 
a shoemaker in Denmark; Mary, wife of 
Henry Terp, of Prussia; Anna, wife of 
Peter Lund, a Danish farmer; and Sarah, 
wife of John Zimmerman, of Prussia. 
Their father, who followed blacksniithing 
in early life, afterward became a farmer. 
His death occurred about 1878, and that 
of his widow in 1879, in Denmark. 

Niels Hansen grew to manhood and 
was educated in the \ icinity of Koldiiig, 
Denmark, and during the war between 
Denmark and Prussia served two years 
(1863-64) in the Danish army. He learned 
his trade in that country, following it until 
coming to Fort Howard in 1872, in which 
place he is now the oldest contractor. 
Among the many buildings he has erected 
are those of R. M. Wilson, J. L. Jorgen- 
sen, Mrs. Blesch, James Treman, the 
Presbyterian church, Kellogg National 
Bank, Jorgensen & Blesch Company's 



store at Green Bay, L. Gotfredson's resi- 
dence in the same city, and others. Dur- 
ing the busy season he furnishes employ- 
ment to from fifteen to twent}-five hands. 
His own residence, one of the finest in 
Fort Howard, was built in 1891. Aside 
from this he owns four other dwellings in 
the city, from which he derives rental. 
His property has been accumulated 
through untiring industry and close econ- 
omy, and in his declining years will serve 
to furnish him the means for living with- 
out the necessity of hard labor such as his 
former years have experienced. As a 
good citizen he takes avowed interest 
in all that may contribute to the growth 
and prosperity of his city. Mr. Hansen 
was united in marriage, in 1875, to Mary 
M. Peterson, daughter of Anders and 
Mary Peterson, all natives of Denmark, 
where her parents remained. The chil- 
dren of Mr. and Mrs. Hansen are Bertha, 
John, Lizzie and .\hin, and of these, 
John, who is now eighteen N'ears of age, 
holds a position as clerk in the McCart- 
ney National Bank. In political matters 
Mr. Hansen is actively interested, voting 
with the Republican party. Socially he 
is a member of Green Bay Lodge, No. 19, 
I. O. O. F., also of Mvstical Seven Coun- 
cil, No. 519, Ro\al .\rcanum, in which 
latter organization he has served one 
term as treasurer and two terms as trus- 
tee. He and his wife are members of the 
Presbvterian Church. 



P\:V\:K HOSKLNS, a well-to-do 
agriculturist of De Pcre township. 
Brown county, was l>orn Feb- 
ruary 4, 1838. in East Flanders, 
Belgium, son of Peter J. and Catherine 
Hoskens, farming pcojile of that country. 
They had a family of thirteen children — 
six sons and seven daughters — of whom 
our subject is the eleventh. 

Peter attended the schools of his birth- 
place until he was eleven years of age, 
when he commenced farming, working 



COMMEMOUA Tl VE IJIOGRAPULCAL RKCOIW. 



for his father and others, perforiniiif; such 
labor ;is his age wdiiKi permit. He re- 
mained in his natise country until he 
reached the ajje of twenty-six, when he 
went ti> France, and there worked on 
railroads for a time; he was also employed 
(1867) at work on the then forthconnng 
Paris Exposition. t'oncludinj; he could 
improve his condition by comin,t( to the 
United States, Mr. Hoskens returned to 
his native country, and biddin;; his home 
and friends farewell, set sail Auf^nst 20, 
1868, from Antwerp for Liverpool, En^;- 
land. At that [)ort he took passage on 
the '■ Colorado," and after a voyage of 
thirteen days landed in New York, fnom 
which city he came, with several others of 
his countrymen, to Green Bay, Wis., ar- 
riving Septeml)er 8. He remaineif over 
night with John Martin, at the "United 
States Hotel, "and the next day, Sunday, 
came to De Pere. Mr. Hoskens had 
saved a small sum from his earnings, but 
his passage to tin- United States cost 
three himdred francs, and by the time he 
reached De Pere he had only twenty 
francs with which to l)egin life in his new 
home. He secured work in a brickyard 
opposite De Pere, remaining there until 
the season closed, in November, and then 
went to Snamico, Brown county, where 
for a short time he was employed 
in the mills. He next went to Stiles, 
Wis., and remained all vvinti'r, work- 
ing in the lumber mills and in the 
woods, where he became thoroughly famil- 
iar with the hardships and dangers in- 
cident to lumbering, and the ])rivations 
which must be endured in camp life. But 
this occupation, though dangerous, was 
very popular, as in those early days it 
was a very lucrative business, and was 
an important industry in pioneer times. 
After finishing his work in Stiles our sub- 
ject returned to De Pere, and there re- 
mained until the spring of 1870, when he 
went to Delta county, Mich., at which 
place he took out his naturalization papers. 
Here he worked at railroaifing and char- 
coal-burning until 1873, when, having 



saved some money (eight hundred and 
forty dollars), he concluded to pay a visit 
to his native country. He sailed fiom 
New York to Liverpool, thence to Ant- 
werp, where he arrived in June, 1873. 
On May 16, 1874, he was united in mar- 
riage, at his old home, with Miss Louise 
Van Remoortel, who was b(jrn June 25. 
1836, a daughter of Joseph and Celia 
Van Remoortel, and shortly after their 
marriage the young couple sailed from 
Antwerp on the "Switzerland," bound 
for New York, from which city they came 
by rail to De Pere, Wis. In the mean- 
time Thomas Hoskens, brother of our 
subject, had come to the United States 
and purchased the farm now owned by 
Peter, in De Pere township, and for a 
short time they made their home with 
him. I5ut Peter, not wishing to take up 
farming at that time, again went to Delta, 
Mich., resuming his old occupation, 
though he had to work for less than half 
of what he had before received. He lived 
there, however, for three and a half years, 
and then, in August, 1878, returned once 
more to De Pere township, and purchased 
his present farm from his brother Thomas, 
paying eight hundred dollars for forty 
acres. Here he has since been engaged 
in general farming and stock-raising, and 
he has improved his farm and added 
thereto until it now comprises sixty acres. 
In 1 89 1 the residence on the place was 
burned, and the following year he built 
the present comfortable home of the 
family, which is the most substantial farm 
residence in the township. The place is 
also equipped with connnodious out- 
buildings. Our subject is a self-made 
man in the fullest sense of the word, and 
his success shows what man may do with 
plenty of energy and a determination to 
win. Coming to America a poor man, 
he has, by industry and pluck and strict 
attention to his business, made for him- 
self a comfortable property and gained 
the respect of his fellow citizens for hon- 
esty and integrity. Mr. Hoskens votes 
independently, and does not take any 



»32 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGllAPniCAL RECORD. 



active part in political matters. In re- 
ligious connections he and wife are mem- 
bers of St. Mary's Catholic Church, De- 
Pere. They have had one child, Joseph, 
who was born on the farm in Dc Pere 
township, January 29, 1879, and is at 
present attending the De Pere High 
School. He is the only heir of Peter and 
Louise Hoskens, the only living child of 
the three they had by their marriage, and 
the only one for whom they live and work. 
On him they base all their hopes, and, 
therefore, wish to give him a good edu- 
cation. The lad's father says he would 
like him to be something better than a 
farmer, not that he (the father) has any 
distaste for the vocation, but probably 
thinks Joseph should take up one of the 
professions. Grandfather Henry Hoskens 
had six children, five of whom were mar- 
ried, but left only two children, Peter and 
Thomas. The latter has six daughters, 
three of whom are Sisters in the Order of 
Notre Dame, the inclination of the other 
three being in the same direction. The 
family, as far back as known, have be- 
longed to the Roman Catholic faith, and 
Peter Hoskens says that if his son Joseph 
follows their rule, " the laws will be of no 
use to him, for not one of the family has 
ever come before the law." 



D.W II) \VI-:LLS BRITTON, the 
most extensive manufacturer of 
cooperage of every kind in the 
Northwest, with his plant at Green 
Bay, Wets born December 8, 1832, in 
Sidney Plains, Delaware Co., N. Y., a 
son of Solomon and Amy (Whitney) Brit- 
ton, who were natives of New England, 
the father having been born in Massa- 
chusetts and the mother in Connecticut. 
In 1806 Solomon Britton removed 
from his native State to Albany county, 
N. Y. , and later to Delaware county, 
where he was married. He followed his 
vocations of farmer and cooper in both 
counties until 1850, in that year coming 



to Green Bay, Wis., where he died in 
1854, his wife in 1856. Walter Whitney, 
the maternal grandfather of our subject, 
was a resident of Albany, N. Y. ; at the 
age of fifteen years he enlisted in the 
patriot army, and served throughout the 
Revolutionary war. The Brittons, who 
are of French extraction, settled in Amer- 
ica during Colonial da}s, and members of 
that family also served in the war for 
American independence. To the union 
of Solomon and Amy Britton came nine 
children, all born in the State of New 
York, and all deceased with the exception 
of D. W. Britton, the subject of this 
sketch; of the remainder — Dorcas died at 
Long Lake, Minn., in 1884; Walter in 
Knox county. 111., in 1888; Nicholas, at 
Buffalo, N. Y., in 1869; Emaline, at 
Freeport, 111., in 1850; Julia, in Indiana, 
in 1874; the other three died in New York 
State — Hannah, in 1838, at the age of 
seventeen, and two in infancy. 

D. W. Britton was educated in the 
schools of Delaware county and Buffalo, 
N. Y. At the age of eighteen he moved 
with his parents to Green Bay (previous 
to which he had resided four years in 
Ashville, N. Y.), and the same year 
opened out the cooperage business on 
premises beginning at the confluence of 
the East and Fox rivers, retaining that 
yard one year, after which he moved to 
the present site of the Green Bay Car- 
riage Co., holding possession here until 
1867, when he removed to his present 
extensive yards and shops, which arc now 
the largest establishment — or promise to 
be, to say the least — of any of the kind 
in the great Northwest. In little over 
three decades a business has been estab- 
lished that would, in the conservative 
countries of the Old World, have taken 
several generations to build \\\). With 
shops supplied with every description of 
the most desirable machinery required in 
the business; with his immense yards, 
filled witli every form of lumber tiemanded 
by his trade, Mr. Britton's operations are 
seen to require a more than ordinary ex- 



-\ 











^(f?r^tZ^nyO 



COMMEMOIIATIVE moUllAPUlCAL RECORD. 135 



ecutise ability and a knowledge of detail 1 yi'ar of her marriage, and in ICS55 Mr. 
thai wiiuKl (lisiiiay tlu- i>rdinar\' mind. nritton \\ cdiicd Jmisha Kclse\ , wlui was 
Tlic mamifaclory and conlinj^enls in- reared in (irecn ]'>a\; she died in 1S56, 
cnpy nearly fifteen acre.s, and Mr. llrit- tfie mcilher nf one child, who died when 
ton's o])erations e.Ntend into t\\L-l\-e dil- one \ear old. Mr. Britton's third mar- 
ferent States, in itsi-H sif^nilicant <>t what riage was solenmi/ed in iS5<>, the lad\' of 
great ad\'antaf;e to the city siieh an insti- ' his choice hein^ Lanra Strickland, whose 
tiition must he. One lumdreil an<l thirt}' 1 death <iccurred Septendier 1, I1S90. This 
men, nil an a\era,i;c, are employed, and | miioii was blessed with two children, 
allottinf^ a laniily ol three to eacli man I h'Jmer 1',.. married, and Sarah Josephine, 
(the lowest estimate allowed 1)\ statis- who died at the aj;e nf two years and ei,t;ht 
ticiansi, it would indicate a population ol months. l'"or his fmirth wife Mr. liritton 
iiearl}' four hundred, all of whom depend | married, ( )ctober iS, iSqj, Am\- Thrall, 
for theii' subsistcnice upon the enter])rise \ a nati\'e of New York. Mr. I-Jritton is 
and abilit\ nl Mr. llrittoii. Illustrative I one of the oldest and most prominent fig- 
of hii methods it may be mentimied that ures in the commercial circles of ("iieeli 
all workiiK'n are rej^ularly paid each Mon- jiaw .is well as one of tlie most extensive 
day — a consideration of great moment to i business men of the Northwest, and his- 
the poor man, and one which frees him ' e.\perience has extended over the most 
from the clutches of debt, that monster proj^ressixi' periods in the historv of dreen 
that follows close in the tram of the ' l'.a\ .ind I'rowii c(iiint\. 
monthh' payment system. It is nut onl)' 
better for the workman, but a great | 
desiderat inn with the mei'chants who sup- 
ply his daily needs. 1 ()H\' M( KXICHT, an esteemed and 



J 



In his political aftiliat i( ms Mr. ISiitton I prosperous farmer of New Denmark 

is a I\e])ublican, and under the auspices : ^ f townshij), is a native n| the land 
of that party has most satisfactorily served of lirin, born in iS^j^, sun nf |iihii 

as alderman of (ireen Bay threc> terms; he ■ and I'lridget (Frawley Mi Knight, tin- 
has also done good service on the board formei" of whom was a faniiei'. Oursul)- 
of health, on the school board, and one j ject was the eldest in their famil}' of In e 
term as fire wanieii. He was one of the children, namely: John, Margaret, Mar- 
promoters and organi/ers of the l'"air and tin, Michael and ("atheiiiie. 
Park Association, was its first president, , .\boiit 1S47 the laniily sailed lor 

serving two years, and is at ])resent one •. America, and during the si.x-\\ fi.'ks' \oy- 
of its directors. He is a stockholder in j age the father died and w.is buried at 
the Kellogg National Bank, and is alwa\s 1 sea. The mother ami children landed at 
one of the first to assist in an\ enterprise 1 (hiebec, thence tra\eluii; to Burlinglon. 
tending to promote the public good. So- \'t., where they li\eil one year, and then 
cially he is a member of Washington ' retiiined to nuebec, where Mr.>. Mcknight 
Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. M., ami of the purchased some propi-rt\, and there 
I. O. O. P.. Lodge No. |i>. passed the remainder of her life. |olm 

Mr, Britton was first married, in 1S53, ' McKm'.;lit ii'iiiamed with his mother sev- 
to Miss Frances Daggett, a nati\ e of New er.il \iars after coiiiin,!; In ,\iiierica and 
York, whose father, V.. Daggett, came to then moNcd to ('liweland, ()lhii, where 
Wisconsin years aj^o, locating first at Ke- he li\eil about three years, princi|)ally 
nosha, and afterward, in 1S52, engaging i engaged in farming. I'rom there he went 
in the manufacture of shingles at Green | to La Fayette, Ind , \\here he worked as 
Bay; hedied in Suamico township. Brown ' day laborer for about a ye.ir, after which 
county. Mrs. Frances Britton died the he migrated to ISrowii count\-, Wis., and 



136 



COMMKMOHA TIVK IlIOnRAPiriCAL RECORD. 



entered the employ of the Two Rivers 
Company, continuing to work for them 
several winters, in the summer time doing 
farm labor. 

In 1859 he was married to Miss Mar- 
garet Smith, also born in Ireland, daugh- 
ter of James and Mary Smith, who died 
■when she was a child; she came to the 
United States when about twentj-five 
3'ears old. After his marriage Mr. Mc- 
Knight bought forty acres of wild land in 
New Denmark township, and a few years 
later added an adjoining fort} -acre tract, 
subsequently making other additions to 
the place, which now comprises 1 1 8 acres, 
all of which he has cleared and improved 
himself. To Mr. and Mrs. Mcknight 
have been born ten children, viz. : Michael, 
Catherine, Mary, Margaret(Mrs.T. Arens), 
John, Martin, Julia, Bridget. Honora and 
George. The family give twelve mem- 
bers to the Catholic Church. Politically 
Mr. McKnight is a Democrat, but not a 
strong partisan, and does not aspire to 
office, though he has served as school 
director. He is much respected in his 
communit)', where he is regarded as a 
faithful, loyal citizen. 



WlLLl.VM HANDKVSIDE, the 
very popular liveryman of De- 
IVre, Brown county, was born 
September 15, 1843, in York- 
shire, England, and is a son of Roger and 
Ann (Stevenson) Handeyside, who were 
the parents of nine children, William 
being the eldest. In April, 1849, Roger 
Handeyside, who was a shepherd in the 
old country, sailed from Hull, England, 
for Ouebec, Canada, the vojage lasting 
forty-three days. After experiencing 
many " ups and downs" in Canada, the 
family came to the United States in 1858, 
settling in Wayne comity, Mich., where 
several members still reside. The father 
is now eight}'-two years of age, the mother 
died November 10, 1877. 

William Handeyside has earned his 



living since he was fifteen years old, and 
until he reached the age of twent\'-one 
gave all his earnings, like the dutiful son 
that he was, to his parents. As a dutiful 
citizen, also, he enlisted, November 18, 
1864, in Company C, Thirtieth Mich. V. 
I., and served until June 17, 1865, prin- 
cipally on detached duty. He then re- 
turned to Michigan, and worked at farm- 
ing and broom-making ; next went to 
Kentucky; thence back to Michigan; then 
to Green Bay, Wis. ; thence to Marquette, 
Mich., where he was employed a year 
and a half as teamster at the Morgan 
Iron Furnace, No. i, and worked himself 
up to engineer of Furnace No. 2. In 
August, 1868, he came to De Pere, and 
for nine years was employed as en- 
gineer for the Fox River Company; then 
was employed at E. E. Bolle's Wooden- 
ware Co.'s Works, as engineer and fore- 
man in the lumber yard; thence went to 
Glenmore township, where he conducted 
a mill and store for his employers; then 
returned to De Pere and organized the 
VanGalder & Handeyside Co. , for making 
imitation cedar cigar-box lumber, and at 
the end of a year became sole proprietor 
of the plant, but was soon afterward burned 
out. In June, 1889, he became a member 
of the firm of Thiele & Handeyside, now 
the most popular and successful livery- 
men in the city of De Pere. 

On January 19, 1873, Mr. Handey- 
side was united in marriage with Miss 
Blanche Packard, daughter of John and 
Diantha (Hannon) Packard, the former a 
native of Canada, the latter of New York 
State. Mrs. Handeyside is the seventh 
child in a family of nine, the other eight 
being Wiiislow H., who served three 
years in the Union army and died Sep- 
tember 13, 1874, leaving a wife and two 
children, Mary and Cynthia; Florence A. , 
now the wife of John' Handeyside, her 
former husband, John Leach, having been 
killed in the Civil war; William P., of 
Canton, Wayne Co., Mich. ; Silas J., who 
died at the age of twenty-seven; Cynthia, 
now Mrs. William McKinstrey, of Jack- 



COMMhJ.UORA TIVE IllOGIlAPincAL RECORD. 



137 



son, Mich.; George \\'., who died at the 
age of ten; Martha, who dii'il at tlic 
age t)f nineteen, and ]{lliertie, now on 
the h(jniestead at Canton, Wayne Co., 
Mich. The father ol tins fanulw who 
was a pioneer of Wayne county, Mich., 
died May 20, icS86, his wife following 
him to the land of eternal rest December 
2, 1888, both dying at the age of sixty- 
eight years. Mr. Handeyside antl his 
wife are l)oth Baptists in their religious 
belief, but there is no church of that de- 
noniinatinn at De Pere with which to af- 
filiate. In [)olitics he is a Republican; 
socially he is a member i.)f the Soldiers' 
Rehef Committee, appointed liy the county 
judge, and is also a member of the F. t\: 
A. M., I. O. O. F., K. of P., G. A. K., 
and TempK' of Honor. He has wcm a 
high place in the confidence of the busi- 
ness men of the community, and is highly 
esteemed in a wide circle of social ac- 
quaintances. Mrs. Handeyside is a 
member of the ^^'omen's Relief C'orps of 
the G. A. R., and of the Social Temple — 
the latter an au.xili.ary degree of the Tem- 
ple of Honor — and enjoys, with her hus- 
band, the respect of all acquaintances. 



CARL G. MUlCLLIiR (deceased), 
well-known and highly respected 
in his day in both county and 
Stati', was born January 8, 1834, 
in Saxony, Germany, and in 1852 came 
to America with his father and a brother 
and sister, his mother ha\'ing died in the 
old country when he was but three years 
old. The family, on arriving in tiie United 
States, located near Milwaukee, Wis., and, 
for about two years, Carl G. clerked in 
a general store in the village of Calumet 
and other localities, in 1856 settling in 
Wrightstown, Brown county, where for 
two years he clerked in a hotel. He then 
opened a general store in the village, 
which was one of the first in this section, 
and practically succeeded to the business 
interests of the Wrights, who were the 



founders of the jilace. In August, iSdi, 
he married ,\liss Mary Thoni]isoii, who 
was born Decendier y, 1841, in (jran- 
ville, a suburb of Milwaukee, out' of a 
lamiU' ol nine elulilreii born to William 
and l'"rane(_-s ((hniiette) Thoiiipson, the 
iormer of whom was a nati\e of Scotland, 
and an early settk'r in Milwaukee count)'. 
Wis. He died in Wrightstown at the 
age of sevent\-three; his wile, who was 
born in I-'rance, is still li\ing in Wrights- 
town. Gf the thiiteen children born to 
the marriage of Carl G. and Mary Mueller 
six sons and one (laughter lia\e been 
calletl away. The sur\ivors are Charkis 
W. (whose name ojiens this skelclO, 
Fmma, Mary, Clara \'... (lertrudi,- ami 
Selma. Mr. Mueller contimied to carry 
on his general store after his marriage, 
and was honoretl and res])ected b\- the 
entire connnunit\' until the day of his 
death; aiul, indeed, his memory is still 
cherished with affection by those who 
knew him. He was a gi'nllem.-m of a 
most enterprising spirit as well as ol phil- 
anthropic disposition; was prosperous as 
a merchant, and invested his profits in 
large tracts of wild land, gi\ing jioor per- 
sons every opportunity to buy a home 
cheaply and get a start in lile. It was a 
prominent trait in his character that in 
old times, when the country was new and 
mone\' scarce, he would advance all need- 
ful supplies, and even money, to the jioor 
and rich, alike. In fact, all had unlimit- 
ed credit, as can be readily testified toby 
the old residents; to which fact, however, 
sad to relate, he lost the greater jiortion 
of his estate (which at one time was esti- 
mated to be worth over one hundred 
thousand dollars), many of those whom 
he had befriended when in lu-ed refusing 
to pav their obligations when they found 
themselves in more prosptnous circum- 
stances. For years he ran the ferry 
across Fox river, and afterward built and 
o]ierated the first bridge acioss that ri\-er, 
at this place a fioating bridgi'. He binlt 
the "American House," the best hotel in 
the town, and was landlord of same; 



'3S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



also built and operated a brewery on 
the west side of the village; started the 
first sawmill in Wrightstown, and a few 
years later also opened a general store and 
built a sawmill in Ashland, Wis. Just 
prior to his death he sold the Ashland 
mill, however, and after his demise the 
entire business at Ashland was closed up. 
Mr. Mueller was a de\out Christian, ac- 
tive in religious work. He assisted in or- 
ganizing the first Lutheran Society in 
Wrightstown, gave the ground on which 
to build a church, much of the timber 
necessary for the building, and a good 
portion of the cash requisite for its erec- 
tion. It is said of him by the residents 
of Wrightstown that he gave sites for and 
helped, financially, all the churches and 
schools on the east side of the villiage of 
Wrightstown. In politics he was a life- 
long Democrat, and for over twenty-five 
years was postmaster, also filling several 
other local offices with honor and credit 
at different times. He was the architect 
of his own fortune, and was in every re- 
spect a representative self-made man. 
His funeral took place from the Lutheran 
Church December 15, 1886, and was the 
largest ever seen in this part of the coun- 
try; so great, indeed, was the attendance 
of Germans, Americans and others, that 
two sermons were delivered, one in Ger- 
man and the other in English. His 
death was a sad blow to the entire com- 
munity, as he was not only a friend to the 
individual members thereof, but was also 
looked upon as one of the fathers of 
Wrightstown. His estimable widow still 
has her residence at the old home, sur- 
rounded by her children and every com- 
fort calculated to make life desirable. She 
is a devout member of the Catholic 
Church, a kind and lovable woman, a 
noble mother, and a model of honor in 
her daily walk throusfh life. 

CHARLES W. MUELLER, the eldest 
son of this honored gentleman, was born 
in Wrightstown township, Brown Co., 
Wis., December 27, 1862. He is now 
the manager of the estate, and displays a 



j rare business talent, which already marks 
: him as one of the future representative 
men of his county. He has filled several 
local offices, anil is at present clerk of the 
\illage and township, which responsible 
offices he has filled with credit for the 
past two years. He is a graduate of Ap- 
pleton high school, and he and his sisters 
have been reared to a faithful observance 
of the doctrines of the Catholic Church. 
From an early day he was his father's 
chief assistant, and, after the death of the 
latter, successfully conducted the large 
business in all its details, until his own 
marriage, when he wound up the business 
and has since had charge of the estate 
and everything pertaining to it. He was 
wedded in 1886 to Miss Louisa Delger, a 
native of Calumet county. Wis., and 
daughter of August and Estina Delger, 
both of whom are now deceased. Two 
children have blessed this union, viz. : 
Edwin and Irene. Socially Mr. and Mrs. 
Mueller stand in the front rank in their 
community, and as a business man he has 
the respect of all acquaintances. 



A I GUST H.AESE, prominent as a 
farmer and sawmill owner of 
.Morrison township, Brown county, 
was born January 10, 1843, in 
Northern Prussia, son of Christoff Haese, 
a farmer. 

.\t the age of eleven years our subject 
emigrated, in company with his brother, 
John Ferdinand, to the United States, 
landing in New York, thence coming di- 
rectly to Manitowoc county. Wis., where 
a brother, a sister, and a bnHher-in-law 
were then living. Although a mere lad, 
August, after attending school a year, 
went to work in the woods at shingle 
making, then an industry pursued alto- 
gether by hand. Early in the spring of 
iS6ohe went to Spring Lake Prairie, and 
for eight months worked on a farm at six 
dollars per month. He saved his earn- 
ings here, and also the money he earned 



COMMEMOHATiyK BWGllAFUICAL RECORD. 



139 



later near Ripon, in Fond du Lac county. 
In the latter part oi Auj;ust, 1862, he re- 
turned to Manitowoc county, enlisted in 
Company F, Twenty-.sixth Wis. \'. I., 
and was sent to Milwaukee, whence, after 
two weeks' drilling, he was returned 
home on account of hein;; too younf^' for 
a soldier and his father refusing;' to sign 
his enlistment papers. For a few years 
following he worked in the northern part 
of the State in sawmills and at lumbering, 
and then, in January, 1867, in company 
with his Inother Ferdinand and another 
comrade, he settled on Section 22. in 
Morrison township, where the three 
erected a sawmill in a dense forest, the 
nearest road to the mill being the old 
stage road, one and a half miles west. 
Here, on the Branch river, the partner- 
ship lasted for a year and a half, Mr. 
Haese at that time buying his partners 
out and forming a new firm, comprising 
himself and his brothers h'erdinaiid and 
Albert, who for seven years worked sol- 
idly together, and consequently prospered. 

On January 15, 1860, Mr. Haese 
married, in Cooperstown, ^^'is. , Miss Ma- 
tilda Olp, who was born in Afilwaukee in 
1 8 50, a daughter of Ferdinand Olp, a na- 
tive of Prussia. The young couple went to 
housekeeping in a log cabin that stood 
north of their present fine residence 
which Mr. Haese erected in 1883. The 
children born to this union were as fol- 
lows: Helena, whtj died at the age of 
seventeen; Louisa, now Mrs. Louis Falck; 
Robert C, an assistant of his father; Ida. 
Emma and Bertha, at home; August, \\-ho 
died at nine years of age; and Julia (twin 
of August), who lives at home; Arthur, 
also at home, and Ella, the sur\i\or of a 
twin that died at birth. 

The Haese brothers remained together 
in business until 1 876, when August 
bought the interest of the other two; one 
year after his making this purchase his 
mill was destroyed by fire. He had no 
insurance and but little capitnl left, but 
he had good credit, the ne.xt best thing to 
cash, and, ]irobably a better thing yet. 



an uniinpeachable character for integrity. 
Three solid contractors were an.xious to 
secure the job of rebuilding, knowing full 
well that their pay would be curtain if the 
life of Mr. Haese were spared, and that 
they would be fully reimbursed for their 
cash outlay and expenditure of time. So 
the mill was rebuilt, and paid for by Mr. 
Haese, and now, for twenty-seven years, 
he has been continuously and prosperously 
conducting the business on his own prop- 
erty — a tract of 160 acres. In 1869 he 
added farming to his milling industry, and 
has been as successful as an agriculturist 
a§ he has been as a mill man. This farm 
was literally hewn out of the woods, but 
is now a model of thrift and beauty and 
skillful culture. 

Mr. Haese's political ))ri)cli\ities are 
Democratic, but he prefers active busi- 
ness interests to the ephemeral ones of 
party politics, and wisely has never been 
an office seeker. He and his family are 
members of the Lutheran Church, and 
for six years he has been a deacon. His 
aim has always been to be a good citizen 
and so to train his children, and there is 
no family in the township that stands 
higher socially than his. When it is re- 
membered that he had no assistance in a 
pecuniary sense in his start in life; that 
his mother died when he was but three 
years of age, and that he was reared 
without the fostering care of the parent, 
who, as a rule, imparts the virtuous les- 
sons that from infancy onward make the 
man what he ouglit to be morally, it be- 
comes a matter of wonder that he has 
succeeded so \\-ell; au'! it may be inci- 
dentally added that his course through 
life is well worthy tlu' emulation of the 
\-outh of our land. 



ILLS RASMUSSEN, oup of the 
11-to-do farmers of Cli-nmore 



I ^ township, Brov\-n county, was 

born November n, 1838, in the 

Kingdom of Denmark, son of Rasmus 



140 



COMMEMOnATIVE BIOOIiAPffTCAL RECORD. 



Christensen, who was employed as a farm 
hand by a larg;e landowner for fortj- years, 
and who died in Denmark, as did also his 
wife. They were the parents of ten chil- 
dren — four sons and six danphters — of 
whom Niels is the eldest son and the sec- 
ond child in order of birth. 

Niels Rasmussen attended school in 
his native country from his seventh to his 
fourteenth year. He was reared to farm- 
ing, which he continued to follow until he 
was twenty-one years old, about which 
time he joined the army, serving seven- 
teen months. In 1863 he again joined 
the army, also in 1864, during the vvar 
with Prussia, and while in the service was 
never wounded, though his clothing was 
pierced by a ball. On March 16, 1866, 
he married Miss Hannah Neilson, who 
was born June 2 1839, (daughter of Niels 
Anderson, a farmer in comfortable cir- 
cumstances), and attended school from 
the time she was seven years old until she 
reached the age of fifteen. One child was 
born to this union in Denmark, Marv, 
now the wife of J. P. Christensen, "of 
Glenmore township, Brown county. After 
his marriage Mr. Rasmussen worked as 
a laborer for a grain merchant on the 
Island of Moen, Denmark, until 1869. in 
the spring of which year, bidding their 
native land farewell, he and his little 
family proceeded from Copenhagen to 
Hull, England, and thence to Liverpool, 
where they took pa-sage on the "North 
America" on April i. setting sail for 
America. The boat was bound for 
Quebec, but as it was early in the season 
the ice compelled them to put in at Port- 
land, Maine, and they landed there on 
the 14th of Ajiril. They had tickets for 
Green I?ay, Wis., whither they came via 
Chicago ('where a sister of Mrs. Rasmus- 
sen was livinc;), arriving at their destina- 
tion, April 21, strangers in a strange land, 
and totally unacquainted with the English 
langiiag'^. The familv remained in Green 
Bay while Mr. Rasmussen went to Glen- 
more townshiji. where a lirother resided, 
and during that summer he wnrkod n-; n 



farm hand, also making shingles and do- 
ing anything else he could to earn an 
honest dollar to support his family. In 
the fall of 1869 he purchased a piece of 
land in section 24, Glenmore township, 
but through some mistake commenced 
clearing the wrong tract, and it was not 
until 1S84. after much e.\pensi\e litiga- 
tion, that he finally secured a clear title 
to his land. He now has a fine farm of 
1 20 acres, all of which has been cleared 
by him, or under his direction, a laborious 
task, and one which occupied many vears. 
But from being a poor man he has, by 
honest industry and assiduous toil, become 
a well-to-do farmer and landowner. 

He and his wife had five children 
born to them in \\'isconsin, namely: 
Charles, Lawrence, Andrew and Alfred, 
all living, and Niels, who died in infancy. 
The sons, who are all hard-working young 
men, have been of great assistance to 
their father in thccultivation of the farm, 
which is one of the best-improved places 
in the township, the buildings being ex- 
ceptionally fine, and the barn one of the 
most commodious in the vicinity. In 
politics our subject is not an ardent party 
man, voting usuall}' for the best man re- 
gardless of party, and he has served as 
school director in his township. He and 
his wife are members of the Lutheran 
Church of Denmark, and they are known 
and respected throughout their commu- 
nity as kind-hearted, hospitable people. 



F1:LIX LlRfjUlN, Fort Howard. 
The pioneer settlers in the Green 
Bay region had many difficulties 
to encounter in the early days, 
but they were, for the most part, hardy 
and persevering men. and more than one 
lived to see his final triumph over them all. 
Among these there have been persons of 
various nativities, all alike struggling to 
acquire a competence, and all ileveloping 
into excellent citizens, public-spirited and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECOBD. 



141 



alive to tlic best interests of their coiii- 
imiiiit}'. 

Felix Lurcjiiin was born in 1 842, in the 
village of Blanden, Belginni, son of Joseph 
and Mary (Haa/endonkj Lurqnin, who 
had a family of five children, as follows: 
John B., married and residing on Elmore 
street, Fort Howard, where he is engaged 
in gardening; Collett, wife of John B. 
Vanderveken, residing in Belgium; Felix, 
our subject; and August and Leonie, both 
residents of Belgium, the latter the widow 
of Bernard Nakaars. The parents both 
died in the old country in the same month 
in 1S93, the father aged eighty-six and 
the mother eighty-four years. 

Mr. l^urqnin was educated and grew 
to man's estate in Belgium, and in 18G5 
was married in that country to Miss Rosa- 
line De Vroy, daughter of Franz and 
Johanna (Kattersoll) De \'roy, all natives 
of the same country, where her parents 
passed their entire lives. Upon coming 
to Green Bay, in 1866, Mr. Lunjuin found 
employment as a day laborer, and in the 
fall of 1867 removed to F"ort Howard, 
settling where he now resides, on Uous- 
man street. Purchasing four acres of land 
from Mr. Elmore he engaged in garden- 
ing, and subsequently added a considera- 
ble area to this original small tract, still 
owning twe]\-e acres, besides which he 
sold foiu'teen acres and gave eight and a 
half acres to his children. In 1876 he 
built his present brick residence, and is 
the owner of the fine brick Fink block 
on Dousman street, which he purchased 
in 189-^. In politics Mr. Lurquin is a 
Democrat, and takes an active interest in 
the workings of his part}-; he was city 
marshal of Fort Howard for five j'ears, 
serving twice in that capacity, and for two 
years he was superintendent of streets, 
but he is by no means an office-seeker. 
He and his wife are members of St. Willi- 
brord's Catholic Church at Green Bay. 
When they built their home at Fort 
Howard it was in the woods, but the place 
has grown beyond its then narrow con- 
fines, having developed to a degree per- 



ha[)s never anticipated by its jiioneer set- 
tlers, and their home is now within the 
city limits. Mr. Lurcpiin has adhered to 
industrious habits, and by perseverance 
has accumulated the property he now pos- 
sesses. When he and his wife arrived in 
this country, in 1866, they were without 
monew and all that they succeeded in 
gathering together has been acquired by 
hard labor and assiduous industry; at the 
present writing he has an independent 
competence, and is counted aiiioug the 
substantial citizens of Fort Howard. He 
is a worthy example of the pioneers who 
hewed out a home in the midst of a forest, 
and from a start of nothing secured a 
comfortalile jiroperty by patient toil. 

The children of Mr. and Mrs. Lurciuin 
are: Josejih, who married Frances Deu- 
ster, and resides in the same house with 
his parents (they have one child, Henry); 
and Nettie, the wife of Ferdinand De- 
Volder, of Fort Howard, who has one 
daughter, Rosaline (she had a son who 
died Februar\- 14, 1S94). 



EMILE \'AX CALSTER, one of 
the respected self-made farmers of 
I.ellevue township. Brown coun- 
ty, was born April 20, 1840, in 
Belgium, son of Gregg Van Calster, a 
blacksmith, who had eight children — 
four sons and four daughters — of whtim 
Emile is the eldest. 

Our sul)jcct attended the schools of 
Belgiinn until he was eleven jears old, 
after which, for eight \ears, he was em- 
ployed in the thread mills. When about 
twenty years old he commenced to learn 
the trade of painter, in which he con- 
tinued five years. Then, in the spring of 
1865, he sailed from Antwerp, and after 
a voyage of fourteen days landed at New 
York City, thence immediately coming to 
Wisconsin, and on June I landing at 
Green Bay, eighty dollars in debt, as he 
had borrowed to pay the expenses of the 
journey. In Green Bay he secured work 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL MECORD. 



at his trade, which he continued to follow 
until 1872. In the meantime he had 
purchased thirty acres in Hellevue town- 
ship, where he now lives, at that time all 
new land, and put up the lirst dwelling^, a 
24x28 house, himself, removing thereon 
in 1870. On December 25, 1S67, Mr. 
^'all Calster was married, in Green I^ay, 
to Miss Hortense Daix. who was born 
January 18, 1841, near his home in Bel- 
gium, a daughter of .^nton IJaix, who 
died in Belgium. In 1865, his widow, 
Mrs. Uaix, came with her family to Wis- 
consin, our subject being also one of ! 
the party. | 

To Mr. and Mrs. \'an Calster have,! 
been born the follt)wing named children : 
Joseph (wh(j is a carpenter in dreen Bav); 
Constance, Julius, and Sarah, at home; 
and two that died, Constance when seven 
j'ears old. and Alvinia, when two and a 
half years old. Since 1872 our subject • 
has given his attention principally to his 
farm, and he now has 120 acres of fine 
land, all improved by himself, where he 
is engaged in farming, in connection with 
which he also conducts a dairy business, 
lindustry and good management have ' 
lirought him success, and he is highly es- 
teemed in his township. Politically he is 
a Kepublican, and has served his township 
as road master. In religious belief he 
and his wife ;ire Spiritualists. ] 



Z.\CH.\KI1-: C.OFF.\RT. .\mong 
the intelligent, prosjierous agricul- 
turists and self-made citii^ens of 
l)e Pere townshi]), none is more 
deserving of mention than the one whose 
name is here recorded. He was born 
August I, 1842, in Belgium, a son of 
Peter J. (ioffart, who was a merchant and 
landowner in his native land, and in com- 
fortable circumstances. He died when 
his son, Zacharie was twelve years old. 

Z.tcharie C.offart received all his edu- 
cation in Belgium, and when, about four- 
teen vears old, came with his widowed 



mother to the United States. They sailed 
from .\ntwerp in April, 1857, on the 
" Westj^halia,' and came via Quebec to 
Green Bay, Wis., where they arrived 
eight weeks after leaving their home. An 
older brother of our subject, Ferdinand, 
had preceded them to this country, and 
they all resided for a time in Green Bay 
township; but the land was poor, and 
they soon afterward moved to De Pere 
township, along the East river. In this 
regi(jn, which was then all in the woods 
and abouudetl with wikl animals, Zacharie 
was reared to manhood, and, there being 
no lack of work he commenced early to 
assist in the clearing of the land. From 
De Pere the family later removed to 
Rockland township, where they resided 
seven years. 

On June 11, 1867, Mr. Goffart was 
married, in De Pere, to Miss Mary T. 
Daix, a native of Belgium, and to this 
union were born six children, four of 
whom are yet living, namely: Catherine, 
l-'llen I'a school teacher, of Peoria, 111.), 
Hortense (a school teacher at Steven's 
Point, Wis.), and Leo (living at home). 
The mother of these died November 10, 
1 879, and was buried in De Pere ceme- 
tery, and t)n January 10, 1881, Mr. Gof- 
fart was married, in De Pere, to his pres- 
ent wife, Elizabeth Becher. She was 
born March 17, 1861, in New Denmark 
township. Brown county, a daughter 
of Joseph Becher. who was a native 
of Germany. To this marriage were born 
children as follows: Emily, Constant 
(deceased), Joseph. John. Edward, Zach- 
ariah. Elizabeth, and Flora (deceased). 
After his marriage^ Mr. Goffart first lo- 
cated in De Pere township, along East 
river, and then for seven years resided in 
Rockland townshi]i. In i 892 he removed 
to the citv (jf De Pere. where he owns 
twenty acres within the corporation limits 
and forty-four acres outside in the town- 
ship, private claim No. 35. He has fol- 
lowed general farming and stock raising, 
and has met with encouraging success. 
He has seen the entire surrounding coun- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGItAPIIlCA I. RECORD. 



•43 



try transformed from the woods to fertile, 
well-lcept farms, and has liimself taken no 
small part in the de\elopmcnt of his sec- 
tion. He has been a hard-working man, 
and by industry and energy has earned for 
himself a comfortable, well-improved farm 
and home. In his political affiliations he 
is a Democrat, but he does not take any 
active interest in party affairs, preferring 
to gi\'e his attention exclusive!}- to his 
private business interests: but, though 
not an aspirant for office, he has served 
as roadmaster in Rockland and De Pere 
townships. Though Mr. Goffart's early 
educational adx'antages were somewhat 
limited, he has acquired a good store of 
knowledge by reading and obser\-ation; 
he takes great interest in the newspapers 
of his section, as well as others of general 
interest, and keeps himself well informed 
on current topics. He has ever been and 
is yet a very active man, alwa\'s finding 
something to occupy his time. He has 
crossed the Atlantic five times, having 
paid two visits to his native home since 
coining to the United States, taking the 
first trip in 1871. In 1893 he proceeded 
over the Baltimore & Ohio railwa\- to 
New York, where he embarked on the 
Red Star liner ' 'Westerland" for Antwerp, 
and spent two months as a guest at the 
same house where he was born, as well 
as his mother and grandmother. Mr. 
Goffart has also journeyed throughout the 
Great West, for the benefit of his health, 
which was much improved, and all in all 
there are few farmers of his section who 
have traveled more extensively. 



PV. T E R V A N I) H K K I X T E R. 
]5rown county is iinkdited to the 
little kingdom of Holland for 
many of her most loval and sub- 
stantial farmer citizens, prominent among 
whom in Xew Denmark township is the 
gentleman here named. He was born in 
Holland December 25, iSi.S, a son of 
Peter and Anna (Cooper) \'anderkinter. 



who reared a family of seven chddren, 
named as follows: Jacob, Mary, l)id<e, 
Leona, Catherine. John and Peter. Tlie 
father owned a small farm, which he cul- 
ti\'ated, and l)y thrift and industry was 
enabled to support his fannlj' in comfort. 
Peter \'anderkinter li\ed\\'ith his par- 
ents until he reached the age of eighteen 
years, at which time he entered the arm\', 
remaining in the service ten years. He 
then sailed fnr America in company with 
two other )oung men, and landed in New 
York after a voyage of thirt\-seven da\s. 
during which one of his com])anions was 
so seriousi}' injured that he died a short 
time after landing; the other young man 
lived in New York State six years, and 
then returned to his native land. Our 
subject was penniless on his arrival in the 
New World, and found employment with- 
out delay, working first for a gardener in 
New York at four dollars a month, and 
later going to New }erse_\-, where he re- 
mained seven _years, following the same 
line of work. Here he was married 
March 9, 1850, to Miss Anna Bush, and 
they came westward to Wisconsin. Mr. 
\'anderkinter working near Sheboygan as 
a farm hand for a year and a half, thence 
moving to New Denmark township. 
Brown county, where he took up eighty 
acres of land, a complete wilderness at 
that timi', and set about the task of con- 
verting it into a pleasant, fertile farm. 
He and his wife lived with their nearest 
neighbor until thi^ log shanty, 18 x 20, was 
ready for occupancy, and this was their 
home f()r se\'en \'ears, when a more sub- 
stantial one took its place: which in its 
turn was in course of time supplanted by 
the modern frame house now occu|)ie<l by 
Frank Vanderkinter. The cle;iring of the 
land necessarily progressed slowly, for 
our subject had no team during the lirst 
six years, and therefore he had to hire 
such aid, working out b\' the day to pay 
for it. .^11 the trading had to be done at 
Green Bay, and, having to walk tlK> entire 
distance, a trip to town occ\ipied three 
days. About fifteen years after his removal 



144 



COMMEMUIIATIVE BWORAPIHCAL RECOHD. 



here Mr. \'aiiderkiiiter purchased another 
forty-acre tract of wild land, which he has 
also cleared and improved, the farm being 
well-equipped with outbuildings, and 
other accessories. 

To our subject and wife were born 
twelve children, as follows: Jacob, John, 
Rozina, Anna, triplets who died in in- 
fancy, Pi-ter, I-'rank. Hcnr}', .\brahani 
and William, of which large family but 
four are now living: John, Frank, Henry 
and William. The mother of these 
passed from earth March i, 1885, and 
was laid to rest in New Denmark ceme- 
tery, deeply mourned by all who knew 
her. Frank Vanderkinter has always re- 
mained on the home farm, of which he 
now has the principal management, his 
father having retired from active work. 
On August 18, 1888, he was married to 
Miss Slinnie Fager, daughter of August 
and Hannah Fager, and their union has 
been blessed with three children: Will- 
iam, Frederick and Henry. Politically 
Mr. Vanderkinter is a Democrat, but not 
active in party affairs. 



Miller, 
homes 



CW. STRECKENBACH. Far 
across the storivi}- Atlantic, in the 
cpiaint old German Fatherland, 
Ernest Streckcnbach and Nettie 
his wife, were born. Both sought 
in the country of the stars and 
stripes, coming to Brown county. Wis., 
in the days when it was practically an un- 
broken wilderness. 

Mr. Streckenbach reached Green Bay 
in 1S48, married, and settled in the woods 
of Fittsfield township. Brown county, 
where he erected a log cabin and began 
the improvement of his land. It may be 
readily imagined that the young German 
solflier found this life wonderfully differ- 
ent from what he had been accustomed to; 
but he bravely plodded ahead, and lived 
to see great changes accomplished in the 
region about him. Four children came 
to gladden tiie home: Edward C., now 



engaged in the boot and shoe business at 
Fort Howard; Pauline, wife of L. C. 
Schilling; Louise, teacher in the public 
schools of Milwaukee; and the subject of 
this sketch. Mrs. Streckenbach, who had 
also come with her parents to Green Bay 
in 1 848, was called upon in i 863 to mourn 
the death of her husband, who passed 
away in that year. She subsequently be- 
came the wife of Henry Rathman, and 
bore him four children: Lena, now Mrs. 
Alvin Outland, of Green Bay; Clara, wife 
of \\". W. Nuss. also of Green Bay; 
Emma, teacher in the public schools of 
the same city, and one deceased. 

C. W. Streckenbach was born in 1861 
in Pittsfield township, I^rown Co., Wis. 
Coming to Green Bay at an early age, he 
acquired a common education in the pub- 
schools and at Prof. Murch's business 
college. At the age of thirteen years he 
engaged in the cooperage business in a 
plant, a jiortion of which is now owned by 
D. W. Britton. In 1885 the present 
wholesale hrm of C. W. Streckenbach & 
Co. was formed. These gentlemen deal 
extensively in oysters and fish, and fur- 
nish employment at their establishment to 
twelve or fifteen men. In September, 
i8qo, Mr. Streckenbach was imited in 
marriage, at Stephenson, Mich., with 
Miss Maud Benjamin, a native of Mani- 
towoc county, \\'is., where her father, 
Sumner Benjamin, was a respected pio- 
neer; he now resides at Stephenson, and 
is a millwright by occupation. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Streckenbach have been born 
two children, Sumner and Hazel. Mr. 
Streckenbach is a Republican in politics, 
and takes a becoming interest in the af- 
fairs of his partv. He is a member of 
the Royal Arcanum, Council No. 546; 
also of Pochequette Lodge, No. 126, K. 
of P. His estimable wife, who was reared 
a Methodist, attends the services of the 
M. E. Church. 

In a region like that surrounding Green 
Bay, and having so many natural facili- 
ties for commercial advancement, the 
changes in a few \ears will necessarilv be 



commi-:m(>i;a tive biograviiical hecord. 



H5 



mans', and, althouf^h yet a younj;' man, 
Mr. Streckenbach has witnessed a re- 
markable development in the snrround- 
ings of his home. The future is full of 
promise for this locality, and such rejire- 
sentative men will be at the front in shap- 
ing its destiny along the lines of prosper- 
ity and usefulness. 



HORACE J. CON LEY, yacht 
builder, commodore of the Green 
Bay Yacht Club, and former pro- 
prietor of the lieautiful vessel 
"Merlin," said to be the safest, best 
equipped and fastest yacht on the lakes, 
has been a resident of Green Bay for over 
a quarter of a century, having come to 
the town when a boy. 

He is a native of Maine, born in the 
town of Medway, August 3, 1861, to Vin- 
cent and Eleanor (Fowles) Conley, the 
father a Canadian by birth, the mother a 
native of Maine. They were married in 
that State, and there Vincent Conley fol- 
lowed the lumber business and carpentr}', 
until I S66, when they came west to \\'is- 
consin, bringing their family. Settling for 
the time in Green Bay, the father worked 
in the shipyards, later building vessels 
for his own account, and finally engaging 
in the ice trade until 1884, wlien he 
moved to Sheboygan, establishing there 
an extensive ice business which he still 
carries on. Eight children were born to 
Mr. and Mrs. Vincent Conlev. fi\'e of 
whom are yet living, namely: William, 
married, in business a boat builder; Etta; 
Horace J., our suliject; Lincoln. an<l 
Lewis — of whomWilliam, Etta and Lewis 
live in Fort Ho\vard, Wis. ; Lincoln, who 
is married, lives at -Sheboygan. Wis. ; 
Edward, who was married and resided at 
Watersmeet, Gogebic Co., Mich., where 
he was a notary public and township 
supervisor, died there July 19, 1894. 

Horace J. Conley, whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, received his education 
at the schools of Fort Howard and at 



Green Bav Business College, afterward 
learning the trade of l)oat builder, making 
himself conversant with all the details of 
the craft. In i 8S3 he commenced build- 
ing boats, yachts, etc., for his own ac- 
count, making a specialty of racing and 
sporting yachts of all descriptions, as well 
as ordinary sail boats, and he has built 
several boats that have "shown a clean 
pair of heels" to all competitors. His 
industr\' gives employment to some seven 
hands. In connection with his business 
Mr. Conley has naturally been deeply in- 
terested in yacht racing, in which his 
record places him " sectnid to none," for 
he has proven that he can not only build 
boats, but that he can also sail them like 
the true " fore-an'-aft " sailor he is. 
Among the many yatch races in which he 
came off the victor may be inentiimed the 
regatta at Chicago during the World's 
Fair, which was of more than local in- 
terest, as it attracted from all parts of 
the United States thousands of lovers 
of aquatic sports Besides winning the 
free-for-all race, his yacht, "Merlin," 
also lieat, in private races, the schooner- 
yacht "Toxteth," and sloop "Rambler," 
coming in ahead of the first-named by a 
quarter of an hour. She took first pri;;e 
at the Milwaukee Yacht Club regatta held 
at Milwaukee, July 4, 1894, and first 
prize at the Green Bay Yacht Clnli regat- 
ta held at Green Bay, Se])tcmber 26, 
1894. In September, 1894. the "Mer- 
lin '' was sold by Commodore H. J. Con- 
ley to Commodore J. D. Sarles, of Green 
Bay. Mr. Conley's "Empress" and 
"Vivian" are also famed for speed, the 
first-named being said to be' the best 
finished yacht on the lakes; she won first 
prize in a race on Lake Oconomowoc, 
without availing herself of her time .allow- 
ance, the "\'ivian" coming in second. 
fThe prize was a silver cup ]iresented by 
Commodore Greene). In 1 88('), at the 
closing of the season of the Oconomowoc 
Yacht Club, on the waters of I^a Belle, 
the "\'ivian" captured the first ]irize. 
Among other A i yachts built by Mr. Con- 



146 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Icy ina\' be mentioned the fast sailor '• Au 
Revoir, " (or A. J. Chase, of Lake Crystal, 
Minnesota; schooner yacht "Oneida, "for 
John C. Follett, of Green Bay, Wis., (she 
won first prize in her class in the Green Ba\' 
regatta held July 27, 1894;; sloop "Em- 
ma," for Commodore Greene, which, in 
her maiden race, beat the ' ' Empress" 
and " \'ivian" on Lake Oconomowoc, July 
4, I S94, also on August 26, in a race on 
the same lake, between boats brought in 
from Pine and Pewaukee Lakes, again 
won first prize, this time against ten 
starters, the boats taking part in this race 
representing the best builders in the coun- 
try, some of them coming from New York 
and Boston. 

In 1889 Mr. Conley was married in 
Green Bay (where she was born) to Miss 
Clara M. Scheller, daughter of Albert 
and Louise Scheller, natives of Germany, 
whence several years ago t hey came to Wis- 
consin, settling in Green Bay, where Mr. 
Scheller conducted one of the first tailor- 
ing establishments of the place. He died 
in 1863; his' widow is still residing in 
Green Bay. To Mr. and Mrs. Conley 
has been born one child, a charming little 
daughter, named Marie V'ivian. Mrs. 
Conley is a member of the Moravian 
Chinch. Our subject is a member of 
Pochcquette Lodge. No. 26, K. of P., 
Green Bay, and of the Republican party. 
He was elected commodore of the Green 
Bay Yacht Club July 1 1, 1894. In addi- 
tion to yachts and boats, he is also manu- 
facturer of sails, tents, flags, awnings, 
etc. The family residence is at No. 300 
South Washington street. Green Bav. 



FI.I.IX DROOG. This substantial, 
vvcll-to-do citizen of I)e P<tp, 
Brown county, is a native of Bel- 
gium, whoit! h(^ was born Decem- 
bur 25, 1823. and educated, attending 
school up to the age of thirteen yenrs. 

He startcil out in life for himself, first 
commencing to work as mason's assistant. 



afterward learning the trade of mason and 
bricklayer, at which he continued to work, 
and, being thrifty and economical, saved 
some money. On April 15, 1856, he was 
married in Antwerp to Bernardine Evard, 
who was born i)i Belgium in August, i 826, 
and a few days after their marriage they 
bade farewell to their friends and home. 
Mr. Droog had not to leave his native 
country because of the fear of coming to 
want in later life, for he had been re- 
warded with the National Recompense of 
two medals of honor for devoted acts of 
courage. The first medal (silver) he re- 
ceived in April, 1850; the second one 
(gold), also an engraving showing his 
courageous acts, received from the royal 
palace February il, 1851. With this 
honor, he and his young bride set sail 
from Antwerp for America. They 
took passage in the " Marj' Goodwin," 
and after a long voyage landed at Que- 
bec, Canada, whence they at once set out 
for their final destination. Green Bay, 
Wis. The journey from Quebec occu- 
pied nine days, and they arrived in Green 
Bay July 14, strangers in a strange land, 
and with but fifteen dollars to conmience 
life in the New World. For over a year 
after their arrival they resided with Greg- 
orie Bormans, in .Allouez township, and 
then moved to De Pere, where Mr. Droog 
obtained employment on the old stone 
school building, which was then in course 
of construction, and later took the con- 
tract for the mason work on the "Cali- 
fornia House" He continued to follow 
his trade at odd times for four and a half 
years, part of the time working for Joseph 
G. Lawton at seventy-five cents per da}\ 
Purchasim: a lot in De Pere, he erected 
thereon the house in which the family 
still resides, and, after some years, pur- 
chased twenty acres of wild land in De- 
Pere tnwnshiiL The place was entirely in 
the woods, not a stick ha\ingbpen cut from 
it, and he at once set to work toclearand 
improve it; he never lived there, however, 
continuing to have his home in the town. 
He isenergeticand industrious, and In hard 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGHAPIIICAL llECORD. 



•47 



work and perseverance h;is accuimihited a 
comfortable competence. He not only 
cultivated his original farm, but added to 
it gradually, until it now consists of fifty- 
acres of productive land. In addition to 
his agricultural labors he also continued 
to follow his trade until 1S9.:, when he 
abandoned it. For twenty-three years he 
had been employed to set fire-l)rick and 
do other repair work in different furnaces 
in the Fox River \'alley, many I'f which 
he had also helped to build. There are 
few men in the township who have toiled 
harder, but he has met with encouraging 
success in his efforts, and he is highly re- 
spected everywhere for his sterling worth. 
Mr. and Mrs. Droog have been blessed 
with children as follows; Mary, Mrs. 
FrankCalaway, of WestDePere; Leona, 
Mrs. August Matzke, of Glenmore; Jo- 
sephine, deceased wife of Mathias Mat/ike 
(she was a school teacher prior to her 
marriage); and Jennie C. and Henry J., 
at home. Mr. Uroog is a Democrat in 
his political preferences, and in religious 
connection he and his wife are members 
of St. Joseph's Catholic Church, De Pere. 



CAPTAIN JOSEPH DENIS, of the 
steam tug "Charnly," has been 
sailing from the port of Green 
Hay since 1864, commencing on 
the steamboat " George L. Dunlap, " and 
receiving his commission in 1S68. 

He was born in Belgium in 1845, a 
son of Leopold and Rosalie (Noel) Denis, 
and in 1855 the family left their native 
land on the " Henry Reed," a sailing 
vessel, in fifty days arriving at New York 
City. Thence they proceeded to Buffalo, 
N. Y., where they passed their first win- 
ter; from there, in the following spring, 
came by rail to Fond du Lac, Wis., and 
thence by team to Green Bay. In Bel- 
gium the father had followed agricultural 
pursuits, and, being desirous of continuing 
the same vocation in the New \\'orld, 
bought 160 acres of totally uncleared 



timber land in Jjrussells townshiji, Door 
Co., Wis., near Red ri\er. This, how- 
ever, the family never cleared, nor even 
lived on, though in later yeais the father 
did some logging on it; but in Alloue;^ 
township they lived for hve years on Capt. 
Cotton's farm, where is now the cemetery 
of that township. He then bought a farm 
near the old military road, where he died 
January 22, 1892; his first wife had pre- 
ceded liim to the grave in 1866. He was 
a Democrat in politics, and for eighteen 
years was assessor of his townshiji. This 
couple had born to them children as 
follows: Joseph, the subject of this 
sketch; Victoria, wife of F'rank Garrett, 
of Green Bay; Celestin R., residing at 
East De Pere, engaged as engineer and at 
farming; Louis, an engineer, who died in 
1891, at Appleton; Alfonsine, who died 
while cii route to America; Charles, who 
died in Buffalo, N. Y. ; Leopold, an en- 
gineer, residing in Green Bay; Julia, wife 
of X. Parmentier, city clerk of Green 
Bay; Mary, wife of Alfonse Hugot, of 
AUouez; Rosalie, wife of Ralph Soquet, a 
druggist, and Charles, a resident of De- 
Pere. In 1867 Leopold Denis, father of 
this family, for his second wife married 
Honorine Istash, also a native of Belgium, 
and to this union were born seven chil- 
dren, of whom the living are Victor, 
Frank, James, Honorine and Louisa. 

Our subject was Init ten years of age 
when he came to Green Bay, and was 
educated in the schools of that city and 
in Allouez township. Until he com- 
menced boating he was emploj'ed on the 
farm; in 1882 and 1883, however, he was 
connected witli his brother, Leopold, in 
sawmilling, but continued steamboating 
between Green Bay and all lake ports as 
far as Chicago. In 1868 he was married, 
in Green Bay, to Miss Mary Briquelet, a 
native of France and a daughter of 
Nicholas Briquelet, at that time a resi- 
dent of Allouez, where he died. Her 
brother, Joseph, came to this country in 
1856, and died in 1888. To the marriage 
of Capt. Denis have been born four chil- 



148 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



dren, viz.: Agnes (deceased in 1891) was 
the wife of Joseph Coel, a clothing mer- 
chant; James is a salesman with Joannes 
Bros. ; and Lucy, and Joseph, also clerk- 
ing with Joannes Bros. The Captain in 
politics is a Republican; fraternally he is a 
member of the Roj'al Arcanum; in relig- 
ious faith he and his wife are members of 
St. John's Catholic Church. Their fine 
residence in Green Bay is located at No. 
325 Van Buren street, and is centrally 
situated. The Captain takes a lively in- 
terest in the progress of the city, is high- 
ly respected both on the lakes and on 
shore, and is recognized as a useful, sub- 
stantial citizen. 



PETER V AN D E R H E I D E N, 
farmer of Holland township. 
Brown county, was born in North 
Brabant. Holland, February 10, 
1849, a son of Derk and Antonet (Van- 
Roy) Vanderheiden. 

The father of our subject was a 
farmer, and was twice married, first to 
Petronella Van de Nymelenberg, who bore 
him seven children, and died November 
9, 1847. The father then married, No- 
vember 30, 1S4S, Antonet Van Ro\', who 
has bore him si.\ children, viz. : Peter, 
our subject; George B. ; Mary, deceased; 
John and I^ardine (twins), and Mary (2). 
In 1S50 the parents came to America, 
landing in New Ytjrk, thence coming 
directly to Wisconsin. They settled in 
Holland township, where the father 
bought 160 acres of land in the wild 
w'oods. from which was carved out the 
splendid farm where our subject now lives. 
It would be superfluous to here relate the 
primitive manner in which the farm was 
reached and hewed from the wilderness. 
The courage and the endurance of the pio- 
neer have been depicted a* housand times, 
and the experience of the Vanderheiden 
family was that of all others in like cir- 
cumstances. SufTicc it to say that the 
family prospered, but that it was for a 



period of thirty years that they lived in 
the 20 .\ 30 log cabin that originalh- occu- 
pied the site of their present substantial 
stone dwelling. 

Peter \'anderheiden was faithful in 
aiding his father in developing the home- 
stead, and was always a hard worker at 
home, with the exception of a few months 
during the winters, when he worked for 
neighbors; but he always brought his 
earnings home, adding thus to the family 
store. The father died here February 1 1 , 
1874, aged fifty-nine years, eleven months 
and eleven days, deeply mourned by 
friends and neighbors. Our subject then 
took possession of the farm, which he has 
successfully managed to the present time; 
each heir became the owner of eighty 
acres. In 1887 our subject married Miss 
Louise, daughter of John and Mary 
(Gilsing) Pekel, the family coming to 
America from Germany in i 860. There 
were nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Pekel, namely: Lambert, John, \\'illiam, 
Mary, George, Kate (deceased in in- 
fancy), Louise, Kate (2), and Lena. To 
our subject and his wife have come four 
children, viz. : Theodore, born Decem- 
ber 7, 1888; John and Mary, born Jan- 
uary 14, 1891; and William, born Jan- 
uary- 7, 1893. Mr. and Mrs. Vanderheiden 
are devout members of the Catholic 
Church; in politics he is a Democrat, and 
socially he is one of the most respected 
citizens of the township. 



JOSEPH CRABB, a rising young agri- 
ctilturist of De Pere township, is a 
native of the town of De Pere, 
Brown county, born November 8, 
1871, son of Philip and Gertrude Crabb, 
the former a nati\e of Belgium, the latter 
of Holland. She was his second wife, 
and they were the parents of six children — 
three sons and three daughters — of whom 
Joseph is the eldest son. 

Joseph Crabb received a liberal com- 
mon-school education in the schools of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



•49 



De Pere. When he was seven j'cars old 
his father died, and his mother having re- 
married, he resided at liome until he 
reached the age of eighteen, at which 
time he commenced life for his own ac- 
count. Proceeding to Glenwood, St. 
Croix Co., Wis., he remained there three 
years, the greater part of the time work- 
ing in a mill, excepting for a few months 
when it was idle, and he engaged in rail- 
roading. He then returned to De Pere 
township. Brown county, where for a 
short time he made his home with his 
wife's parents, coming, March i, 11^93, to 
the farm where he now resides. On No- 
vember 5, 1 889, Mr. Crabb was married, 
in De Pere, to Miss Nellie Kersten, who 
was born .August 17, 1870, in De Pere 
township, daughter of )ohn Kersten, a 
native of Germany. To tliis union have 
been born two children, Philip and Ger- 
trude A. Though Mr. Crabb is but a 
young man, and is, in fact, the youngest 
farmer in the township, he has no su- 
perior as an agriculturist in his section. 
He is hard-working, energetic and pro- 
gressive, and with his natural abilit}' and 
good business management is bound to 
prosper. In his political affiliations he 
is a member of the Democratic party, 
and in religious connection he and his 
wife are both members of St. Mary's 
Catholic Church. 



JAMES D. McALIJSTKR, a well- 
known resident of Howard township. 
Brown county, is a native of W'is- 
consin, born in Manitowoc county 
November 27, 1847, son of Clement and 
Minalta (Holbrook) McAllister. 

Clement McAllister was born and 
reared on a farm in the forests of New 
York State, and came to Wisconsin in 
1839, settling on a farm, where he died 
when about fifty years of age. His parents 
were Francis and Nancy (Elkins) McAllis- 
ter, natives of Scotland, the former of 
whom was born March i, 1792, and died 



November 6, 1S41, in Manitowoc county. 
Wis. ; the latter died in St. Lawrence 
county, N. Y. ■ Mrs. Minalta McAllister 
was born November 18, 1810, in St. Law- 
rence count}', N. Y., and now makes her 
home with her S(jn, James D. She is a 
daughter of David and Minerva (Bartholo- 
mew) H(.ilbrook, the former of whom, a 
farmer, was born in 1785 in Lebanon, 
Conn., and died in 1833 in St. Lawrence 
county, N. Y. His parents were Peltia 
and Mary (Clark) Holbrook. Minerva 
Bartholomew, daughter of Isaac and 
Lydia (Deming) Bartholomew, of Ver- 
mont, liut later of New York, was born 
June 3, 1793, and died in 1843, the mother 
of twelve children, of whom Minalta Mc- 
Allister was the eldest, and of whom seven 
are yet living. 

James I). McAllister is the youngest 
child in a family of six, of whom but one 
besides himself, a sister, is living. He was 
reared on the home farm until fourteen 
years of age, when his father died, and he 
went to work for his Uncle Hiram, with 
whom he remained eight or nine years. 
In 1 876 he first came to Howard town- 
ship. Brown county, and bought eighty 
acres of partly cultivated land, which he 
at once commenced to improve and work. 
On May 28, 1879, he was married to Miss 
Ella Ames, who was born March 27, 1859, 
in Erie county, Penn., daughter of Clark 
and Mary (Robbins) Ames, who had a 
family of five children: these parents were 
also natives of Pennsylvania, in which 
State the mother died at the early age of 
twenty-seven }'ears; the father, Clark 
Ames, and his children came to Wiscon- 
sin about the year 1866, and still reside 
in Pittsfield township. 

The union of James D. and Ella Mc- 
Allister has been blessed with six chil- 
dren, as follows: Mabel V., born April 
3, 1881: William L., born September 10, 
1882: Susan S., born June 3, 1885; Alvin 
L., born March 8, 1888: and Clyde C, 
born May 18, 1890, and one born May 
17, 1S94, died July 28, 1894. Mr. Mc- 
Allister, at the time of his marriage, set- 



150 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



tied on his present farm, on which he 
conducts a profitable dairying business. 
In his political affiliations he is a Republi- 
can, and he is active in promoting the 
educaticjnal interests of his section, also 
giving his aid to religious and other moral 
movements which tend to benefit or ad- 
vance his township or countj-. He and 
his family are universally respected, and 
Mr. McAllister's steady habits render him 
a desirable member of the community. 



SKTH WILLIAMS CHAMPION. 
railroad manager, was born De- 
cember 25, 1844, at Princeton, 
Ky. , son of Henry \V. and Sally 
(Wiggenton) Champion, also natives of 
Kentucky. They were both closely allied 
to well-known southern families, although 
bearing different names. 

Thomas Champion, grandfather of the 
subject of these lines, was a native of 
North Carolina, whence he moved into 
Kentucky, settling in Livingston county, 
near the city of Salem, where he resided 
until I 8 14. He served as sheriff of Liv- 
ingston county, was a trader with the 
Southern States, and while on a trip 
south with a drove of horses contracted 
yellow fever, from which he died soon 
after reaching home, leaving a widow and 
five children, Henry W. being the eldest; 
Dr. Alfred Champion, now a resident of 
Eddyville, Ky. , is the only surviving 
member of this family. Their mother, 
Mrs. Thomas Champion, was Miss 
Frances Williams, who, in 1809, in com- 
pany with her brother Henry, migrated 
from \'irginia to Kentucky, and settled in 
Livingstcm county, near Salem. She was 
connected with the Williams family, nota- 
ble among the large landowners of Cul- 
peper county. Va., some members of 
which achieved distinction in ]>ublic life. 
One of the most distinguished members 
of tliis family was Gen. Robert Williams, 
of the United States Army, an ardent 
Unionist, who rendered valuable service 



to the government durin 



the Rebellion, 
notwithstanding the fact that he was a 
\'irginian by birth. After the war he 
served as adjutant-general of the army, 
and married the widow of Stephen A. 
Douglas. His grandfather served in the 
Virginian line during the war of the Rev- 
olution, and was also a commissioned 
officer in the war of 181 2. The paternal 
great-grandmother of Seth Williams 
Champion came of another distinguished 
Virginia family, representatives of which 
were also numerous in Culpeper county. 

Henry W. Champion, father of our 
subject, was born, in 1812, in Li\ingston 
county, Ky. , and was but a boy when his 
father died. His wife was a granddaugh- 
ter of John Miller Bell, who belonged to 
a famous Southern familj', numerous rep- 
resentatives of \\hich have been promi- 
nent in public life, John Minor Botts, 
who was one of the signers of Jefferson 
Davis' bail bond at the close of the Civil 
war, belonging to the antecedents of the 
Bell family. Prior to the war he served 
many years in Congress as an "Old-Line 
Whig," and was an enthusiastic follower 
of Henry Clay. He was a lawyer and 
gentleman farmer, his law office being in 
Richmond, and his country home near 
Culpeper Court House. He opposed the 
Secession movement, and when the war 
began retired to his farm, refusing to act 
with the large majority of the public men 
of Virginia who held that they owed their 
State allegiance paramount to that which 
they owed to the National Governmi'ut. 
His loyalty to the Union caused him to 
suffer arrest and imprisonment at the 
hands of the Confederates, and his for- 
tune was seriously impaired by the rav- 
ages of war. After the struggle was ended, 
he exerted his influence to restore \'ir- 
ginia to Statehood, and published an in- 
teresting volume entitled "The Great 
Rebellion, Its Secret History, Rise, Pro- 
gress and Disastrous Failure." 

In 1857 Henry W. Champion, with 
his family, emigrated from Kentucky to 
Coles countv. 111., one of the older coun- 




\ 




/ 



s 



/ ^64>lcn\u 



■cf. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



'53 



ties of southeastern Illinois, where he be- 
came a farmer. In 1862 he removed to 
central Illinois, settlinj; first in Macon 
count}', and three or four years later in 
Menard county, where he continued to re- 
side up to his death, which occurred in 
1881, one week after the decease of his 
wife. In early life he was a printer, and 
published a paper both in Tennessee and 
Kentucky, but later was a merchant at 
Greenview, and for many years postmaster 
of that villaj;e. In his religious faith he 
was a stanch and active member of the 
Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and 
during his whole life was an ardent worker 
in the Sunday-scho(jls. 

Seth Williams Champion, the subject 
proper of this sketch, received his literary 
education at the schools in Coles county 
and Mount Zion, Macon Co., 111., at the 
age of thirteen years commencing to work 
on his father's farm, and, until he at- 
tained his majority and sought other em- 
plo_\'ment, by far the greater share of 
his time was thereafter devoted to that 
kind of labor. When he was about twen- 
ty-two years of age, he left home and 
went to Virden, 111., becoming a clerk in 
the office of the Chicago & Alton Railway 
Co. at that point, and after remaining 
there one year he was appointed station 
agent at Greenview, 111. At the end of two 
years more he was promoted to station 
agent at Lacon, 111. (also on the Chicago 
& Alton railroad), and remained there 
eight years. In 1878 he came to Green 
Bay, Wis., and became the agent in that 
city of the Green Bay & Minnesota Rail- 
road Company, now known as the Green 
Bay, Winona & St. Paul Railroad Com- 
pany. Sometime afterward he entered 
the general offices of this company as 
chief clerk, and later was promoted in 
succession to the important and respon- 
sible positions of general freight and pas- 
senger agent, and superintendent. In 
1890 he became general manager of this 
line of railroad, with headquarters in 
Green Bay. He has also been manager, 

since its construction, of the Kewaunee, 
9 



Green Bay & Western railroad, running 
from Green IJay to Kewaunee, a line 
thirty-four miles long, of which he was 
one of the builders and principal pro- 
moters. 

As a railroad man, Mr. Champion 
has beccjme well known throughout the 
entire Northwest, and is recognized as a 
railroad ojierator of superior capacity and 
ability. Having begun his career, as a 
railroad man, as station agent in a country 
\illage, he has thoroughly familiari;ie(l 
himself with all the details of railroad 
business and management, and has earned 
promotion by hard work and thorough 
honesty, intelligent effort, and efficient 
Services. He has made a close study of 
what may be termed "The science of 
railroading," has a broad knowledge of 
the principles governing the operation ol 
railroads and all the rules and regulations 
pertaining to railroad traffic, and is a 
man, also, of extensive general informa- 
tion. The duties and responsibilities of 
the positions which he has held have de- 
manded his undi\ided attention, and he 
has had neither the time nor the inclina- 
tion to seek official [nefcrment or public 
honors of any kind, the only office he has 
ever held being that of alderman, while 
a resident of Lacon, 111. He has, how- 
ever, taken the interest which all good 
citizens should feel in political nio\'e- 
ments, acting always with the Republi- 
can party where political issues are in- 
volved, and being a linn believer in the 
wisdom of its principles and politics. His 
famil}', although of Southern origin, be- 
longed to the "Old-Whig" party of ante- 
war days, and when his father came 
North he drifted easily and naturally into 
the Republican part_\', when that party 
came into existence. The son was brought 
up under this influence, and has seen no 
reason to change his political faith. The 
religious influences, which surrounded him 
in early life, were those of the Cumber- 
land Presbyterian Church, and Mr. Cham- 
pion is still a Presbyterian in his Church 
affiliations, but on account of there being 



J 54 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



no Presbyterian Church of the Cuinber- 
land faith in Green I-?ay, he afiiHates with 
the Methodist Church, of which his wife 
is a member. 

In 1868 Mr. Champion was married 
to Miss Lucinda A. White, a daughter of 
George Roley White, of Decatur, 111., in 
which city she was born, and to this union 
were born five children, of whom three 
are Hving, namely: Lalla May, Ora A. 
and Clyde W. 



REV. JACOBUS BOZMACK was 
born May i, 1848, in Austria, son 
of Valentine and Constantia Boz- 
mack, who had a family of eight 
children, all of whom are deceased ex- 
cept our subject. The parents both died 
in their native country. 

Jacobus Bozmack received his early 
education in the common schools of the 
land of his birth, and, at the age of 
twenty-seven years, entered the priest- 
hood. In 1893 he came to America, 
and after a very rough voyage landed in 
New York city, thence coming directly 
to his charge in Eaton township, Brown 
county, Wisconsin. 



Hi:XKV NACHTWEY, a prosper- 
I )us wide-awake general merchant 
(A Dc Perc township, and post- 
master at Pine Grove, is a native 
of Wisconsin, born July 22, 1858, in Coop- 
erstown. Anton Nachtwc}', father of 
Henry, was born March 26, 1S26, in 
Prussia, Germany, a son of Michael 
Nachtwey, who died when his son, Anton, 
was twelve years old. Michael Nachtwey 
was married four times, and had twenty- 
five children; b}- his third marriage he had 
ten, of whom Anton was the ninth and 
the yoimgest son. Tiiis wife died whcMi 
her son Anton was five years old. 

Anton Nachtwey received a good edu- 
cation in the schools of his native coun- 



try. He was reared a farmer boy, and 
after the death of his father left the home- 
stead and hired out as a farmhand at 
various places until he reached the age of 
sixteen, when he went to Frankfort-on- 
the-Main. Here he remained until he 
was twenty-one years of age, during which 
time he was employed in the German 
mint for three years, and for a year and 
a half worked in a brewery with his 
brother, Henry (this brother afterward 
conducted a store and a saloon in Coopers- 
town, Wis.). Anton had a very profitable 
situation in the government mint, but 
he was obliged to abandon it on account 
of his health. Having a few hundred 
dollars, part of which he received from 
his father's estate, and part of which he 
had saved, Mr. Nachtwey, in the summer 
of 1847, left his native country and set out 
for America. He proceeded to London, 
England; but after waiting there nine days 
for a vessel which did not arrive, he took 
the cars to Liverpool, whence he set sail, 
and after a voyage of seven weeks landed 
at New York. P"rom there he proceeded 
by steamboat to Albany, thence, via the 
Erie canal to Buffalo, where he took 
passage on the steamer "Michigan" for 
Milwaukee, Wis. His destination was 
Two Rivers, but as the "Michigan" did 
not stop at that port, be came hither by 
sailing vessel from Milwaukee, arriving at 
his journey's end in the latter part of 
July. At that time the town of Two 
Rivers contained but twenty-seven build- 
ings, by actual count, and Indians were 
still numerous in the surrounding countr)'. 
Here Mr. Nachtwey found work in the 
sawmill of a Mr. Smit, and remained four 
years. 

On July 20, 1851, ho was married, in 
Cooperstown, to Miss Catherine Platten, 
who was born July 8, 1835. in Prussia, 
daughter of Anton and Margaret Platten. 
wh(j came to the United States in 1842. 
They were seven weeks crossing the ocean, 
and made the entire journey from their 
home in Germany to Green Bay, Wis., 
b)- water, making the lake trip on the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



It;: 



"Old Columbus," this beinj,' the last trip 
made by that old boat. For a year and 
a half after their arri\al the Flattens lived 
in Green F>ay, and then moved t(j De- 
Fere township, Brown county, where Mrs. 
Nachtwey resided until her marriage. To 
Antiin and Margaret Nachtwey have been 
born children as follows: loseph, of 
Bcllevue to\\nship; [ohn, of New Den- 
mark townshij); Henry, whose name opens 
this sketch; .\nton, of Cdenniore town- 
ship; Fraid<, of I>elle\tie township; Mar\', 
teacher in a con\ent iu Chicago; Mark. 
Matilda, and Maggie and Li/;?ie (twins), 
at home; three children that died yc.iung; 
and Peter, who died in (ireen Bay at the 
age of seventeen, tnnu lockjaw, the re- 
sult of an accident in a sawmill. 

.\fter his marriage Mr. Nachtwe}' re- 
sided in Cooperstown, of which |)lace he 
and his brother Henry wcri; anmng the first 
German settlers. When they first came 
there the surrounding country was still in 
its primiti\-e ccjndition, and Mr. Nachtwey 
remembers at one time seeing seventeen 
Inilian wigwams in Coopersto%\n, the oc- 
cupants of which were all engaged in 
making maple sugar, which they traded 
to the settlers f(ir potatoesand other food. 
In 1877 he came to New Denmark town- 
ship. Brown C( unity, where he and his 
wife still make their hcimc. He has fol- 
lowed farming continuously ever since his 
marriage, and he now has a fine tract of 
160 acres. He and his wife are members 
of the Hnl)- Ti-inity Catholic Church at 
Pine Grove, and in his political affilia- 
tions Mr. Nachtwey generally faxors the 
principles of the Democratic party ; how- 
ever, he cast a vote for Abraham Lincoln, 
and su]-)ports the best man without much 
regard for party lines. He is universall\- 
respected as an honest, upright citizen. 
He has a renuukable meinorw and easily 
recalls events which happened \'ears ago. 

Henry Nachtwey received his educa- 
tion in the common schools of his time, 
and was thoroughly trained to agriculture 
on the home farm. In i 870 he commenced 
to work in a shingle-mill. and continued the 



same until a painful accident to his 
shoulder compelled him to retire from 
active lal)or and rest for a jear, at the end of 
which time, with complete rest and the 
aid of a costly contrivance, he fully re- 
covered and was able to resume work. 
For three years he was employed in the 
mills of Gillon & Monroe, becoming thor- 
oughly familiar with all kinds of sawmill- 
ing. which in the early pioneer times was 
a very important industry, but with the 
clearing up of the countrx' has been gradu- 
ally decreasing. On Novemlier 12, i88g, 
Mr. Nachtwey was united in marriage, in 
De I\-re, with Miss Margaret E. Connel- 
ly, who was born May 23. 1S65. in the 
Frmince of Ontario, Canada, daughter of 
)ohn Connelh'. and was but nine weeks 
old when her parents came to Wisconsin, 
where she was reared. After marriage the 
\'oung couple commenced housekeeping 
in Fine Grove, De Fere township, where 
he has been engaged in general mercan- 
tile business since 1882. He commenced 
alone, but later received his brother, 
Joseph, as a partner, and they carried on 
the business together until 1891. since 
when our subject has been sole proprietor. 
He has been very successful, and he con- 
ducts one of the best-kept and most com- 
plete general stores in the county, his 
courteous and accommodating disposition 
having made him e.Nxeedingl} popular 
with his fellowmen. The postoffice at 
Fine Grove had fjeen discontinued, but in 
1882 it was re-established, and Mr. 
Nachtwey was appointed to the position 
of postmaster, in which he now serves. 
Mr. and Mrs. Nachtwey are both mem- 
bers of Holy Trinit\' Catholic Church at 
Fine Gro\e. They have had one child, 
Allen A., who was born June 22, 1892. 



w 



II.LIAM WORKMAN, the pop- 
ular druggist of De Fere. Wis.. 
was born at the village of Prest- 
wick, .-\yrshire, Scotland. June 
1822, a son of John and Ann (Prin- 



COMMEMOHATIVK BWORAPUICAL RECORD. 



glej Workman, the former of whom was 
a weaver, who employed se\eral journey- 
men, but who died when his son W'ilham 
was but six years of age. Mrs. Ann 
Workman continued to reside at Prest- 
wick for some \ears after the death of her 
husband, but finally followed her son Will- 
iam to America, and ended her days at 
his home in De Pere. Both parents were 
members of the Presbyterian Church. 

William Workman served an api)ren- 
ticeship of five and a half jears at the 
machinist's trade in Deanston, Perth- 
shire, Scotland, and then, July i, 1S42, 
at the age of twenty \"ears, emliarked at 
Glasgow on a sailing vessel for the United 
States, and nine weeks later landed in 
New York City, where he remained about 
a year, employed at various occupations; 
he then came to Milwaukee, Wis. ; thence 
moved to Waterville, where heemplo\ed 
himself at farming for a year, and was 
then employed in carpentering at Ripon. 
On January S, 1852. he started for Cali- 
fornia b)' the l^anama route, reaching 
Panama on the first of the following 
March; built and started the first circu- 
lar sawmill in the place at a salary of 
one hundred dollars per week in gold, 
and on Ma\' i reached San Francisco. 
.After (]uite successfully mining in Cali- 
fornia for two years, Mr. \\'orkman re- 
turned to Ripon, Wis., May 30, 1854, 
and estal)lished a steam cabinet-making 
establishment; in 1859 he purchased a 
seeding machine patent, and for three 
years was engaged in its manufacture at 
Ripon, but the patent proved a failure. 
Mr. Workman ne.xt secured several pat- 
ents for sundry other machines, and in 
the manufacture of these he met with 
better success. In 1S66 he entered into 
partnershi]) with Jason and Wellington 
Hitchcock, and added the manufacture of 
sleighs, cutters, wagons, etc., and in 1878 
sold his interest in the factory to Jason 
Hitchcock and moved to De Pere, where 
he took the position of superintendent of 
the De Pere Iron Works, in which he 
hold some stock. In 1873 the company 



failed and was bought in Iw Blanchard & 
Arnold, of Milwaukee, for whom Mr. 
Workman acted as superintendent. This 
firm also fell into financial difficulties 
through the failure of the Union Steel & 
Iron Company, of Chicago, in 1884, and 
bj- this disaster Mr. Workman was again 
a sufferer to the extent of five thousand 
dollars. On November 30, 1885, Mr. 
Workman bought out the interest of his 
son and his son's partner, Michael Welsh, 
in their drug store in West De Pere, and 
this fie conducted until August 18, 1890; 
in 1887 he also purchased from William 
Chapman his drug store in East De Pere, 
and to this, after selling out in West De- 
Pere, he has since devoted his entire at- 
tention, meeting with a prosperous trade. 
Mr. Workman has been twice mar- 
ried, first time at Ripon, in 1845, to Miss 
Rachel Stilwell, who survived her mar- 
riage onl)' three months; his second mar- 
riage occurred, in 1850, to Margaret 
Miller, also at Ripon, and this union has 
been blessed with six children, viz. : Will- 
iam M., a druggist of West De Pere; 
Mary, married to David Thomas, of Ripon ; 
Margaret and Annie P., at home; John, 
who died at Ripon of scarletina at the 
the age of two years and nine months; 
and Frank, who died of diphtheria at De- 
Pere, aged three years and three months. 
Mr. Workman was a charter member of 
Ripon Lodge, No. 95, V. & A. M., in 
1857; he also was a charter member of 
Ripon Chapter, No. 30, and a member of 
the Commandery at Fond du Lac; he is 
now a member of De Pere Lodge. No. 
85, of which he has served as secretary 
three j'ears. In politics he is a Repub- 
lican, and while living at Ripon he served 
as county supervisor from the First ward; 
two terms; also in the city council several 
terms, and as mayor one term; at West 
De Pere he has served as president of the 
village for ten or more years, and also as 
member of council in East De Pere for 
two years — evincing in each position a 
business ability that gave the utmost 
satisfaction to the public. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



157 



Mr. Wdikrnan lias always coininanded 
the res]>ect of the conuminities in which 
he has lived, and been recognized as a 
valuable and desirable member of societ'S'. 



JAMES TOUHEV. the -enial pro- 
prietor of the " New Transit Hotel " 
at De Pere, was Ixnn July 2S. 1S3G, 
ill County Claie, Ireland, son of 
Michael and Bridijet (Maloney) Touhey. 
natives of the same county. 

Michael Touhey was a fanner of 
moderate means, and also a cattle dealer, 
with his resilience about se\'en miles 
northeast of Limerick. His chilifren, 
who were all born in Ireland, were named 
as follows: Jane, Mary, Dennis, Bridj^et, 
Michael, Honora, Margaret. Winnie, 
Michael (2). Timothy, Winnie iJi, and 
James; there was also one that died in in- 
fancv. They were not, however, born in 
the orck'r named, as James, our subject, 
was the fifth child and the third son. On 
March 17. 1S48, Michael Touhey and his 
family left Limerick for America, and on 
June 20, landed in Quebec. From that 
city he went to Burlington, Vt.. where he 
was a[)pointe(l overseer and timekeeper 
over 1,200 men emploxed on the New- 
York cS: Erie railway, then being built. 
\\'isconsin was then a lu^w State, and, al- 
though he was making money he con- 
cluded to try his fortune here. Accord- 
ingly, in the latter jiart of August, 1848, he 
arrived in Milwaukee, where he was en- 
gaged in street grading, etc., employing 
many men and teams, until September, 
1S55, when lie removed to Manitowoc, 
and a short time afterward purchased a 
tract of 160 acres in Franklin township, 
same count}', which he subsequenth' in- 
creased to 400 acres. Here he died, in 
the Catholic faith, April 6, 1886, and was 
followed to the grave by his faithful wife 
four days later. Their remains now rest 
side by side in Maple Grove cemetery, 
Manitowoc county. Of his large family 
four children only survive: Honora, a 



widow; James, our subject; Margaret, 
now Mrs. Patrick McMaini, of Kansas; 
and Michael, of Bessemer. Mich., Imt 
formerly of Morrison towiiship. Brown 
Co.. Wis., being then the representative 
of his District in the State Legislature. 

lames ToiilieN' recei\ed his earlier ed- 
ucation in his n.ativc' land, and, after 
reaching the Liiited States, at the age of 
eleven j'ears, attended the .Milwaukee 
schools until large enough to (lii\c ateam 
for his father. While thus employed hi- 
drove the horses that hoisted the hrst lo- 
comoti\e that ever ran in Wisconsin, and 
which \vas subsequently used on the Mil- 
waukee iS; Mississippi railroad. He mo\-ed 
with his jiarents to l~ranklin township, 
Manitowoc county, wlu-ri.- ha worked on 
his father's e\teiisi\e tracts of m-w land 
until his marriage, October 26, 1858, at 
Manitowoc Kapids, with Miss Mary Mans- 
field, a native County Kilkenny, Ireland, 
born in 1839, daughter of Thomas Mans- 
field, who died when his daughter was 
but five years of age, leaxing a widowand 
five children. The \\idow came to the 
United States in 1850, remarried, and had 
three children by her second husband. 
Mary Mansfield was reared near Ha\er- 
straw-, on the Htidson I'or North) ri\er, 
New York, and in 1858, while on a visit 
to Wisconsin, met ami married Mr. Tou- 
hey. For five years after his marriage 
Mr. Touhe\- resirled with his father, and 
then located on 1 20 acres of timbered land 
that had formed part of his father's estate. 
He cleared this land and made a fine 
farm, on which hv residi-d t\\elve years, 
doing hard work all the time. In the fall 
of 1873 he remo\ed to De Peie and j)m'- 
chased the " l"o.\ Ki\-er Hotel," \\-hich he 
remodeled and opened on the second 
Tuesda\- in No\ember of the same j-ear, 
changing the name to the "Manitowoc 
House." .Aided by his wife, a \cry ac- 
complished lad\', he carried on a most 
prosperous business until .April 22, 1882, 
when the edifice was consumed by fire. 
Mr. Touhey immediately rebuilt on a 
larger scale, and called the new hotel the 



iss 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIIAI'HWAL RECORD. 



"Transit Hotel," in which he did a thriv- 
ing trade for seven years, when he was 
again burned out. Mr. Touhey, some- 
what discouraged, then went to Hot 
Springs, Ark., to be treated for rheuma- 
tism, from which he had been suffering 
since 1879; later he \isited various sites 
in Colorado, where several offers of an 
advantageous nature were made to as- 
sist him in opening a hotel, but the pub- 
lic-spirited citizens of De Perc induced 
him to return to that city and resume his 
former business. Acordingl), on the ist 
of September, i8go, he opened the " New 
Transit Hotel," now so well known along 
the Fox river. 

Mr. Touhey is a stanch Democrat, and 
was once elected justice ot the peace, but 
declined to serve; in 1863, however, he 
served as a member of the board of alder- 
men of De Pere. He is a meml)er of St. 
Francis Catholic Church, and he and his 
wife are held in the highest respect by the 
entire cormiiunit)'. They have had no 
children born to them, but some young 
relative — niece or nephew — has always 
found a home under their roof. 



CHAI^LES SCHK0I-:DI-:K. This 
popular dealer in agricultural im- 
plements of Wrightstown, lirown 
county, was born June 6, 1844, 
in West Prussia, son of (iottlieb and 
Louise (Luefgc) Schroeder. 

In 1863, in com|)any with his mother 
and two sisters. <}ur subject came to the 
United States, landing at Baltimore Mil., 
August 1 5, whence they moved to the 
town of Rockland, Hrovvn Co., Wis., set- 
tling in the wilderness near the Fox Ki\er 
\'alley, where he engaged in farming. On 
January 18, 1870, Mr. Schroeder was 
here married to Miss Bertha Wirschke, a 
daughter of Cottlieb Wirschke, who was 
largelv engaged in the manufacture of 
linseed oil. To this union have been 
born ten children, namely: Mary. Charles, 
August, Fmilie. Rudolph, Wiihelm, 



Emma, Robert, Ida, and Albert. After 
a residence of about sixteen years on his 
farm Mr. Schroeder removed with his 
famil}' to Wrightstown, leaving one son in 
charge of the home place. Here Mr. 
Schroeder at once established his present 
business, dealing in farm machinery and 
agricultural implements, and has built up 
a successful and thriving trade, his fair 
dealing and gentlemanly deportment gain- 
ing for him the confidence of the com- 
munity. Ho is a local leader in the Dem- 
ocratic part)", and has filled several re- 
sponsible offices; he is now a candidate 
for the position of postmaster. 



CHKI^T(,JPH .MEISTl^K, who is a 
contractor and builder, of Green 
Bay, was born in Saxony, Ger- 
mau)', November 9, 1820, a son 
of Henr)' and Elizabeth (Neuman) Meis- 
ter, who, in 1855, settled in Green Bay, 
where the father died in 1864. the mother 
in 1 866. They reared a family of six 
children, as follows: Christoph, the sub- 
ject of this sketch; Fredericka, wife of 
Matthias Fist, of Pittsfield township; 
Caroline, wife of Jacob Low, of Preble 
township; Harry; James; and Ernestine, 
wife of Frank Lipman.of Preble township. 
Christoph Meister was educated in 
German}', and also learned his trade of 
carpenter and builder in that country. 
On June 18. 1853, he came to Green Baj', 
and in 1856 erected his present pleasant 
i residence. On arriving here he at once 
engaged in business, and among the many 
I structures he has juit up may l)e men- 
I tioned " Cook's Hotel," Chapman block, 
' Uncle Frank's block. Engine House No. i, 
1 the old Postofhce building. Turner Hall, 
I the Union Brt-wery, a brewery in Esca- 
naba, the courthouse in Grantl Rapids, 
and most of the larger stores and dwell- 
ings in (ireeii Bay. Mr. Meister was 
united in matrimony in Germany. in 1849, 
to Miss Dorothea Montag. and to this 
union have been born ei-'ht children, \iz. : 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



'59 



Ernest, Charley, Hcriiiaii, Frederick, 
Louisa (wife of Otto Breliiner), Lena, 
Emma, and Matilda. Mr. and Mrs. Meis- 
ter are members ot the I^iitheran Church. 
Socially he is a nienilier of Herman 
Lodge, No. Ill, in which he has passed 
all the chairs, and is also a member df 
the Tnrnverein and of the German Bene\- 
olent Societx. In politics he is a Ke- 
pulslican, taking; an active interest in the 
success of the party, and has served as 
alderman four years. Mr. Meister is the 
oldest contractor in Green I>ay, has la- 
bored hard to adxance its interests, and 
has won for himself a hij;h standing in the 
estimation of the entire community 



JOHN B.\TEY, of De Pere, was born 
in the village of Stella, on the river 
Tyne. Count) of Dinhain. England, 
September I I, 1S23, and is a son of 
Jolm and Ann ( Blair j Batey, the former 
of whom was a mason and contractor. 

Our subject was educated in private 
schools in the \iilage of Backworth, 
county nf Northumberland, England, 
until fifteen years of age, when he was 
indentured for six \ears to a coal com- 
pany (for whom his father was a foreman 
over the masons em[)lo)'ed) for tin.' |)ur- 
pose of learning masonry. He served 
out the full term of his indentures, and also 
worked for the ctunpanj' three years as a 
journeyman. On the J 5th of January, 
1.S45, lie married Dorotlu' .\rmstrong, 
then eighteen years and eleven days old. 
a daughter of Thomas and Ann fScott) 
Armstrong, the wedding taking place in 
All Saints Church, Newcastle-on-Tyne. 
For ten years after his marriage Mr. 
Batey resided in Backworth, working at 
his trade, and, of his four children born 
there, three died of scarlet fever, which 
so distressed him that he resolved to 
abandon the coimtr)- and emigrate to 
Australia. On reaching Liverpool with 
his wife and remaining child, .Arm, then 
eight years old. the news of hard times 



was so dishcarlennig Iroin tin: antipi}des, 
that he changed his destination to Amer- 
ica, and landed in Montreal, Canada, 
where hi' found woik on the famous Vic- 
toria bridge, then in C(iuisi' of ccuistruc- 
tion for the Grand Trunk rail\\a\. I)Ut 
the Work was dangrrons, ami drownings 
of masons were <if such li"i.(|uent occiu'- 
rence, that he sought and scciued em- 
ployment in the Grand Trunk railroad 
shops at Mc/Utreal. where he remained 
three months, and then moved to Point 
Levi, near (>uebec; but. the water freez- 
ing here a ipiarterof an inch in oiu- night, 
in the month of September, he iminedi- 
atel\- took passage for Toronto. Tliis trip 
was an exceedingly storm\- one; the boat 
was wrecked, his household geiods all 
lost, and he, his wife and child barely 
escaped with tln'iv li\es. ISeing unaware 
of the liabilit\- of the boat owners for his 
entire loss, Mr. Batey accepted hve dol- 
lars from the Captain as full indeumity 
for his goods and clothing. \\ Toronto 
Mr. Batey worked for three years at his 
trade for the railroad company, and then 
came to Wisconsin and passed two years 
at Marquette; from there, al)out 1S70. he 
came to De Pere. since when he has con- 
tracted for or assisted in the erecting of 
furnaces all the vva\- across the continent 
from Detroit, Mich., to Portland, Ore., 
at one time taking nineteen workmen 
from De Pere to Oregon. M present 
Mr. l>ate\ confines himself to acting 
as foremrm or director of men engaged 
in mason ^^"ork. ha\ing accumulate(f suf- 
ficient means to support his \\\{r ,ind self 
during his declining years. 

While residing in Canada there were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Batey four childri-n, 
of whom two only are now lixing. \i/. : 
Rebecca, married to Mi. P.icksler, of 
Spokane Falls, Wash., and Thomas W.. 
at home with his parents. .Ann, the child 
who was born in England, was married 
in Canada, to W'illiam W'right, bore her 
husband five children, and died when 
about twenty-six years old — the children 
being mostly reared b\- Mrs. l^ate\-. In 



i6o 



COMMEMORATIVK DIOGliAPIIICAL liECORD. 



politics Mr. Hatcy is independent, while 
Mrs. Batey affiliates with the Repub- 
licans, and she has been a consistent 
nienibei' of the Presbyterian Church for 
twenty-six years. 



M 



H. XOLAN, chief of police of 
(ireeii Bay, was born in 1856, 
in Sheboygan county. Wis. 
His parents, Thomas and Mary 
(McDonaldj Nolan, natives of Ireland, 
about the year 1841 settled in the woods 
of Sheboygan county, where they wrested 
a farm from the forest and acquired a 
moderate fortune. They now reside in 
Green Bush township, Sheboygan county, 
in ease and comfort. The}' had born to 
them a family of twelve children, of whom 
eleven are living, \\z. : Bridget, wife of 
Michael Flynn, of .Antigo, Wis. ; John, 
of Altoona, Wis.; .M. H., our subject; 
Andrew, a farmer of Dakota; Katie, at- 
tending the Normal School at Oshkosh, 
Wis. ; Libbie, assistant county treasurer 
of Langlade county. Wis. ; .Anna, clerk- 
ing in Milwaukee; Thomas, a farmer of 
Shebojgancount\'; Winnie, wifeof Thom- 
as Keenan. of Milwaukee; Alice, a school- 
teacher of Sheboygan county, and Madge, 
now attending school. 

M. H. Nolan was reared to farming 
on the Sheboygan county homestead. 
^^'hile )et a young man he passed two 
_\ears in traveling, seeing the country and 
working here and there until his final set- 
tlement in GreiMi Bay. in iSSj. After 
being employed at different branches of 
labor, he was placed in the city lire de- 
partment, and had charge of engine 
house No. 2 for a year: was then trans- 
ferred to the police force, and ser\ed four 
years in a subordinate position, when he 
was appointed chief in 1S93; having filled 
the position one term with ability and to 
the satisfaction of all concerned, he was 
re-appointed and is now serving his sec- 
ond term. The force comprises the chief 
ami six subordinates, and, undi-r Mr. 



Nohm's guidance, have succeeded in keep- 
ing the city in an admirable state of good 
order and quietude. In politics Chief 
Nolan is a Democrat; in religion he is a 
devout Catholic. He is a member of the 
Knights of the Maccabees, of which he 
was one of the organizers of Green Bay, 
and is also a member of the Royal .Ar- 
canum. He is a man of nerve, and is 
much admired by his many friends and 
associates. 



FRANK THEODORE BLESCH, 
a wide-awake and enterprising 
merchant of Green I:5ay, and who 
for some years has been connected 
with the commercial and social interests 
of that cit\', was born in Fort Howard, 
Wis., July 18,1861, of German descent, 
his grandfather, Carl Blesch, having been 
born at Bingen-on-the-Rhine. The great- 
grandfather was a well-known musician 
of that locality, and a composer of piano 
and organ music. Carl Blesch was also 
a \ery popular citizen in the community 
where he lived, and was the proprietor of 
the " Pariser Hof " (or " Parisian Hotel ") 
in Bingen. He died in the prime of life, 
leaving a widow, whose maiden name was 
Clara Hcuser, who survived him many 
years. They were the parents of seven 
children: Margareta and Carl, both de- 
ceased; John B; Andrew; l-"rancis, also 
ceased; Elesa and Peter. 

Francis Blesch, father of our subject, 
was l)orn in Bingen, November 6, 1824, 
and in the public schools of his native 
town obtained a good practical education. 
He there learned the cooper's and brewer's 
trades, perfecting himself in the business, 
and worked along those lines in many 
places, traveling over the greater part of 
Europe. Eventually' returning to Bingen. 
he there remained until October, 1849, 
when he cnisse<l the Atlantic to America, 
with but little capital; he was thoroughly 
honest, however, and willing to work, ami 
soon won the respect and confidence of all 



COMMEMOUA TIVE JIJOCNAPJIICAL IIKCORD. 



l6i 



by his many good qualities of head and 
heart. He first located in Milford, Pcnn., 
but in 1850 came to Green Bay, Wis., 
where he established a brewery and did a 
successful business. He was a member 
of the Masonic fraternity and a benevo- 
lent and charitable man, giving freely of 
his means to the poor and distressed, 
doing all in a quiet and unostentatious 
manner. His death occurred November 
9, icS79, and he was mourned by many 
friends. He married Antoinette Schnei- 
der, a native of Brussels, Belgium, who 
survives her husband; she is the mother of 
six children, namely: Mrs. Sophia B. 
Jorgenson, Mrs. Clara Monroe, Mrs. 
Emily Lewis. Gustav A., Frank T. and 
Louise A. 

The sulijcct of this sketch was edu- 
cated in the public schools of his nati\e 
town, and at the age of seventeen entered 
upon his business career as a clerk in the 
dry-goods store of his brother-in-law, f. 
L. Jorgenson. He remained in that store 
nine years, during which time he mastered 
every detail of the business. He became 
a partner in the concern, and when a 
branch store \\'as established at Green 
Bay he moved thither to assume the po- 
sition of resident manager, and has since 
been in charge of what is now one of the 
leading mercantile establishments of the 
city. He is a man of excellent business 
and executive abilities, sagacious and far- 
sighted, and by his earnest desire to please 
his customers, and his courteous treatment 
and fair dealing, he has secured a liberal 
patronage, of which he is well deserving. 
The best interests of the community re- 
ceive his support, and he withholds his co- 
operation from nil wortliv undertaking 
calculated to promote the general welfare. 



Rj. BLACK, stock dealer. Fort 
Howard. This gentleman was 
born, in 184:;. in jylland, Den- 
mark, and is a son of James and 
Carrie (Morup) Black, natives of the same 



place, where the father died in 1869, the 
mother in 1871, never ha\ing left their 
native coimtrw Their children were 
seven in number (of whom four came to 
Wisconsin), \i/. : James, who resides in 
Denmark; K. J., the subject i)f these 
lines; Carrie Marie, wife of Antlers Nel- 
son, a large dair\' farmer of Denmark; 
Feter, also residing in Denmark; Chris- 
tian, a resident of Fort Howaril, Wis ; 
Anna Catherine, who came to Oshkosh, 
Wis., and died there in 1870, and James, 
who came to Fort Howard in 1874, where 
he now resides. 

K. j. Black was reared and educateil 
in Denmark, and prepared himself for a 
teacher. At the age of twenty-one years 
he left his native land anif came to Wis- 
consin. Returning to Demnark in 1869 
he remained until the following year, 
when he again came to the "Badger 
State." He first located at Oshkosh, in 
1865, working at the lumber business, but 
in May, 1874, remo\-ed to Fort Howard 
and settled in Tanktown. fie was then in 
the employ of the Green Bay, Winona cS: 
St. Paul I^ailroad Company, for whom he 
had begun work as a track-layer, assisting 
in laying the rails as far as Winona, Minn. 
He had prexionsly, after his return from 
Denmark, been employeif by the Wiscon- 
sin Central Railroad Comjiany, helping 
to grade the road, and, later, was with 
the Chicago iS: Northwestern Railroad 
Companj', on their line between (iieen 
Bay and Marinette, .\fter the lirst vear 
at Fort Howard Mr. Black opened a meat 
markcit, which he conducted for seNenteen 
years, finally selling out and engaging in 
the stock business, in which he has con- 
tinued. He buys and sells li\e stock, and 
has an extensive business. lie is the 
owner of a good farm in tfie city limits, 
and has been successful in his \enture?. 

In 1872, at New London, Wis., Mr. 
Black was marrii'd to Miss Marie Madsen. 
a native of I.,olland, Denmark, and daugh- 
ter of Mads and Miriam Christina (Torsen) 
Kasmussen, who spent theii' entire li\cs 
in their nati\e counti'w i'"i)nr of their 



l62 



COMMEMORAriVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



children cnii^ratetl to Wisconsin: Kasinus 
Madsen and Frederic Madsen, both resi- 
dents of Fort Howard: Mrs. Black, of the 
.same place, and Signe, wife of C. ]. 
Black, who died at Fort Howard in i8<S6. 
There were two brothers, Nels. who died 
in Australia, and Christian, who died in 
the South. Mr. and Mrs. IMack are the 
parents of six children: Charlotte, wife 
of Rev. ]. V. Young, pastor of the Pres- 
byterian Chiircii at Fort Howard; Marie, 
a graduate of the l-'ort Howard schools 
in 1S93, and now attending Normal School 
at Oshkosh; Agnes, Emma and Stella, at 
school; and Edna. In political matters 
Mr. Black is a Prohibitionist, and he and 
his wife were charter members of the 
local organisation of the I. O. G. T. ; 
both are members of the Presbyterian 
Church. Mr. Black also holds member- 
ship in the I. O. O. V. at Green Bay, 
and the Ivoyal Arcanum at Fort Howard. 
For hve years he has served on the school 
board, and for an e(]ual period was alder- 
man from the Fifth ward, ser\ing also two 
years as supervisor. He takes connnend- 
able interest in public affairs, and is in every 
respect an upright, \V(jrthy citizen. In 
1889, in order to enjoy a )ileasure trip 
and see more of the country, he visited 
California. 

Mr. and Mis. Black have both re- 
sided in Fort Howard a sufficient period 
to witness remarkable changes in the 
place, and have kept pace with its devel- 
opment. All the region round about 
Green Bay has undergone almost a com- 
plete transformation during the years of 
their residence, and the end is not \et. 



DM. 11 ART 1: A U, architect, of 
Green Bay, was born at Ue Pere, 
Brown C(junt_\', Wis., in 1842, a 
Son of Joseph and Mary (Gorhani) 
Hartean, the former a native of Canada, 
the latter (•>[ Mackinac. Michigan. 

Joseph Harteau, with two brothers. 



Mitchell and Lewis, early came to Green 
Bay (Shantytown), and there Joseph 
found employment on the river under a 
Mr. Whitney, and was there married. 
Later he migrated to Scott township and 
engaged in farming, and still later moved 
to Chase township, Oconto Co., Wis., 
where he passed from earth in 1889; his 
wife had died in 1S88. Mrs. Harteau's 
father, Da\id B. Gorham, was a native 
of England, and was a shipbuilder. On 
coming to America he settled in the Ter- 
ritory of Michigan, and in July, 1827, 
was naturalized in the county of Michili- 
mackinac, but shortly afterward moved to 
Green Bay, Wis. , where he was employed 
by the government in boat building, and 
where he met his death at the hands of a 
sohlier. His widow, of whom Charley 
Gorham, of Do Pere, is the youngest 
brother, afterward married Charles Ga- 
beau, a native of Canada. Joseph and 
Mary Harteau were the parents of eight 
children, as follows: D. M., our subject; 
Rosella, who married William Pherson, 
and died at Oshkosh: Adeline, wife of 
Louis Hardwelk, of Menominee; Charley, 
of Chase township, Oconto county ; Joseph ; 
Augustus, of Chase township; Adel, mar- 
ried to John Wilson, and Eliza (Mrs. 
Longled), of Wisconsin. 

In 1864, D. M. Harteau enlisted at 
Green Bay, in Company C, Forty-seventh 
Wis. V. I., was assigned to garrison duty 
at Tullahoma, Tenn., and was discharged 
at Nashville, Tenn., in 1865. On his re- 
turn he worked at his trade, that of nuison, 
and studied architecture, opening an office 
in ("ireen Bay, in 1874, for the practice of 
the latter science, and has l)een so em- 
plf)yed ever since. He was married, in 
1872 to Miss Camilla Follett, who was 
born in .Mlouez township. Brown county, 
a daughter of Burley and Lizzie Follett. 
The father was a stationer, but later was 
in the boot and shoe business, and died 
in Green Bay; the mother passed from 
earth in Marinette. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Hartean six children were born, of whom 
only one sur\ives, Zola Lillian; the de- 



COMMKMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL IlKCOHD. 



i6; 



■ceased are; Lewis, Saiali, Charles, David, 
and Adda. 

In politics Mr. Harteau is a Ke])ub- 
lican, and has served as a member of the 
■common council from the Thiril ward; he 
is also a member of T. C). Howe Post, No. 
124, G. A. K., and of the French Catholic 
Church; Mrs. Harteau is Presbyterian. 
The family are (juiet and retiring in their 
habits, and are regarded with general re- 
spect, while Mr. Harteau's professional 
reputation stands on a firm basis. 



JOSEPH HI£NRICn.LES, present 
district clerk, is one of the most 
popular citizens (.)f l)e Pere town- 
ship, Brown county, with whose in- 
terests he has for man}' years been promi- 
nently identified. 

Our subject was born t'ebruar}' 9, 
1S40, ill Franciircliamps, Belgium, son of 
Hubert Henrigilles, who was a well-to-do 
farmer and miller. The latter married 
Mary ('. Legros, and to their union came 
five children, fnur of whom grew to ma- 
turity, \ i/. : Therese, married to J. Nisen; 
Margaret, now the wife of Jacques Ducat, 
a farmer of De Pere township; Mar}', who 
married Nic. Guirsh, and died in Kansas; 
and Joseph, whose name introduces this 
meiiidir. The mother of these died in 
US46. In 185S Hubert Henrigilles sold 
his property in I5elgium, and in the fall of 
the \'ear took passage at Antwerp for New 
York, where he and his family landed 
after a voyage of thirty-si.x days. From 
New York they proceeded westward to 
Chicago, 111., and here remained two 
months, at the end of which time they 
came to Peshtigo, Wis., where the father 
and son entered the employ of Ogden, the 
lumber and railroad man. They worked 
in sawmills, and also at vessel loading 
until 1S60, when they removed to New 
Hamburg, Scott Co., Mo., and here the 
father engaged in farming and other pur- 
suits until 1 87 1, when he returned to 
\\ isconsin, and passed the remainder of 



his life in De Pere township. Brown 
count}', at the home of his son. He died 
in 1892, at the age of ninet}', a member 
of the Catholic Church, and in politics a 
Kcpublican. While a resident of Missouri 
he enlisted in the home guards, on the 
Union side. 

Joseph Henrigilles was reared to agri- 
cultural life, and received his education in 
the common scho<jls of his native place, 
the instruction being principall}' in 
French, but he also received a fair train- 
ing in ihc English language. When 
eighteen years of age he came with his 
father to the United States, and his first 
work in the New World was for the Ogden 
Company, near Peshtigo, Wis., as {pre- 
viously stated. The first private resi- 
dence in Peshtigo was built for his father, 
but it was never taken off the contractor's 
hands. Later our subject engaged in 
fishing, and in I 860 he went to New Ham- 
burg, Scott Co., Mo., and there joined 
Company B, Scott Count}' (Mo.) Home 
Guards, Volunteer Battalion. On August, 
15, 1 861, he enlisted in Company B, First 
Missouri Cavalry, Hubbard's Battalion, at 
Jefferson Barracks, Mo., for three }ears, 
or during the war. In 186^ he was pro- 
moted to corporal, and on December 31, 
same }'ear he was honorably discharged at 
Little Rock, Ark. The ne.xt day, January 
I, 1 864, he re-enlisted in the same company 
and regiment, and served to the close of 
the war, receiving his final discharge Sep- 
temlier 1, 1865. Mr. Ht;nrigilles was 
taken ill in St. Louis soon after his enroll- 
ment, and was sent to the hospital, where 
he suffered much for want of pro])cr food. 
After leaving the hospital he joined his 
regiment at Tipton, Mo. .and thence went 
to Springfield, same State, under the 
command of Gen. Fremont. subse(]uently 
returned to Tipton, where he was taken 
ill with fever, and, upon his reco\'er\', he 
rejoined his regiment at Sj:)ringfield, Mo., 
to assist in driving the Rebels from the 
State. The latter returning, the engage- 
ment at Pea Ridge tofik place. .At Sugar 
Creek a friend of our subji'ct was wounded. 



164 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and Mr. Henrigilles was sent to the hos- 
pital with him. This establishment had 
been moved three miles from its first lo- 
cation, and on March 7, 1S62. it was at- 
tacked by the Rebels, the building V)eing 
between the tires of both armies. From 
there our subject was sent to Cassville, 
Mo., was appointed hospital steward, and, 
after some four months rejoined his com- 
mand at Springfield. For a time he served 
as scout, and was then engaged with i,.300 
other men in the pursuit of Col. Coffee. The 
Confederates were driven from the State, 
and the pursuers returned to Mt. Vernon, 
Mo. Our subject was then detailed with 
one hundred other men to guard a mill at 
Newtoiiia, Mo., which was thirt3'-three 
miles from the Union and five miles from 
the Confederate camp. The second day 
the horse Mr. Henrigilles rode gave out. 
When the detachment arrived at New- 
tonia they were met by i ,600 Confederates, 
forming into line for battle, and Capt. 
Adams, who had the command, ordered 
the men to take care of themselves. Our 
subject was captured, put in a pen with a 
score of others, and taken to Sugar Creek, 
where all their effects were taken from 
them, and they were kept on the bare 
ground. Thence they were conveyed 
across Arkansas, via Elm Springs, Fay- 
ettevilJe, f)ver the Ozark mountains to 
Van l^uren, and from there to Fort Smith, 
where they were held for three months, 
scantily clothed and fed, and with bricks 
for their bed. They were paroled at Lit- 
tle Rork, and from there Mr. Henrigilles 
went to Helena, Ark., and after reiiiaining 
in that city several weeks joined his bat- 
talion at Rolla. Mo. He was again on 
scouting duty for a while, and then went 
to Pilot Knob and Jackson, Mo., being 
with his command when it encountered 
Cien. ^[armaduke and dro\e him from the 
State, capturing the towns of Pilot Knob 
and, later. Little Rock. .\rk. The winter 
was s]>ent at Benton, .Ark., scouting, and 
they then joined the Camden expedition, 
beinij assigned to the command of Gen. 
Steele; th(\ wi-rc on the march for fortv- 



I two days, fifteen days without drawing 
'; rations, and three days without having 
' anything to eat. On the return to Little 
' Rock, our subject was granted a veteran 
furlough. He afterward was detailed to 
carry mail from Camden, .Ark., to Wash- 
ington, Arkansas. 

Major Hubbard's battalion, or the 
battalion to which Mr. Henrigilles be- 
longed, was engaged in the following ac- 
tions: Springfield, Mo., October 26,1861; 
Little Blue, Mo., November 11, 1861; 
Clinton. Mo., December 17, 1861; Silver 
Creek, Mo, January 8, 1862; ^p^ing- 
field. Mo., February 12. 1862; Cross 
Timber, Ark., February 16, 1862; charge 
at Sugar Creek, Ark., February 18,1862; 
first capture at Fayetteville, .Ark., Feb- 
ruary 28, 1862; Pea Ridge, Ark.. March 
6, 7 and 8; Neosho. Mo., April 26, 1862; 
Cowskin Prairie, April 24, 1862; Berry- 
ville. Ark., May 20, 1862; F"ayetteville, 
Ark., June 27, 1862; Newtonia, Mo., 
September 13, 1862; Seneca Mill, Ind. 
Ten .Septemberi6. 1862; McGuire's Ford, 
Ark., October 28, 1862; Prairie Grove, 
Ark. , December 7, 1 862 ; \'an Buren, Ark. , 
December 28. 1862; Chalk Bluff. Mo.. 
May 5. 1863; Bayou Metre. Ark., August 
20. 1863; Shallow Ford, Ark. , August 25, 
1863; Caddo Gap, Ark., November 7, 
1863; Cedar Glade, Ark., November 10, 
1S63; Arkadelphia, Ark., March 3, 1864; 
Spoonville, .Ark., March 5, 1864; Little 
Missouri River, Ark., March 10, 1864; 
Prairie D'.Anne, Ark., March 13, 1864; 
Poi.son Spring, Ark., March 14, 1S64; 
capture of Camden, Ark, March 15, 1864; 
Jenkins Ferry. Ark., April 30, 1864. 
General Steele's division, which had suf- 
fered heavily in incessant skirmishing 
through the entire march to make con- 
nection with Banks from Little Rock, was 
attacked on the Sabine river, in Arkansas, 
by the consolidated forces of Generals 
Kirbv Smith and Price — 5,000 Union 
soldiers against 20,000 Rebels. A battle 
of about eight hours' duration ensued, 
which was one of the sharpest contests 
(if thf Snuthwr^t in the war, but resulted 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGllAPUICAL UECOHD. 



.65 



in a victory for the Union force, which 
saved Little Kock and Arkansas to the 
United States t-loverninent. The army of 
the Frontier, to which our subject's regi- 
ment had l>uen assigned, was designed to 
put an end tn the combination of Kel)els 
and Indians, and to do SL'r\ice \n all . 
capacities where needed; consetjuently 
it performed duties of the most arduous 
and dangerous character, much of which 
has never been portrayed on the pages of 
history. They were occupied successive!}' 
in expeditions against the Rebels and In- 
dians, connected with the Confederate 
forces in skirmishes with Rebel guerrillas, 
bushwhackers, etc. ; and of such heavy 
marches as were made by the cavair\- and 
sharpshooters history has no record. 

Joseph Henrigilles received his dis- 
charge September 1,1865, at Little Rock, 
Ark., and immediately jiroceeded to De- 
Pere, Wis., in the hope of recovering" his 
health, which had broken down com- 
pletely in his long service. F"or two years 
thereafter he worked in a sawmill for 
David Loy. On December r, 1866, Mr. 
Henrigilles was married, in De Pere, by 
Father Verboort, to Miss Mary B. Bor- 
manl who was born Februar\- 4, 1850, in 
Belgium. She was one of a family of six 
children (two now living) who came with 
their parents to the United States in 1855, 
and was reared in Brown county, Wis. 
For about five years the young couple 
had their residence on the Borinan home- 
stead, and then, in 1871, took up their 
home on the place where they are yet re- 
siding, lot 20, private claim 'tis, De Pere 
township. At that time the tract com- 
prised twenty acres of heavily-wooded 
land, but it has since been increased to 
eighty-five acres. Although he has been 
in poor health ever since the war, Mr. 
Henrigilles has been a hard worker, and 
his good management and progressive 
habits have brought him success. He is 
naturally intelligent, keeps himself well 
informed on the general topics of the day, 
and reads considerably. He is a fine pen- 
man, and, had he devoted much time to 



it, he would undobtedly ha\e become an 
artist in this line. In his political affilia- 
tions Mr. Henrigilles is a stanch suj^porter 
of the Republican party, and, as such, has 
been elected to \arinus offices, ser\iiighis 
township as justice ol the peace, as town 
clerk for several years, assessor ami su- 
()ervisor,and at present he holds the office 
of district clerk. In religious faith he 
and his wife are both members of the 
Catholic Church. To their mnon have 
been born the following named fifteen 
children: Mar\ T. (now Mrs. Joseph 
Martin. c_)f Lawrence township). Mar}- F. 
(now Mrs. Hubert Durpiaine, of De Pere 
township , Mar}' L.inow Mrs. Henry \'on 
\'onderen, of De Pere township), Joseph, 
Marv H.. Marv L. , Ann J., Marv T. , 
Hubert H.. Laura E., Alise C. , Ida M., 
Flionor L. , Catherine E. , and Mar}' L. ; 
of whom Mary H.. Mar\' L. , Mar}'T., 
Mar} L. . and Ann J. are deceased. 



ALVIN HUNTER, a prosperous 
husbandman of Suamico town- 
ship. Brown county, is a native of 
Maine, born in Kennebec county. 
March 24, 1844. His parents, Arthur 
and Emeline (Smith: Hunter, were also 
natives of the same place, the former 
born in 18 16, d}ing at the age of sexents- 
four; the latter still enjo}'S life on the old 
home farm. Of their three children, AI- 
vin is one of the two surviving. 

Our subject worked among the granite 
hills of his native State, assisting on the 
home farm, until the blast of war called 
him from his home. He was nearly 
twenty }'ears old when he enlisted, Decem- 
ber 5, 1863, in Company F, Finst Maine 
Cavalry, and he did faithful service until 
March 31, 1S65, when he was wounded 
at Dinwiddle C. H., \'a. ; he was honor- 
ably discharged June 27, 1865, from hos- 
pital at Augusta, Maine. After the close 
of the war he came to Brown county. 
Wis. , and bought a fort}'-acre tract of 
land, but he followed teaming for a liveli- 



1 66 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



hood until his niai n.ti;!-, which took place 
November 28. 1868, to Miss Rose Bru- 
nette, who was a native of Green Bay, 
born in 1842. Her parents. Prudent 
anil Mary L. Keynoldj Brunette, were 
natives of Canada, who came in 1854 to 
the United States, where they died at the 
respective a},'es of eighty-eijjht and seven- 
ty-nine, the father passinjj away first. 
They were born in 1804 and 1805, re- 
spectively, and their longevity was the 
result, no doubt, of the steady habits that 
descended to their children, of whom 
they had eleven, four of them still living. 
To Alvin and Rose Hunter were born nine 
children, as follows: Ida E., married 
to Ed. J. Coffin, and has two sons; 
Edward A., married to \'erna Codington; 
Cora M., second wife of N. ). Putnam, 
by whom she has two daughters; Lillian 
(first wife of N. J. Putnam), who died 
leaving one child; George, who died at 
the age of four months; and Willie \.. 
Walter O. , George D. and Charles L. , 
all four at home. 

.•\t the time of his marriage Mr. Hun- 
ter settled on his purchase of forty acres, 
which he cultivated twenty years and 
then went east, and for one summer 
worked on his father's farm, after which 
he returned to Wisconsin and bought a 
new farm of eighty acres, on which he 
still lives. In his political preferences Mr. 
Hunter is a Republican, having cast his 
first Presidential vote for U. S. Grant in 
1 868, since when he has been active in 
party work, and has held several offices; 
he is now chairman of his township. 
Socially he is an active member of T. O. 
Howe Post, No. 124, G. A. R., of Green 
Bay, and he and his wife are regular at- 
tendants of Calvarv Church. 



CM. WINTON. general farmer and 
stock-raiser, of De Pere township, 
Brown county, is one of the best- 
known and most highly respected 
men in his conmiunity. He was born Julj' 



27, 1850. in Meadville, Crawford Co., 
Penn., son of Charles \\'inton, who was 
a native of Centreville, same county. 

The Winton family arc descended from 
English ancestry, who settled in Pennsyl- 
vania about the beginning of the present 
century, coming either from New York 
or one of the New I^^ngland States. \\'hen 
a young man Charles Winton married, in 
his native county. Miss Phitbc Waid, who 
was also born there. He was a farmer of 
but limited means, and in 1854 he brought 
his familv westward to Wisconsin, where 
cheap homes could then be had by those 
who were willing to undergo the numerous 
trials and inconveniences which were the 
common lot of the pioneer. He lirst lo- 
cated in Rock county, where he spent the 
winter of 1854-5, and in the spring of 
1855 removed farther north to Glenmore 
township, at that time one of the wildest 
sections of Brown county. Some timber 
had been cut from the land, but the greater 
part of the country was still in its primi- 
tive state, and the life of the early settler 
was one of constant hardship, privation 
and danger. In 1S65 .Mr. Winton re- 
moved to De Pere townshiji, where his 
wife died in 1872. He now makes his 
home in Daggett, Mich. They had a 
famih' of ten children — five sons and five 
daughters — all of whom but one, Edgar, 
are yet living. 

Charles Mead Winton was but four 
years of age when he came with his par- 
ents to Wisconsin, and his early education 
was such as the coimnon district schools 
of that early day afforded. In thi' mean- 
time he als(5 recei\ed a thort)ugh training 
on the farm, and remained with his par- 
ents until 1872, when he decided to pay 
a visit to his birthplace in Pennsylvania. 
The superior educational advantages to be 
had in the East became so apparent to 
him that he concluded to remain, and for 
five years attended school at Centreville, 
Crawford Co., Pemi.. where he received 
thorough instruction, and in 1879 he re- 
turned to Wisconsin. 

On July 20. 1881, Mr. Winton was 



COifMEilOHA TIVH lllni; liA I'lIlCM. i;i:c<il!l). 



i'>7 



married in De Pere, to Miss Harriet C. 
Phelps, a native oi [anesxilir Wis., 
dauf^hterof Jeremiah and Tiicrcsa i'hrl|)s, 
natives of New ^'(lrk State, who canic t" 
Wisconsin in an earK' day. In 1X70 Mi". 
Winton l)onj;ht the old honu-stead, and 
after his marriat^c he made it his perma- 
nent home; it now consists i>| ei;.;hly acres 
of fertile land, \\lu;re he i-onducts a ,L;eii- 
eral farminj;- and stock-raisint; luisiness. 
By indnstry and perseverance he has 
greatly improveil his farm and home. In 
politics he is a staiuh adhere'nt of the 
principles of the Kepiihlican part\, and 
in 1S91, 1893 and i(S94 was elected town- 
ship assessor, in which position he is 
proving himself an able otticer. Mrs. 
Winton is amemlnTof the M. E. Chnrch 
in De Pere. They have had one child, 
Aden L. , who was horn September J5, 
i(S82. Mr. Winton is a great reader, 
keeping himself well informed on general 
topics, and he and his wife are highly es- 
teemed in the commnnits. 



LEONARD V^O N E, retired mer- 
chant, of De Pere, was born about 
thirty miles southwest of Montreal, 
Canada, in the \illage (jf \"au- 
dreuil, February 2, 1826, a son of .Andrew 
and Monick (Lesbuay) Bone, both also 
natives of Canada and of French descent. 
At the age of eleven years our sub- 
ject was permitted to make his residence 
with a wealthy gentleman, whf), in return 
for Leonard's ser\aces, was to j.;i\e him a 
good education, but whowholK- neglected 
so to do, the result being that the lad, when 
nearly seventeen years old, (juit the em- 
ploy of the party mentioned and made 
his way to Whitehall, N. ^'. , when not 
quite seventeen. A few weeks later he 
reached Albany, in the same State, where 
he was fortunate enough to secure work 
with a stonecutter, and, although a novice, 
was soon able to earn sixty-five dollars a 
month, and this business he followed 
about eighteen months. Times becoming 



dull, howe\'er, he engaged at \\(irk as a 
hum handsexen nnles tioin .Mliain, be- 
ginning at three dollar^ per moiilli. but at 
the end oi the first moiilli his wa-eswere 
increased to ten dollai>, hi^i emploxcr tind- 

) ing him to be worth that amomit. .\fter 

I a tvvo-iiii lilt lis siid<ness, he \\ as married at 

I All)any to Mi>s |:iiie l\iiiim,L;toii, ;i iiatixe 
of 'l"wo Ki\ei>, ( aiiada, born September 
2J . 1S23, a daiiglitei ol |(i|m and \'ic- 

j toria lEeClain) Remingteai, the foriiiei- of 
whom was of I'.nglish di'scent, the latter 
o| l'reii<li. Sliortb alter his mairi.ige 
Mr. llone came wi'St and lomid em))loy- 
ment at stone-eilttin;; in |ohet, III., where 

' he worked two yi'ais, and \\a> then per- 

1 suaded by William Towiisi-nd to embark 
ill the liotel business at ( hica^o, where, 

j within two years, he lost all he had in- 
vested — seventeen liiindred dullais- and 
was obliged to borrow lifty dollars to i-n- 

I able him to lea\'e that cit\-. .\bout this 
time, ill iS4(), he first came to De Pere, 
but did not sta)' Ion;;, jireferring to 
go to Pensaukee, where, fm a \eai". he 
managx'd a boarding house for b'. 11. (lard- 
ner, who operated a sa\\nnll, and for his 
own and Ins wife's services received thirt\ 
dollars per month; the following four 
years their com])eiisation was one thou- 
sand one hundred dollars per }'e;u'. .\lr. 
and Mrs. Boni- then settled on a farm ot 
eighty acri's near De Pere. wliuli he ciil- 
ti\ated some years, and then went into the 
grocery business within tlu' limits of the 
citv, where be erected the first brick l)l(>(d< 
and accumulated a i-om|ieteiice that fiisti- 
tied Ins retirement tilteeii ve'ars ago. Mr. 
and Mrs, lioiie are ineinbersf)! the Cath- 

j olic Chinidi, and in politics he is a I\e- 
]niblicaii. 'IduM'e lia\e been no <lnldren 
born to them, but they have' reared, from 
the age of thirteen months, Kate Palmer, 

[ now happib married to Michael Tessier, 
and with him living in Nebraska; the)- 
ha\e also reared Leonani Tessier (son of 
Michacd and Katej, a graduate of the De- 
Pere High School and of the Universit}' 
of Wisconsin, and who is now superin- 
tendent of the Electric Light Works at 



1 68 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Dc Pere; in addition to these adopted 
children, the)' also reared a nephew, 
Julian Bone, from the age of twelve to 
twenty years. What more need be said 
as to the native kindness of their hearts? 



A 



NTHONY GOEMANS (deceased), 
wiio during his lifetime was a 
much respected fanner of Rock- 
land township. Brown county, 
was a native of Holland, born September 
29, 1 82 1, in the province of Limburg. 
He was a son of John Cioenians, a well- 
to-do fajmer, who had six chlidren, An- 
thony being the eldest in the family. 

During his youth Anthony Goemans 
had very limited educational advantages, 
as he had to commence work very early 
in life, and was reared to farming, which 
he always followed. In 1856, hearing 
that he would have better wages and op- 
portunities for advancement in the United 
States, he left his native country, and 
coming to Wisconsin remained here ten 
years, engaging in various kinds of work. 
In 1866 he returned to Holland, and on 
Februarj' 28, 1867, was there married to 
Miss Joanna Bernards, who was born No- 
vember 5, 1839, daughter of John Ber- 
nards, a farmer of that country. Bid- 
ding farewell to their home and friends, 
they left Holland a month after their 
marriage, and, proceeding from Rotter- 
dam to (jlasgow, took passage there on 
a vessel bound for New York, at which 
port they landed after a voyage of twenty- 
four days. Their d-^stination being in 
Wisconsin, they proceeded thither by 
rail, and after a short stay in Little 
Chute, Outagamie county, came to Dc- 
Pere township, Brown county, where Mr. 
Goemans purchased a tract of eighty 
acres in Section 11. The land had not 
been improved in any way; in some 
places it was covered with logs and wood, 
all of which had to be cleared away, the 
task involving no small amount of hard 
work; but being an.xious to have a home he 



could call his own, Mr. Goemans perse- 
vered, and in time succeeded in hewing a 
fine property out of the dense forest. On 
this farm all their children were born, as 
follows: Anna M. (Mrs. Martin Baeten), 
John W., Mary M. (Mrs. Henry Herm- 
sen, of Green Bay), Frank S., Peter J., 
Katie, Christina M., Herbert, , and Nellie 
E. Of these, John W. is a carpenter by 
trade, moves buildings, drives piles, and 
builds bridges; Frank S. entered the 
monastery of the Servite Fathers Sep- 
tember 4, 1894, and is still there. On 
January 2, 1886, the father of this family 
was called from earth, and was buried in 
De Pere Cemetery. He was a Catholic 
in religious faith, and in politics a Demo- 
crat. At the time of his death the eld- 
est of the nine chddren was but seventeen 
years of age, but Mrs. Goemans has car- 
ried on the farm successfully, and has dis- 
played no little business abilit\- and sa- 
gacity in the management of the place, 
which comprises 1 20 acres of prime land. 
The farm work is now attended to by the 
sons, Peter' J. and Herbert, who have 
proven themselves fully competent, and 
the entire familj' are respected for their 
industry wherever they are known. In 
church connection they are all members 
of St. Mary's Catholic Congregation, 
De Pere. 



JOSEPH HOEFFEL, president of 
the Alloue2 Mineral Spring Com- 
pany, of Green Bay, was born March 
25, 1825, in the town of Lichtenberg, 
Province of Lorraine, France. The first 
of the family of whom we have any record, 
was Joseph Hoeffel (grandfather of our 
subject), who was a mechanic, following 
his trade in France. He reared a family 
of six children — five sons and one daugh- 
ter — all of whom received good educa- 
tions, becoming for the most part teachers 
and musicians. 

Of the sons, Anthony (father of our 
subject) was brought up to the trade of 



COMMKMOIIATIVK BWGRAPIIICAL RECORD. 



171 



\sra\i-r. wliiih he followed in luiropc lor 
sonic time. In his iiiilitar}' service, which 
ended with Waterloo, he was in the army 
of Napoleuu the ('.reat, iloing garrison 
dLit\- chietlx . In iSio h<' was united in 
marriage to .Miss Cecelia Caraliin, who 
bore him ten children, ol wliom Louis 
died at Havre, I'raiue, in the lall of 1828, 
while the fainil)' were .7/ /■<'///( to America. 
Ill the United .States the}' made their 
home at \orwalk, Huron Co., Ohio, 
where they followed farming with consid- 
erable success. The father being a 
weaver, as alread}' related, constructed a 
loom for himself and manufactured cl<.>th 
for his neiglibors, as well as for laniilj' 
use. He was de\oted to music, and was 
for mam \ears leader of church (hous. 
His wife died at the age of forty, in 1840, 
and two _\ears later he mariied Miss Mary 
Beyer, who passed away, in 1857, aged 
si.xty-tive }-ears. lioth \\ives died at Nor- 
walk, wliere he himself departed this life 
March 10, 1861. aged sevent\'-four years. 
Joseph Hoeffel.the subject ])ro[)i;rol this 
sketch, received his education at N(.)rwalk, 
Ohio. When seventeen years of age he 
began to Ic-arn carriage making, and at 
the end of a three-\ears' apprenticeship, 
October 8, 1843, came to .Milwaukee, 
^\'is., wher<.' he loljowed his trade as a 
journeyman one year. On August 10, 
1846, he moved to ISrooktield, Waukesha 
count}', and here lie engaged in the busi- 
ness of manufacturing carriages, etc. In 
1848, he \isited Xorwalk, Ohio, ami was 
married No\'eml)er 3 to Miss Catharine 
Frye. who bore him a son, .\. Lrjuis 
Hoeffel. Mrs. Hoeffel died at ISrooktield, 
Wis.. June 13, 1850, and May 20, 1851, 
Mr. Hoeffel was again married, this time 
at Waukesha, Wis., to Miss iMances 
Knowles, by whiidi union nine children 
have been born, of whom are now lixing 
the following named si.\: b^rank, Sylves- 
ter, Elizabeth, Agnes, Joseph P. and 
James I. 

In the fall of 1853, at the first W'is- 
consin State Fair, held at Watertown, 

Wis., Mr. Hoeffel exliihited a full line of 
10 



carriages, wagons, etc., of his own manu- 
facture, and received awards on his 
patents in gearing. On May 1, 1856, he 
sold out his Brooktield business and re- 
moved to Green Bay, Wis,, arriving June 
28, 1856. The same year he erected a 
store building on \\'ashington street, and 
openeif a general store, conducting same 
until 1871, In the spring of 1872, hav- 
ing acquired j)ropert\' at Oconto, Wis., 
he inoxed there', and started a store. 
Business jirospered ami his sons, Frank 
and Syhester, after assisting him in the 
Itusiness a number (jf years, j)urchased 
same in 1886, Mr. Hoeffel retiring, owing 
to poor health. 

In 1888, an accidental discovery de- 
cided Mr. Hoeffel to again enter business 
lile. While o\ erseeing some improve- 
ments on his Astor Hill pro]')ertv at 
Green Bay he drank freely of the v\aters 
of a spring at the foot of the hill. The 
proni]it action of tlie water on his en- 
feebled system and tile remarkable relief 
he exjierienced Irom its use coiu'inced 
hull ot its great iiK'dicinal value. He 
arranged at once Im' a thorough and ex- 
hausti\'e analysis of the water. Samples 
were forwarde<l to Prof. W". W. Daniells, 
the distinguisheii [irotessor of chemistry 
and pharmacy in the W'isconsin State 
University, Madison, and, after a com- 
plete and scientilic analjsis of the water, 
he sul:>smitted same: 

TTn'iv'ersitv of Wisconsin, 

Chemic.\i, Laboratokiks, 
Maiiison, Wis,, August 13, 1888. 

Jo.sepli Hoefl'el: 

De.ar Sik: The .sample of spring- water re- 
ceived from ■yon for analysis ha.s tlie following^ 
compo-sition, expressed in {grains, per United 
States .standard <,'^allon of 231 cubic inches: 

Sodium chloride 4.25525 

Potassium sulphate (1.12072 

Sodium sulphate 3.4.^820 

Calcium sulphate 0.10788 

Sodium phosphate trace. 

Bicarbonate of iron 0.06257 

Hicarbonate of lime 24.68662 

liicarbonate of mag-ne.sia 27. ,5.3300 

( )xide of aluminum (alumina). . 0.17470 
Silica and insoluble residue. . . . 1.97160 

Total frrain.s per U, S. yal . .62..38060 
Temperature. 46 degrees Fahrenheit. 



172 



COMMEMOaATlVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



This is ail unusually large amount of solids 
to tind in a Wisconsin mineral water — the larg- 
est amount I have ever found. The salts that 
exist in unusual quantities are magnesia, 
sodium salts, sulphuric acid, lime and chlorine. 
Of these I have made duplicate determinations, 
to be assured of their accuracy. 

You will note its freedom from organic mat- 
ter. Yours trulv. 

W. W. DANIELLS, 
Professor of Analytical and Applied Chemistry. 

The receipt of this exceedins;ly favor- 
able analysis from so reliable a source, 
and the action of the water on Mr. Hoef- 
fel having proved same to be possessed of 
positive curative \irtues, determined him 
to develop the springs and place the water 
before the public that others might like- 
wise enjoy its healing powers. The an- 
alj'sis of Allouei; Water reveals the fact 
that it is the strongest alkaline (antacid) 
mineral water known. The combination 
of the salts of sodium, magnesia, lime, 
iron and silica with carbonic, sulphuric, 
and hydrochloric acids, all in perfect solu- 
tion, is a rare one. This fact at once 
brought it into prominence before the 
public. Ph)sicians, especially, recog- 
nized in the harmonious blending of these 
therapeutic properties, a sovereign rem- 
edy, whose use is indicated in all dis- 
eases of the allied phenomena of the uric 
acid diathesis, viz. : Diabetes, Bright's 
disease, inflammation of the bladder and 
kidneys, rheumatism, dyspepsia, torpid 
liver, cloudy urine, gravel, suppression of 
urine, calculi or stone in bladder, consti- 
pation, piles, catarrh of the stomach, 
nervous debility, gout, rheumatic gout, 
dropsy, sick headache, female weakness, 
and eczema. In the short period of time 
since the discovery of the medicinal vir- 
tues of Allouez, the reputation and fame 
of the water have become widespread. 
The marvelous curative power it possesses 
has gained for it the attention of the 
medical profession in various parts of this 
country, who recommend and prescribe 
it, often where medicine has failed to ef- 
fect a cure. As a remedy it acts the 
same alone or in connection with medi- 
cal treatment. The demand for Allouez 



is constantly inceasing. and thousands of 
cases of bottled water are shipped annu- 
ally. The springs were named • ' Allouez " 
in honor of Pere Claude Allouez, the in- 
trepid missionary who founded the first 
Indian mission in 1668 (225 years ago), 
but a short distance from these springs. 
That the medical virtues of the waters of 
these springs were known to the Indians 
and earl\- missionaries may be inferred 
from extracts taken from Marquette's 
Journal: "Embarking in our canoes, 
we left the river and nation of the Wild 
Oats (.Menominees), and soon reached the 
extremity of Baj'des Puants (Green Bay). 
Leaving this bay, we entered the river 
emptxing into it. We found the river 
full of bustard, duck, teal and other water 
birds, attracted by the wild oats growing. 
I had the curiosity to drink the mineral 
waters found not far from here." 

The following is a short sketch of Mr. 
Hoeffel's seven living children: (I). A. 
Louis, eldest of the seven living children, 
was born at Brooktield, Wis.. September 
4, 1S49, ^ntl moved with his parents to 
Green Bay, where he was educated; he 
became a marine engineer, which v'oca- 
tion he now follows; he is married and 
has four children. (II). John Francis 
was born at Brookfield. Wis., June 25, 
1853, and came with his parents to Green 
Bay, where he received his education in 
the public schools; later he attended St. 
Francis Seminary at Milwaukee, Wis.; 
in 1883, he married Miss Clara Saylor, of 
Saugatuck, Mich., who died June 12, 
I 883; on January 25, iSSS, he was united 
in marriage to Miss Adelaide Doolittle, at 
Whitewater, Wis. ; he is now located in 
business at Chicago; they have one son, 
Basil D.. born October 26. 1S88. (III). 
Sylvester was born October 10. 1857, at 
Brooktield, Wis., came to Green Bay with 
his parents, and pursued his studies in the 
public schools; in 1871, he engaged in 
mercantile business in Oconto, where he 
still resides; he was married May 25, 
1 88 1, to Miss Genevieve Heath, of Osh- 
kosh, and they have five children, their 



COMMKMOItA ri VK DIOGUAPUICAL RECORD. 



'/.i 



names and dates uf biiili being as lullows; 
Pauls., June 12, 1SS5; Mildred G., Oc- 
tober 27, 1888; Marion F., October 27, 
1888; Gerald N., June 20, 1892; Ken- 
neth M., March 29, 1894. (IV). Eliza- 
beth was born at Green Ba)', Wis., June 

8, 1858; after graduating from the high 
school here, she attended St. Mary's In- 
stitute at Milwaukee, Wis., in 1S75, where 
she graduated four years later; she was 
united in marriage with Dr. P. O'Keefe, 
at Oconto, Wis., January ^i, 1883. where 
they still reside; they ha\'c four children, 
Horace V., born December 28, 1884; Jes- 
sie A., born October 9, 1886; Carroll J., 
born Si'ptember i, 1889; and Gertrude 
L. , born June 2, 1S94, (V). Agnes C. 
was born December 3, i860, at Green 
Bay, Wis. ; received a thorough high school 
and convent education; in 1878, she 
studied painting at Chicago, under Prof. 
Gregori, for two years, also music at the 
Chicago Conservatory; on October 10, 
1 88 1, she was united in marriage at 
Oconto, W'is., to Henry U. Cole, where 
they continue to reside; they have seven 
children, their names and dates of birth 
being as follows; Francis M., August 3, 
1882; Minnie Cecile, December 15, 1883; 
Helen, August. 1886; Henrv U. , April 26, 
1888; Pauline A., July 15", 1889; Agnes 
C, September 27, 1892; Kathleen, June 

9, 1S94. fVI). Joseph P., born Septem- 
ber 17. 1861, at Green Bay, Wis., 
was educated at the public schools; in 
1879. he attended the College of the Sa- 
cred Heart at ^^'atertown, Wis., finishing 
his studies there; after seven \-ears' ex- 
perience in his father's store in Oconto, 
he came to Green Bay in April, 1S89, 
where he and James I. (mentioned below) 
engaged in the shoe business; he is inter- 
ested in the Allouez Mineral Spring Com- 
pany, at Green Bay, directing the man- 
agement of the same; he was united in 
marriage to Miss Christine Romana Waite, 
of Pewaukee, Wis., February 3, 1890, 
and they have one son, Joseph Merrill, 
born October 31, 1890. (VH). James I. 
was born April i, 1863, at Green Bay, 



\\'is. ; after atti'inlmi; the pni)li(: schouls 
here and at Oconto, he entereil the C'll- 
lege of the Sacred Heart at Watertown, 
Wis., fmishing his studies there in i8,Si ; 
having secured a business education in his 
father's store at Oconto, he came to 
Green Bay, 1889, and associated himself 
in the shoe business with his brother, 
Joseph P. ; he is also interested in the 
Allouez Mineral Spring Company; he is 
not married. 



THOMAS RYAN, who for the past 
forty years has been actively 
identified with tlu; agricultiual in- 
terests of Ivockland township, 
Brown count}', was born November 10, 
1833, in County Tipperary, Ireland, son 
of Patrick and Nora Ryan, the former of 
whom, who was a farmer, died in 1846, 
leaving a widow antl seven children — 
four sons and three daughters. In 1853, 
having determined to try their fortune in 
the New World, the family proceeded to 
Liverpool, where they took passage on 
the "Arctic," bound for New York, in 
which city they landed after a voyage of 
five weeks and five days. Going to 
Otsego county, N. Y., they remained 
there a year and a half, the sons engag- 
ing in farm work, and then came west- 
ward to Brown coimty. Wis., by water, 
arriving in Green Bay in November, 1855. 
After coming to Wisconsin, our sub- 
ject worked in Oconto county and vicini- 
ty for some time, following various pur- 
suits, principally farming. In i860 he 
purchased forty acres of new land in Sec- 
tion lO, Rockland township (being obliged 
to go into debt for a portion of this 
tract), and built thereon a rude, though 
comfortable log house, in which he and 
his mother made their home. As the 
farm yielded no support for some j'ears," 
he followed lumbering during the winter 
season for several years, de\'oting the 
rest of the year to clearing and improving 
the land. He has not only succeeded in 
converting the original forty acres into a 



'74 



COM MEMO HA TI I 'E BIO GUAI'UICA L liECOKD. 



fertile, well-cultivated tract, but has 
added thereto until he now has a fine 
farm of 160 acres. His property has 
been .leathered by years -^f industry and 
untiring energ}-, and he is a self-inade 
man in the full sense of the word, having 
risen from a poor boy to his present 
enviable position among the leading 
farmers of kocklaiid township. He has 
been called upon to serve in various of- 
fices of honor and trust in his township, 
such as member of the sthoul board, 
supervisor and chairman, and has dis- 
charged the duties imposed upon him in a 
creditable and highly satisfactory manner. 
In his political ])references he is a Demo- 
crat, though not strictl}' jiartisan. in local 
elections voting for the best man regard- 
less of party ties. 

In November, 1865, .Mr. Ryan was 
married to Miss Margaret Lee, a nati\e 
of Countv (lalway, Ireland, daughter of 
Michael I^ee, who was a farmer of Rock- 
land township. After marriage the young 
couple immediately took up their resi- 
dence on the farm, where, in 1.S.S6, .Mr. 
Ryan erected one of the most substantial 
rural homes in the vicinity. This union 
has been blessed with children as follows: 
Catherine, Mrs. H. P. Crist, of Wansau- 
kee. Wis. ; .Agatha, a schottl-teacher of 
De Pere; Patrick J., at home; Marie 
.\nna, a school-teacher of Wausaukee; 
Micliael E., at home, who attends the 
high school in West De Pere; Wimiifred, 
attending the State Normal School at Osh- 
kosh; Timothy, going to school in De- 
Pere; and Thomas and Robert, at home. 
The.sc children have all had excellent 
educational opportunities, of which they 
have not been slow to take advantage 
and to fully appreciate, and the entire 
family are among the highly respected 
ones of the vicinity. In religious connec- 
tion thev are members of St. Francis 
Church, De Pere. During the Civil war 
Mr. Ryan enlisted, on January 1, 1865, 
at Green Bay, in Company I, Fifty-lirst 
Reginient Wis. , \'. 1. and served during 
the remainder of the struggle on scouting 



and guard duty, receiving an honorable 
discharge at Madison, Wis., August i, 
same year. 



1'. C.OODELL, station agent 
and general local representative 



r 

\_ ^ of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul Railway Company at De- 
Pere, is a practical railroad man. When 
but a youth of seventeen he was initiated 
into the mysteries of telegraphy, ami since 
that time his rise, though gradual, has 
been marked. There are probably no 
other business concerns conducted by 
large corporations in which alnlity and 
attention to duty are more promptly 
rewarded by promotion than in our great 
railwav systems, where precision, effi- 
ciency, and reliability are e.\tremel\- es- 
sential, and in these respects our subject, 
though th(jroughlv tried, has not been 
found wanting. 

C. !•". Cioodell is the son of \\'atsou 
and Luvilla (Stranahan) Goodell, th^ 
former of whom was born in Schenectady. 
N. v., the latter in Utica, N. V., both 
descendants of sturdy New England stock. 
Watson Goodell received a good common- 
schcjol education in the schools of .\lbany, 
N. Y. , and later in life became an expert 
accountant, a profession he followed for 
.several years. His health having become 
impaired in the comparatively confining 
work. Mr. Goodell, thinking the change 
would pro\ o benelicial, decided to remove 
to Wisconsin, then considered the "I-'ar 
West." .Accordingly, in about 1850, he 
removed hither, and made his first loca- 
tion near Oconomouoc, where he com- 
menced farming. .\t that time the coun- 
try was entirely new, and the land being 
covered with tind)er, the work was at- 
tended with many hardships: but the 
change brought about the result he had 
hoped for, and his health improved. He 
had married, in New York State, Miss 
Luvilla Stranahan, who survives him, and 
they had three children: C. F. : Carrie; 
and Maria, the wife of j. H. Le Grantl, a 



COMMEMOIIA TIVE BIOGUAPIIirA /. HECOHD. 



prominent politician and at present roiinty 
auditor of Buena \'ista county, Iowa, witli 
residence in Storm Lake. Mr. CiDodell 
passed from earth in |une. i Sijo. in Port- 
age, \\'is., and his widow now resides 
with her daughter Maria, in Storm Lake, 
Iowa. In politics he was a stanch mem- 
ber of the Republican party, and at one 
time ser\'ed <as justice of the ])eaee in his 
township. He was a member of the (.'on- 
gregational (Church, as is also his widow, 
though she was originally a member of 
the Episcopal Church. Shortl}' after his 
removal to Wisconsin ^h■. Gootlell went to 
Pardee\"ilk', where he had his residence 
several years. 

C. F". Cioodell was born October 3, 
1S53, in Ocouomowoe, Wis., and received 
at first an elementary education, after- 
\\ard takiiii; a more complete course in 
the schools of Oconomowoe. When 
seventeen years old he entered a railwa)' 
office at Pardeeville, Wis., on what was 
then the St. Paul road, wdn-re, under .A. 
E. Cole, station agent at that [)lace, he 
obtained his first knowledge of telegraphv. 
When he had advanced far enough to re- 
ceive and send messages he was placed in 
the capacitv of " e.xtra man " on the then 
Northern division, from Horicon [unction 
to Portage Cit\', \\'is. , and later, whilr 
still in his "teens, " was gi\en eliarL;e of 
the office at Rolling Prairie, Wis. He 
was ne.xt stationed at Winneconne, on the 
Northern division, as operator and ck'rk; 
afterward ser\ed as operator.it Horicon 
Junction for two wars, and then for :i 
short time filled similar positions at Kipon 
and Oshkosh. Mr. Cioodell then went to 
Milwaukee, where for a time he was in 
the train dispatcher's office of the Wis- 
consin Central, later going to Phillips, 
•Wis., in the employ of the same com- 
pany, as operator and clerk at the chief 
engineers's headquarters. His first ex- 
perience as station agent was at Fifield, 
at which place he was stationed when 
there was not a house in the town, tents 
being the only shelter, and in addition to 
his regular duties he sold the lots there 



for the compain, who owned the plat. 
I'roiii l'"ilielil he w.is translerred to 
Waldo. Sheboygan county, where he 
attain acted as at;ent, and here m the 
spring of l,'^7S he was united in marriage 
with MissCarrie Ford, a natix'e of Waldo, 
daughter of Benjamin F"ord, who came here 
from Lake county, Ohio. In I'ebruary, 
iS,S2, Mr. Goodell came to De Pere, at 
\\'hich time the road through here was 
oyjcrated b\' the Wisconsin Central, and 
when the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul 
Railwav Company assmiied charge he 
still cciutinued in the office, and now has 
charge of their interests at this place. 

Oiir sul))ect is a Republican, and a 
stanch adlu'rent of the party, though be- 
\dnd \ otiuL; regularly he takes no active 
part in political affairs. He is a leading 
member of the Congregational Church, 
bein.i; at present a trustee and superin- 
tendent (.)f the Sunday-school. Mr. and 
Mrs. C.oodell lia\e four children, nameh". 
Harold 1^, Charles W., Lula and 

.\lloll W. 



M 



vS. MARGARl-rr AEBISCH- 
E]\, widow of Samuel Aebischer, 
is a daughter of Charles and 
P>arbara (Meringer) Bk)om,who 
eamc to .\merica from Germany when 
then' daUL;hter was about seven months 
ol.l. jor.iting first in New York. They 
farmed there until 1S50, wdien they re- 
mo\(.'d to Wisconsin, and tluw still live 
at Chilton, where tlie\ aic enga;;ed in the 
same \dcation. The) have a lamily of 
nine (dnldreii. 

Samuel .Vebisrher was a n;iti\e of 
Switzerland, and, on eomitiL; to .\merica, 
in compaiix' with twd brothers, first lor 
cated at I^lkhorn, Walworth Co., \\'is., 
where he learned shoemaking. a trade he 
followed thirty-five years. The family 
came to I-^rown count\ in iS.Sj, where 
Mr. Aebischer bought a farm of 1 I 5 'acres 
from a brother, and cultivated same until his 
death, which occurred when he was fifty- 
two years old. In the Civil war he served 



.76 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



one j'ear (1863) in Company K, Fourth 
Regiment Wis. V. C. and was discharged 
at Vicksburg, Miss., on account of sick- 
ness. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. 
Aebischer took place October 13, 1867, 
and they had eight children, of whom five 
are still living, their names and dates of 
birth being as follows: Charles N., Sep- 
tember 25, 1870; Willie, March 7, 1872; 
Maggie, August 3, 1879; Minnie, April 
26, 1883; and Cora, June 21, 1885. It 
was not until after her husband's death 
that Mrs. Aebischer erected her pres- 
ent comfortable brick dwelling, where 
her son, Charles N., also lives. Mrs. 
Aebischer has proven herself to be a 
woman of no small business ability; but 
the affairs of the farm are now looked 
after by her son, Charles N. She is a 
devout member of the Lutheran Church, 
and is greatly respected throughout the 
township. 



EBERHARDT A. LANGE, a well- 
known and popular druggist at 
West De Pere, Brown county, is 
a native of Fond du Lac, Wis., 
born April II, 1859, and is a son of A. 
A. and Catherine (Trumbauerj Lange. 
A. A. Lange, a native of Berlin, Ger- 
many, came to the United States about 
1835. and, being an upholsterer, carried 
on that business at Fond du Lac for 
several years, and also at Milwaukee. 
Mrs. Catherine Lange came from Penn- 
sylvania. 

The subject of this sketch was edu- 
cated in the schools of Fond du Lac, and 
at the age of seventeen entered the drug 
store of Dr. Wright. He remained in 
the same store ten years, the firm chang- 
ing twice in that time, first to A. Uc- 
Land, and then to Kellogg & Lange; 
then, in 1886-87, he carried on a drug 
store on his own account, in Brillion, 
Wis. In the fall of 1887 he came to De- 
Pere, and for three and a half years was 
employed in the drug store of William 
Workman. In 1890 he bought out his 



employer's business in W'est De Pere, 
and in 1893 moved to his present loca- 
tion, where he carries a full line of drugs, 
paints, wall paper, ammunition, station- 
ery, etc., has one of the neatest and best- 
equipped establishments of the kind in 
the town, and does a remunerative trade. 
In 1883 Mr. Lange married Miss Allie E. 
Megnussen, who has borne him three 
children, named respectively: Albert H., 
Ro}' Harrison and Arthur D. Mr. Lange 
is a member of the Presbyterian Church, 
and is very highly esteemed in the com- 
tnunity. 



AUGUSTIX H. BABCOCK, a well- 
to-do farmer of Howard town- 
ship, Brown county, was born 
July 17, 1840, in Alexander, 
W'ashington Co., Maine, a son of Stephen 
and Betsey (Flood) Babcock. In 1873 
he come alone to Wisconsin. His par- 
ents had also come here, settling on the 
farm where our subject still resides, and 
here the father died at the age of seventy- 
five years, the mother at the age of 
seventy-seven. They were the parents 
of twelve children, of whom two sons 
and three daughters are yet li\ing. 

Stephen Babcock was a native of 
King's county, N. S., but when a young 
man came to the United States and made 
his home in Maine. Mrs. Betsey (Flood) 
Babcock was born in St. Matthews, 
Mass. , one of the nine children of Peter and 
Lucy (Snow) Flood, the former of whom 
was a shoemaker and harnessmaker, and 
died at .Alexander, Maine, at a very ad- 
vanced age; he served through the Mexi- 
can war. Military ardor seems to have 
been inherent in the family, as four of 
the grandsons, of the ]-5abcock branch, 
did gallant ser\ire in the Civil war, in- 
cluding Augustin H., our subject, whose 
military record is mentioned farther on; 
his brother William died while in the 
service: another brother, George A., 
served in Comjiany A, Fourteenth Wis. 
\'. I. ; and another brother, Gilbert, was 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



177 



wounded in the battle of Petersburg, Va. , 
while serving in the Twenty-eighth Wis- 
consin Volunteer Infantry. 

Augustin H. Babcock left the parental 
farm at the age of ten years, and hired 
out by the month on his own account, 
contiiiuinj; to work thus initil his rnlist- 
ment. He \\'as lirst in t'l'inpany F. 
Sixth Maine Volunteers, and later in the 
Nineteenth Regiment, Maine \'. I., serv- 
ing altogether four yc-ars. At the bat- 
tle of thi' Wiliierness lie was so badly 
wtnmded that he was disabled for the 
entire summer, and subsequently he was 
contined to hospital with typhoid fever; 
but with these exceptions was with 
his regiment in all its marches, engage- 
ments and skirmishes. After the close of 
the war he resumed the pursuits of peace, 
and shortly afterward married Miss Louisa 
Foster, who died two \-ears later. In 
about 1S73 he settled down on the old 
farm in Howard township, Brown county, 
and in 1S79 married Miss Jennie Black- 
burn, who was born in Manitowoc county. 
Wis., a daughter of Lorin and Hannah 
Blackburn. To this union ii\e children 
have been born, of whom the following 
four are still living: Louisa, born Au- 
gust 9, 1880; Alice, born January 22, 1883; 
Stella, born October 24, 1886; and Vera, 
born October 22, 188S. Mr. Babcock 
has made a success of his life as a farmer, 
and has always maintained the respect 
and esteem of his neighbors. In relig- 
ious faith he and his wife are members of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. In poli- 
tics he has been independent; he cast his 
first Presidential vote, in 1865, for George 
Brinton McClellan, the Democratic nomi- 
nee, but since then has voted the Repub- 
lican ticket. 



that township May 10, 1S54, a son of 
Joseph Ley. 



The latter was born in iS: 



in Prus- 



JOSEPH LEY, a worthy representa- 
tive of one of the old pioneer fami- 
lies of Rockland township. Brown 
county, where he is a well-known 
and highly respected citizen, was born in 



sia, where he was reared, and in early 
manhood learned the trade of carpenter. 
Hearing and reading of the superior ad- 
vantages offered to young men in the 
New \\'orld, he resoh'ed to emigrate, and 
gathering t(.igether what capital he could, 
he left his nati\e land in 1844 to seek his 
fortune in the United States. Many of 
the early settlers in \\'isconsin were (jer- 
maiis, and having decided to come to that 
then new State, Mr. Ley after landing in 
New York proceeded by boat to Milwau- 
kee, Wis. He came from Milwaukee to 
Green ]!a\' on foot, the road which he 
took leading him the greater part of the 
way through the dense forest, and often 
it was nothing more than an Indian trail. 
He frequentlv met Indians, who were 
then still numerous in this region, though 
usualh' friendly, but as he did not know this 
their ap])earaiice alarmed him not a little. 
The Woods abounded with wild animals, 
and the howling of the \\()lves, which 
were especiall}' ferocious, caused him 
great uneasiness. But \hc long, tedious 
journe}' was at last safely accomplished, 
and on arri%iiig at (ireeii Bay he found it 
a small town, containing a few houses, 
the garrison stationed at Fort Howard 
forming the greater part of the popula- 
tion of both towns at that time. Mr. 
Ley made his first location in Section 3, 
Rockland, in which townshi]i only three 
other families were then living. He had 
a brother living at Fond du Lac, l>ut is 
now a resident of lordan, Minn. Mr. 
Le}- \\-as at this time but a poor young 
man, not able to jnirchase land even 
at the low prices it then sold for. He 
could obtain work at his trade, how- 
ever, and was offered two blocks in what 
is now the business portion of Green Bay, 
for a year's labor, an offer which he re- 
fused, never reali;;ing that the little vil- 
lage would in a few years become an im- 
portant cit\'. He was truly a jiioneer of 
Rockland township, for he cut the first 



17.^ 



co.v.yhWfoh'A rrvK HionHAPincM. nKCORD. 



timber felled bj- a white man in Section 
3, and after making a small clearing built 
the first house there. It was only a rude 
log dwelling, but it was the only shelter 
he and his famih' had the year round. 
Here he residiid for sotne time, toiling 
early and late to clear his land and hew a 
home from the dense forest, and a few 
3'ears later removed to a farm in Section 
8, Rockland township, where he passed 
the remainder of his daj's. This was also 
new land; but he once more commenced 
the task of converting the forest into a 
productive farm, and at his death he left 
1 50 acres of good farming land as well 
improved as atiy in the township up to 
that time. He endured all the vicissi- 
tudes and hardships incident to the set- 
tling and improving of a newcountr}', and 
did his full share toward the adx'anccment 
of his section. Politically he was a Dem- 
ocrat and a leader in the party, and he 
served faithfully in \arious local positions 
of honor and trust, being township as- 
sessor fifteen years and justice of the ])eace 
feixteen years; and his good common sense 
and sound judgment won for him the re- 
spect of all who came in contact with 
him. He died Ncjvember 23, 1878, a 
member of St. Francis Catholic Church, 
'De Pere, and was buried in I)e Pere cem- 
'etery. After his settlement here Mr. Ley 
offered a home to his aged parents, and 
thej" set out on the journey from Ger- 
inany, but the mother died i// roiitt-. The 
father arrived safely at his destination, and 
passed his declining years in comfort, dy- 
ing at the home of his son February 17, 
•1872, at the age of ninety years. 

Joseph I^ey, Sr., was first married in 
1851, in De Pere, to Miss Mary Engles, a 
native of Germany, and they had a fam- 
ily, of whom two sons grew to maturity: 
Michael, who is a resident of Luxem- 
bourg, Kewaunee county; and Joseph, 
mention of whom is made farther on. 
The mother of these was called from 
earth in 1858. and buried in Sliantytown 
cemeterv. For his second wife Mr. I^ey 
subscqiuntlx we(!de<i Mrs. Josephine Det- 



rich, who was born in Belgium, ami came 
to the United States with relati\ es. She 
is _\et living at the age of seventj-threfe 
years. Of their family one son and three 
daughters are living, vi;^. : Thomas, living 
at Pound, Wis. ; Mary, w ife of Henry 
Berg, of De Pere; Julia, wife of Con. 
Keefe, of Rockland; and Louisa, wife of 
Charles Brown, of Pound, \\'is. ; the 
others dying in infancy. 

Joseph I-ey. whose namr introduces 
these lines, was reared in the same man- 
ner as other pioneer children, receiving 
his literary training at the rude schools of 
the time, which were cpiite different from 
those of the jiresent day. His knowledge 
of farming he received under the tuition 
of his father. On May 13, 1 S84, he was 
united in marriage, at Menasha, \\'is., 
with Miss .Mary Lemmel, the ceremony 
being performed by I'atfier .Andrew Sen- 
bert. She was born April i r. 1858. at 
Maple Grove, Manitowoc Co., Wis.', 
daughter of Agidius I^emmel, who was a 
native of Bavaria, Germany, from which 
country he came to Wisconsin in an 
earh' day. Here he married Barbark 
Schaeffer, and they had a family of seven 
children, to wit: John D., of Menasha, 
Wis.; Kate, Mrs. John Cure, of MiK 
waukee; Mary. Mrs. Joseph Ley; ISar- 
bara, Mrs. Fred Digler, of Menasha; 
Anna L. , S. S. de Notre Dame, Cham- 
paign, Illinois; Kosa. Mrs. Fred Esser, 
of Milwaukee; and Maggie, Mrs. Henry 
Grant, of Menasha, \\'is. .\fter mar- 
riage our subject resided at the paternal 
homestead imtil 1S89. when became to 
his present farm, which now comprises 
130 acres of excellent land. .\11 the im- 
provements on this farm have been ?nade 
by him, and he has also erected all the 
buildings on the farm. He is a success- 
fid agriculturist, progressive and enter- 
prising, and is recognized as one of Rock- 
land township's public-spirited citizens, 
always ready to encourage and assist 
every movement for the im|irovenient and 
advancement of his section. 

A local leader in the Democratic ranks. 



COMMKMORA TI VK BIOOUAPIIICAL RFA'ORU 



179 



Mr. Ley has been elected b)^ that part}- 
to positions of trust, such as township 
treasurer, in which he served ten years, 
and he was school clerk eleven years, 
giving complete satisfaction to his con- 
<!tituency. Mr. and Mrs. Ley have an 
interesting family of six children, namely: 
Anton J., Maggie M., Anna L. , Hen- 
rietta M., Joseph H. and Hildy M. In 
religious faith the entire family are 
members of St. P^rancis Catholic Church, 
De Pere. 



GEORGE A. DELANEY, one of 
the best stone-cutters in Howard 
township, Brown county, was 
born here in 1869, the j'oungest 
in the family of six sons and five daugh- 
ters born to James C. Delaney. 

[ames C. Delaney was born February 
I, i8ig, in Shippensburg, Penn., a son of 
James and Rebecca (Anderson) Delaney, 
the former of whom was a native of Ire- 
land, the latter of England. James and 
Rebecca Delaney came to the United 
States when quite young, and here he first 
followed the blacksmith trade, afterward 
conducting an old-time tavern; later he 
settled on a farm in Ohio, where he also 
conducted a blacksmith shop, around 
which a little country village sprang up. 
Here he died at the age of sixty-four 
years; his wife had died when their son, 
James C, was but two vears of age. Of 
the five children born to |ames and 
Rebecca Delaney, four arc still living. 

James C. Delaney, at the age of ten 
years, started out in the world for him- 
self, and worked at various places by the 
month until he was fourteen years old, 
when he was apprenticed to a shoemaker. 
After a two-years' service he ran away, 
and at Philadelphia found employment as 
driver of a canal-boat horse, later became 
Steersman, and then captain. When 
twenty years old he enlisted in the army 
as a musician, and for two years served as 
fifer in the Florida war. On his return he 
met Miss Elizabeth Dickinson at Buffalo, 



N. Y. , and they were married Deruinber 
7, 1842. She was born in England, a 
daughter of Robert and Mary Dickinson, 
and was two years old when brought to 
America by her parents, who both died in 
Buffalo. Shortly after his marriage Mr. 
Delaney re-enlisted for five jears, ser\'ed 
as fifer, and was sent to Mexico, where he 
was quartered in the halls of the Moiite- 
zumas. He ser\ed, in all, ten \ears as 
fifer, eight of which he was fife-major of 
the Second United States Infantry. After 
the Mexican war the armj' was billeted at 
different points, and Mr. Delaney's lot 
was cast at Fort Howard, W'is., where he 
was e\'entually discharged. But in the 
meantime he had bought a few acres of 
land, on which he has lived e\er since, 
adding constantly to his original purchase 
until he became possessor of a fine piece 
of property, of which he has given each of 
his two sons fort\' or fift\' acres. 



WJ. CASEY, wlio for the past 
thirteen years has been ta\nr- 
abl}' known as a pains-taking and 
careful railroad official, is a native 
of Ireland, born in 1856. a son of John 
and Mary rO'Keefe) Case)', of the same 
nativity. The father died in Ireland, the 
widowed mother, about the year 1859, 
coming with her littk- family of one (onr 
subject) to the United States, first locat- 
ing in Fond du Lac, Wis., later settling 
in Milwaukee, where she is now residing. 
Our suliject, as will be seen, was three 
years old when he was brought to \\''is- 
consin, and he was reared and educated 
in Fond du Lac. When old enough to 
commence the world, he learned teleg- 
raphy at Campbcllsport, same State, and 
after six months recei\ed the appointment 
of local agent at Fredonia, Wis., for the 
Wisconsin Central railroad. After six 
months so employed, he was sent to 
Forest Junction, where he also served six 
months in similar work, at the end of 
which time he moved to Amherst Junc- 
tion, having been appointed joint agent 



I So 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGRAPniCAL JiECORD. 



for the Wisconsin Central and the Green 
Baj-, Winona & St. Paul railroads. Here 
he was stationed from 1882 till 1885, and 
was then moved to Green Bay, to (ill the 
position of chief clerk in the freight and 
passenger department of the Green Bay, 
Winona & St. Paul railroad. In 1887 he 
was appointed a^ent at Green Bay (Fort 
Howard Junction); in 1890 he was ap- 
pointed traveling auditor for the company, 
in 1892 being promoted to his present in- 
cumbency, that of car accountant for the 
Green Bay, Winona, & St. Paul and the 
Kewaunee, Green Bay & Western rail- 
roads. 

In 1878 Mr. Casey was married at 
Fond du Lac, Wis., to Miss Hattie 
Durand, and four children have blessed 
their imion, viz.: Charles, Mamie, Will- 
iam and George. Our subject is a mem- 
ber of the Royal .Arcanum, of Pochequette 
Lodge, No. 26, Knights of Pythias, and 
lieutenant in the Uniform Kank of same. 



JOSEPH HLBLL. who, for the past 
iiuarter of a century, has been act- 
ively identified with the farming in- 
terests of the township of Glenmore, 
Brown county, was born in Germany in 
1845, a son of Mathias Hcbej. The 
latter died befori' our subject was nine 
years old, and, the family being left in 
somewhat straitened circumstances, Jo- 
seph went to live with a farmer. 

Our subject was reared to farming, 
and continued to follow that vocation 
until he was twenty-one years of age, 
when he nmcluded to come to the New 
World, where he would ha\i' better 
chances for advancement. Borrowing 
the necessary money from a friend, he 
sailed from Bremen early in the sunnner 
of 1867, and landed at Quebec after a 
voyage of eight weeks. From there he 
came at once by rail to Milwaukee, Wis., 
thence to Manitowoc, where he found 
himself a stranger in a strange land, but 
young and active, and willing to work at 
anything which would bring him an honest 



dollar. He remained in Manitowoc coun- 
ty about three years, finding employment 
during the summers at farm w(jrk, and in 
the winter season engaged in lumbering. 
Two years after his arrival he returned 
the money he had borrowed to bring him 
here, and he also saved enough to bring 
his widowed mother, and his two sisters 
— Mary and Barbara. The)' lived in a 
rented house in Manitowoc county, and, 
after the daughters married the mother 
continued to reside with our subject until 
her death. 

On January 28, 1869, Joseph Hebel 
was married, in Francis Creek, Wis., to 
Miss Mary Gruber, who was born in Ger- 
many in 1847, daughter of Mathias Gru- 
ber. In the year of his marriage Mr. 
Hebel purchased forty acres in Section 24, 
Glenmore township. Brown county, only 
five acres of which were cleared at that 
time, and here, in a small log house, 
which stood a short distance from their 
present residence, the\' made their home 
for a number of years. .At first the farm 
afforded no revenue whatever, and, in 
addition to the arduous task of clearing 
away the forest, Mr. Hebel also engaged 
in making shingles by hand, receiving two 
dollars a thousand for them, delivereil at 
Green Bay, fifteen miles distant. But 
after several years of hard work the land 
was greatly improved, and, though obliged 
to go into debt for his first purchase, he 
soon paid for it, and added another tract, 
now owning eighty- acres of excellent 
land. At that time his children were all 
too young to help, but he has reared his 
family in comfort, and hewed acomff)rta- 
ble home from the dense forest. In all 
his dealings with his fellow men he has 
been square and ujiright, and has acc|uired 
an enviable reputation for integrity of 
character and honesty of purpose, being 
respected by all who know him. Mr. 
Hebel is a Democrat in his political 
preferences, but takes no active part in 
party alTairs; in religious connection he 
anri his wife are members of St. James 
Catholic Church, at Cooperstown, Mani- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIIAPUJCAI, RECORD. 



iSi 



towoc county. To their union came 
children as follows, their names and dates 
of birth being: Joseph, November i8, 
iS/iiJohn, April 29, 1873; Anton, No- 
vember 2, 1875; Louis, February 23, 
1878; Margaret, April 12, 1881; Annie, 
March 22, 18S3; Mary, May 31, 1886; 
Frank, January 4, 1891. (^iie son, Louis, 
died voung. 



s 



W. HAYFORD, a prominent 
citi/^en of Wrightstovvn, Brown 
count}', is a native of Potsdam, N. 
v., born July 25, 1832. Hisfather, 
Abiel D. Hayford, who was a native of 
Massachusetts, was a Congregational min- 
ister. He married Miss Laura A. John- 
son, whose father, C. Johnson, was con- 
nected with the body-guard of Gen. George 
Washington. According to tradition, he 
was a skillful carpenter, and made the 
coffin for the unfortunate Akijor Andre. 

S. W. Hayford, at the age of fifteen 
years, leaving the parental roof to brave 
the world on his own account, worked in 
different States for a time, and then, to- 
gether with his brother, James H., began 
the study of medicine. But their means 
were too cramped to allow them lioth to 
continue their education, so our subject 
concluded to abandon the study for the 
time being, and with fraternal generosity 
assist his brother to a diploma, after which 
he would resume the study himself. I\e- 
turning to New York, he married, on 
May 3. 1854, Miss R. Chapin, daughter 
of a prosperous farmer of that State, and 
two years later they came to Wrights- 
town, Wis. To this union ha\'c been 
born the following named children: Lu- 
ther D., of Rhinelander, Wis ; LucinaA., 
at home; James H., in Illinois; Edwin, 
of Wheatland, N. Dak. ; Alfred, still at 
home; Chester, in Illinois; Charles, of 
Sheboygan, Wis. ; Carrie, Chapin and 
Laura, at home. In 1 864 Mr. Hayford en- 
listed in Company E, Forty-second Wis- 
consin V. I., with which he served until 
the close of the war, when he received an 



honorable discharge, and returned to his 
home to resume the jieaceful occupation 
of tilling the soil. Circumstances pre- 
vented his ever resuming the study of 
medicine. Politically he is an ardent Re- 
publican, but is not an aspirant for office, 
although he has served as justice of the 
peace. From a child he has been a \ery 
active temperance worker and an active 
Christian. 

Dr. James H. Hayford, brother ot our 
subject, and now the editor of the Lara- 
mie (Wyo.) WccklySoitiiiil, has attained 
considerable fame as the originator of the 
woman suffrage movement. Mrs. Hay- 
ford, his wife, had the distinction of serv- 
ing on the first and onl\- jury composed 
equally of male and female members in 
the United States. 



WB. ANDI£RSON, junior member 
of the well-known leiuliiig firm 
of contractors ami builders. 
McGrath t\: Andi'rsou, (.".reen 
Bay, is a living example of what industry, 
perseverance and sound judgment can 
produce; while his business life bears tes- 
timony to what it is possible for man. 
with willing heart and hands, to ac- 
complish. 

He is a native of Ontaricj, Canada, born 
August 20, 1851, in the town ot Corn- 
wall, ason of Robert and Mar\ (MeMillen ) 
Anderson, the former of whom came, 
when a boy, from his native land, Scot- 
land, to Canada. He learned the trade 
of tailor, which for many years he fol- 
lowed in Cornwall, where he made a set- 
tlement, becoming a leading citizen of the 
town, which he serxed as clerk and treas- 
urer for thirty-four years. Of Kno.\ 
Presbyterian Church in ("ornwall he was 
a prominent member for a long period of 
time, and he served in many positions of 
honor and trust, so highly was he esteemed 
by the community. He and his wife lived 
to advanced ages, dving, he in 1S92, slu; 
in 1 886. 

Thi- suliject of this sketch, who is 



l82 



COMMEMORA TI \ 'E BIOGUA PUICA L II ECORD. 



third in order of birtli in his parents' 
family, received a fair education at tlie 
schools of his natixe town. At tlie aj^e 
of fifteen he went to work us a farm 
hand, receivinj.; nine dollars per month 
and his "keep," and his earninj^s he 
turned over to his father, not that he was 
obUged to do so, but in response to the sim- 
ple filial promptings of his heart. When, in 
the winter time, there was not much to 
do on the farm, the lad would be found 
hauling cordwood to town, his pay at 
that time being si.\ dollars per month. 
<'oming to the United States in 1868. he 
worked for a time as a farm hand in St. 
Lawrence county, X. Y., receiving seven- 
teen dollars per month, and during one 
season he labored in the lumber regions, 
known as "The South Woods," in St. 
I^awrence county. In 1870, learning 
that labor was better paid in the West, 
he set out with buoyant spirits and a 
hard hand — fc^r in the words of Shake- 
speare "there is no better sign of a 
brave heart than a hard hand " — and 
landing in Winona, Minn., he found 
himself the happy owner of only twelve 
dollars in cash and his clothes (rather a 
limited supply^, but jiossessed of a super- 
abundant allowance of courage and Scotch- 
('anadian "grit." Here he secured work 
as a common laborer in the service of a 
contractor named F. A. Johnson, who 
was engaged in driving piles and erecting 
bridges for the Chicago & Northwestern 
railroad. After a time, Mr. Johnson 
having similar work at St. Joe, Mich., 
our subject went there, and staid till the 
contract was completed. Returning to 
Winona, he continued sometime longer 
in the employ of Mr. Johnson, and then 
engatred with the Chicago & Northwestern 
Railroad Company as a bridge builder. 
In this, though yet a lad, his work was so 
thorough, and so highly appreciated by 
his employers, that he was made fore- 
man of a gang, in which position he re- 
mained till I S76, when he resigned, hav- 
ing accepted a similar appointment from 
the Southern Minnesota Railwav Com- 



pany. This last was a two-jears' engage- 
ment; and his efficiency was again re- 
warded with promotion, he becoming 
superintendent of bridges and buildings, 
in which capacity he remained some four 
years. At the end of that time he 
moved to Winnipeg, Canada, where he 
found similar work on the Canadian Pa- 
cific railroad, then in course of construc- 
tion, his engagement with them termi- 
nating in 1884, when he returned to the 
United States, and for two years lived in 
St. Paul, Minn., taking a much-needed 
rest. During the next two years he was 
foreman for contractors on the Minneapo- 
lis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie rail- 
way, and then for one year was superin- 
tendent of bridges and buildings for that 
company. We now iind him in the em- 
ploy of the Milwaukee & Northern Rail- 
road Company, whom he served in similar 
capacity till in February, 1893, when he 
became a partner with Mr. Thomas J. 
McGrath, as contractors and builders. 
Since the partnership was formed the 
firm have erected 800 feet of dockage for 
the Murphy Lumber Co. ; plant for " The 
Columbian Bakery;" e.xtensive coal sheds 
for Barkhousen & Hathaway; the power 
house for the Green Bay Electric Co. ; 
about 14,000 yards of cedar block paving 
on Washington street, all in the city of 
Green Bay, besides the bridge over the 
East river, connecting Allouez and Belle- 
vue townships, in Brown county. 

On October 9, 1875, Mr. Anderson 
was married in Winona, Minn., to Sarah 
Pritchard, who was born May 2, 1856, in 
the city of Delaware, Del., a daughter of 
Thomas and Mary (Morgan) Pritchard, 
who were of English descent. At the 
age of thirteen Mrs. Anderson accom- 
panied her parents to England, where 
they left her, as they had to return to the 
United States. The intention was that 
the young girl should come home with 
some relatives, but she concluded to re- 
turn without their company which she 
did on the steamship "Turriffo." In 1868 
her parents removed to Minnesota, and a 



COMMEMORATIVK BWGUAPUIVAI, RECORD. 



l'\> 



year later she followed them. The names 
of the children born to Mr. and Mrs. W. 
B. .Anderson are: Mary Jessie (she died 
when two months old); James I^., Will- 
iam K., and Olive A. Politically our 
subject is a stanch Democrat. Mrs. 
Anderson is a member of the Catholic 
Church, and the entire family enjoy the 
respect and esteem of a wide circle of 
friends. 



JOSEPH TREML, farmer and stnrk- 
raiser, and one of the highly re- 
respected citizens of Glennmre 
township, Brown count}', is a na- 
tive of Germany, born October 15, 1828, 
son of Joseph Treml, who had fi\e cliil- 
dren — three sons and two daughters — of 
whom our subject is the eldest. 

Joseph Treml was reared to farm life, 
and during his youth had but limited edu- 
cational advantages, attending school (jnly 
three winters. He remained at home until 
he reached the age of twenty-one, at 
which time he commenced life on his own 
account, working as a farm hand, and 
later the homestead came into his posses- 
sion. In February, 1866, he was married 
in Germany, to Miss Mary Reiter, who 
was born November 30, 1843, daughter 
of Adam Reiter, and while living in Ger- 
many they had two children, as follows: 
Joseph, born October 10, 1868, now 
working on the home farm; and .\nnie, 
born February 22, 1S72, who was mai- 
ried August 3, 1892. to Thomas Crestoff, 
of Montpelier township, Kewaunee coun- 
ty. After his marriage Mr. Treml contin- 
ued farming until i 874, when he disposed 
of his property, and with the proceeds 
brought his family to the United States. 
They sailed from Bremen, arriving in 
Baltimore, Md., after an ocean voyage of 
eighteen days, and immediately after 
landing came westward over the Pennsyl- 
vania railroad, to De Pere, Brown Co., 
Wis., via Chicago. Shortly afterward 
Mr. Treml purchased forty acres of new 
land in Section 25, Glenmore township. 



for \\liii'h he ]);iid tlirer hundrrd dollars. 
I'lie lirst tiiiilx-r nn this limd had been 
cut by lunibernieu; but In- bnilt the first 
house, a log structure, wliuli .-,toiid \\ here 
the kitchen tif the prt-'sent roidt-uce now 
is. The years that folkiwcil were lilled 
with hardship :ind stern tml, lint these 
settlers were an.xions to have a lioino of 
their own, and b\' ]ierse\'i'ranie suc- 
ceeded at last in clearing the entire farm. 
On this place the rest of their children 
were born, as follows: \\'olfgan^. born 
October i, 1874; Mar}-, born Ncnember 
8. 1876; Fr:iid<, born |anuar\ 10, 1880, 
all three li\inj^ ,it home; and lour sons — 
John, Charles y I 1, Charles (21, and 
George — who died in infanc\-. 

During his residence in Glenmore 
township otu' subject has dexoted himself 
exclusively to farming and stock-raising, 
and besides imjiro\'ing the original tract 
has added to it till he now has I 20 acres. 
When he settled here it was covered u ith 
brush and stumps and fallen timber left 
by hmd^ermen, and no small amount of 
labor has been in\'olved in its transh^rma- 
tion to its ])resent condition, in which 
work his sons ha\e' been of gri-at help to 
liim. He is universally respected by his 
fellow citizens for his S(|uare, honest 
methods and upright character. He is a 
stanch I^emocrat. but has ne\er given 
any time to jiolitics, all his time being de- 
\'oted to his business interests. He and 
his wife are members of St. Mar\'s 
Church, in ('di'uinore, and they are' highly 
esteemed h\ all who know them. 



LG. SCHILLER, manager of C. 
Schiller, wholesale dealer in fresh, 
salt and smoked fish, at the f<3ot 
of Jefferson street. Green Ba}', 
was born September 12, 1848, in the 
Province of IJrandenburt;, German). 

Oin' subject canu- to Green Bay in 
1872, and April 6, 1874, married Miss 
Clara Asimont, daughter of George Asi- 
mont, wlio came to Green Bay from Ger- 
many in 1S57. On first coming to that 



■4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



cit)' Ml. Srhiller was employed by Cran- 
dall (S: Xortli, wholesale grocers, and lor 
four years did faithful service; he was then 
employed for three months by John Day 
& Son, wholesale grocers anil tish dealers, 
and in November, 1S76, went into the 
grocery business at the corner of Pine 
and Adams streets; in the spring of 1S82 
he moved to Washington street, but sold 
out Maj' 30, i88y, and assumed his pres- 
ent position. This house was established 
in 1879 on East river, and in 1889 L. G. 
Schiller established the business at the 
foot of Jefferson street, in the interest of 
his employer, at the time of his taking 
the management of the concern in Green 
Hay. Under his control all things have 
prospered, and he now employs twenty- 
five hands. The ]iosition of Mr. and 
Mrs. Schiller in social circles is all that 
can be desired, and both are members of 
the Lutheran Church, in good and faith- 
ful standing. He has also been treasurer 
of his church ten years; is a memlier of 
the Koyal Arcanum, of theOrderof Tonti, 
and of the Knights of the Maccalices. In 
politics he is a Republican, and in 1877- 
j?< was a member of the city council; he 
has likewise served as a member of the 
board of school trustees, and every office 
he has held with credit to himself and to 
the satisfaction of the public. 

Of seven children l>orn to the ]iarents 
of L. G. Schiller, two besides himself are 
' resiilents of the United States — Louis, 
who came to Green Bay in 1868, worked 
for Crandall & North, until 1874, and 
then went to Milwaukee, where he still 
resides; and Frank, who reached Green 
Bay in 1872. was in business with his 
brother, L. G., till 1889, but is now a 
resident of Fort Scott, Kans. To the 
marriage of L. G. Schiller and Clara Asi- 
mont were born ten children, viz. : Clara, 
died in 1875; Gustave, bookkeeper for his 
father; Julia, residing with her parents; 
Frieda and Clara, (twins), died in 1878; 
Sophie, died in iSSo; Henrietta, died in 
18S2; Louis, died in 1883; Clarence, resid- 
ing with his parents ; and Otto, died in 1 889. 



FRANK CRABB, one of Ue lYres 
prosperous joung business men, 
is a native of Brown county, born 
May 8. i86j. in Section 3. Rock- 
land township. 

Philip Crabb, his father, was born in 
Belgium, and was there reared, receiving 
but a limited education, as he had to 
commence work when but a boy. In 
early manhood, hoping to succeed better 
in the United States, he emigrated hither, 
and coming to northern Wisconsin, at 
that time a new and unsettled country, 
found employment as a laborer, work be- 
ing plenty in the lumber regions. He was 
married in Green Bay to Mrs. Catherine 
Tillmans, a widow, and shortly afterward 
located on a farm in Rockland township, 
where they resided until their remo\al to 
De Pere. Previous to their coming, Mr. 
Crabb had had a business room built in 
the town, walking daily to and fro from 
his farm to superintend its construction, 
and during his absence Mrs. Crabb would 
work in the clearing. One day, while 
she was thus engaged, she heard the 
screams of her little daughter, who was 
playing about the house. The child's 
dress had accidently caught fire. and. with 
great presence of mind, the mother dashed 
her into a watering-trough, but the little 
girl soon afterward died from the injuries. 
Our subject, I'rank, was the only child 
by the first wife that grew to maturity; 
she died in 1871, and was buried in the 
Catholic cemetery at De Pere. Philip 
Crabb subsequently remarried, and by 
that union had two children who lived to 
adult age, namely: Annie, now Mrs. 
Peter Pembrook. of De Pere; and Joseph, 
a farmer of De Pere township. Mr. 
Crabb died July i. 1S79, and was buried 
in De Pere cemetery; he was a member 
of the Catholic Church, and a stanch 
Democrat, though he never took an active 
part in politics. After his removal to the 
town of De Pere he carried on a grocery 
and liquor business in the store room 
above mentioned, becoming very success- 
ful and accumulating a snug property. 



commi:moua rivi-: hkxhim'Iiicai, uix'uni). 



iS:; 



I'ni^iilit}' and industry and attention to 
business were iho cK-inentsof his success, 
for iiis ])ro|U'rty was made iVoiii a start of 
notlnni; else. 

Up to tiie ai;e of Hvc years l'"rank 
Crabl) liveii on a farm in Roe Ic land town- 
ship, and then came with his parents to 
De Pere, where he recei\ed his (HJncatioii, 
atten(hng the "old slone sehoolhouse " 
for several years. W'hen hut a boy he 
connneneed to assist his fathei' in the 
store, where he securi'd his tnsl l)usin(.'ss 
traininjj, and, after Ihedealh of the father, 
continuetl the f)usiness in the same build- 
iui;' until i<S8j, when lu: was l)urned out. 
In 1885 he rebuilt, ereetim;- a substantial 
brick business room and ri'siilence, where 
he now conducts one of the best-appointed 
saloons in Dc Pcrc, doin;.; a ])rosperous 
business. Mr. Crabf) was married in 1880 
to Miss Allie V'anderlu (le'u, a native of 
Oconto county. Wis., and a daui;hter of 
John \'anderh}den, who is a Ilollander 
by birth. This uinon was l)lessed with the 
followiui; named chikh'en: I'vatie (■., 
Cecelia T. , Theresa A., iMaidc lohn 
Joseph (deceased), (".eorj;e A., and \\- 
j^oniaj. Our subject, like his father, is a 
stanch member of tiie Deniocralic i>arty, 
but does not minj.;le in i)olilical affairs. 
In relif^ious faith he is a member of St. 
Marv's Catholic ("Inu'ch. 



BAKN.\RI) PINNICGAN. a self- 
made prosperous af:;rieull nrist and 
extensivi: land owner of llolland 
townshi]), Brown county, is a na- 
tive of the land of I'.rin, born about tlu' 
year 1827 in County Slij^o, a son of Patrick 
and Rose (Flynn) Finne^an. 

Patrick Finnej;an was a tenant farmer, 
and like many others at that time, thou.yh 
hard-working- and fruf:;al, found it no easy 
task to support his family in comfort. lie 
had six children — one daufihter, Winnie, 
who died youufj, and hve sons, Harnard, 
Patrick, Thomas, John and Euj,'ene, of 
whom but two are now living, Barnard 
and Patrick. The mother of these dyintr, 



the father subsetpiently married Miss Mar- 
garet Kerrigan, with whom he came to 
the United States in i8.|() ^leavint; his 
sons in Irelandj, and made his home m 
Montgomery couuly, N. \'. Barnard 
I'^iuuegan reci'i\ed a somewhat limited 
conunon-school education, for, being the 
eldest son, he commenced work :il the 
early age of eleven years. .\fter hisfalhei' 
left Ireland IJarnard suppoiled himself by 
farm lal)or until llu' fall of 1847, when 
ins father |)ii>\idi.'d him and his brother 
Thomas with means to emigrate. The 
two yiiung men procei'ded to Liverpool, 
where they took |iassage on a sailing \es- 
sel l)ound for America, and, landing after 
a four-weeks' voyage, innnedialely jDined 
their father in Monlgomery county, N. Y. 
Here Barnard found employment as a 
farm haiul, and was also emplo\'ed as 
seclioii laborer on the New ^'()rk Centi.d 
railroad belwei-n I'lii'a and .\lbany, con- 
Innnng in this some \'ears. Thomas I'~in- 
negan died in Monlgomery county, when; 
he was fjiiried, and in the spring of 1855 
Mr. and Mrs. l''iiiiiegan and Barnard con- 
cluded to migrate to Wisconsin, attracted 
ir.idouf)tedl\' by the cheapness of tlie land 
in that tlieii new State. (iailuning to- 
gether tlieir household eff(u:ts, the}' set 
out for wdiat was then tlie " Far \\'est, " 
going l>y rail to Buffalo, when' the\- v\n- 
l-)arked on the lake steamer "Morton," 
("apt. Thompson, and landed m dreen 
Bay, Wis., earlv in |uiie. The father 
came at once to K.aiikauna, but ISarnari! 
ol)taincd emiiloyment for the snmnu'r as 
deck-hand on the steamer " Moori\" ply- 
iiiL; betweiMi Green Bay, Wasliington Har- 
bor and Mackinac. In the fall, rd'ter navi- 
gation had t-los(.'d, our subject rejoined his 
father at Kaiikaima, and here he remained 
two years in the emidoy of the Fox River 
ImprovemiMit Co About 1855 he pur- 
chased eighty acres in section 12, IIol- 
kiml township, on which not a single im- 
provement had been made, and he built 
the first house on the place, which is yet 
standing. Here Mr. and Mrs. iMunegan 
passed their declining days; but Barn.ird 



iS6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPEICAL RECORD. 



did not make a permanent home there at 
first, for it needed money to carry on the 
farm, and he could at that time earn more 
at other pursuits. But he earnestly set 
about the task of clearing and improving 
his farm, and not onlj- accomplished this 
much, but also added to the place from 
time to time, now owning 280 acres of ex- 
cellent land, all of which he has acquired 
by industry and honest toil. His sons 
have been of great assistance to him in 
the cultivation of this large farm, and to- 
day they stand among the leading young 
men in the township. 

On F"ebruar\- 19, 1S61, IJarnard Fin- 
negan was united in marriage with Miss 
Mary Cavney, who was born March 7, 
1843, in County Sligo, Ireland, only 
daughter of Roger and Julia (McXulty) 
Cavney. They came to the United States 
in 1S50, and for several years resided in 
New York City, where Mrs. Cavney died. 
In 1858 the father and his daughter Mary 
qamc to Wisconsin, where he passed the 
remainder of his days, making his home 
with his daughter until his death, which 
occurred March 28, 1877. 

After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Finne- 
gan took up their residence on the farm, 
where they have since continued to make 
their home. Their union has been 
blessed with eight children, a brief rec- 
ord of whom is as follows : Kosa, died 
at the age of three years. Patrick, died 
at the age of fifteen years and nine 
months. John C, born July 10, 1867, 
received an education at the connnon 
schools of the home neighborhood, sub- 
secjuently attended McCunn's Business 
College in Green Bay for a jear, and 
taught school in Brown county seven 
years; he is a stanch Democrat, a l(jcal 
leader in the party, and in 1 893 was 
elected township clerk; at present he is a 
notar\' public; he married Odell Savageau 
Xo\eml>er 7, 1894, and lives in a fine 
residence on his farm in Holland town- 
shi|>. Brown county. Michael J., born 
August 28, 1869, graduated from the 
(preen Bay Business College, and for the 



past six years has been employed by the 
Metropolitan Lumber Company, of Dick- 
inson countj^, Mich., as bookkeeper. 
Eddie B., born January 23, 1872, also 
took a course in the Green Bay Business 
College; he resides at home. Charles 
T. , born November i, 1874, lives at 
home. Frank died when two years and 
seven months old. Mamie E., born 
January 11, 1883, is living at home. In 
religious connection the family are all 
members of St. F"rancis Church, Holland 
township. Politically Mr. p-innegan is an 
ardent adherent of the principles of the 
Democratic party, but, though interested 
in its welfare, is not active in party affairs. 



M 



ANUEL BRUNETTE, proprie- 
tor of the Duck Creek Stone 
< hiarry, \'elp, Brown county, is 
one of the prominent self-made 
men of northeastern Wisconsin, where he 
is widely and favorably known. 

He was born June 5, 1842, in Green 
Bay, son of Dominick and Louisa (Bru- 
nette) Brunette, the former of whom was 
born in Green Bay in 1812, and for many 
years was a jobber in logs, lumber, etc. ; 
he is now retired from business, residing 
on a farm in Brown county owned by 
our subject. Mrs. Louisa Brunette was 
born in Lower Canada, and tlied in How- 
ard township, Brown county, at the age 
of sixty-six years, the mother of fourteen 
children, of whom but five are now li\ing. 
Manuel Brunette's paternal grandfather, 
Dominick Brunette, Sr. , was born in 
Little Moscow, Canada, and in 1796 came 
to Green Bay with a party in bark canoes, 
being among the first to visit the shores 
and settle here. On entering the bay. at 
that point known as " Death's Door," the 
party was dashed against an island, and 
the canoes wrecked, but they succeeded 
in repairing them with birch bark, and' 
then made their way along the east 
shore to what is now the city of Green 
Bay, at that time only a fur-trading post. 
Here for some \ears Dominick Brunette 



■«fev 




^m^. 




COMMHMdUA TIVE lUOOIlAPIIICAf. UKCOIW. 



>9 



engaged in fur trading, and tlien inarired 
a Miss Grignon, through vviidin he in- 
herited part of an old French claim. 
This led him to adopt farming, a voca- 
tion he followed the remainder of his days, 
dj'ing in 1S62 at the age of seventy-eight 
years; his wife also li\ed to an advanced 
age. He had reared his son Dominick to 
a life of usefulness and hardihood, a train- 
ing which fully qualified him for the 
dangers incident to those early times, and 
he took an active part as a home guard in 
defense of the settlers during the Indian 
war against the depredations and attack 
of the Redskins, as well as in the more 
peaceful but equally hazardous undertak- 
ing of acting as one of the party who sur- 
veyed the military road running from 
Green Bay to Prairie Du Chien. 

Manuel Brunette was reared to the 
practical pursuits of agriculture as well as 
to those of life in the woods. On com- 
mencing life for himself he first hired out 
tiy the day or month either at logging or 
farming, also as a shingle sawyer, and 
from these crude beginnings has accumu- 
lated his present fortune. He was vir- 
tually at home during his "jobbing out" 
experience, until his marriage to Miss 
Teressa Walker, a native of Lockport, 
N. Y. , which event occurred April 21, 
1867; their union has been blessed with 
fourteen children, ten of whom are yet 
living, as follows: Mary L., Sarah, Lemuel, 
Margaret, Roland, Manuel, Abbie, 
Robert, Norine and James. Of these the 
second daughter, Sarah, is the wife of 
Albert Strasburger, superintendent of 
schools of Sheboygan county, Wisconsin. 

Mrs. Teressa Brunette is a daughter 
of James and Sarah f Welch) Walker, the 
former of whom was born in TuUamore, 
King's county, Ireland, May 3, T814, and 
was about eleven years old when he came 
to America with his sister and settled in 
New Brunswick. There he at once shipped 
as a cabin boy, sailing between Que- 
bec and Chatham, a vocation he followed 
until he reached the age of twenty, when 
he went to Pennsylvania, working in a 



stone quarry until 1839, in which year he 
mo\ed to Lockjiort, N. \' . He was there 
married, in 1840, to Miss Sarah Welch, 
and resided there until 1849, when he set 
out for Wisconsin, traveling via canal to 
Buffalo, and thence by steamer "A. D. 
Patchen" to Milwaukee, where he passed 
the greater part of the summer. Coming 
thence to Green Bay, he settled finally 
at \'elp. Brown c<>unt_\, where he cleared 
fort}- acres of land, and made a perma- 
nent home, residing there until his death, 
which occurred in November, 1892. In 
1872 he opened a general store, and for 
fourteen years served as postmaster at 
Velp. In politics he was first an Aboli- 
tionist, later a Democrat. He was the 
father of ten children, of whom four sons 
and three daughters survive. Mr. Walker 
was a great traveler in his day, and \is- 
ited nearly every stone quarry in the 
United States; he was a great reader, and 
a most enterprising and progressive man 
in every way, having assisted in construct- 
ing the first threshing machine in the 
country; put in the first blast in the Erie 
canal near Lockport, N. Y. , and was one 
of the first passengers to cross the Alle- 
ghany Mountains on a railroad. Ha\ing 
been educated in the common schools, he 
knew their value, and, in company with 
David Cormier and Charles W. Athey, 
organized the first school in Howard 
township, against strong opposition on 
account of the cost. He was always acti\-e 
in public affairs, and was highly honored 
in this section of the county. Mrs. Sarah 
(Welch) Walker was born March 4, 1826, 
daughter of Thomas and Mary (Nichols) 
Welch, natives of Limerick, Ireland, who 
landed in Toronto, Canada, the year Mrs. 
Walker was born. 

After his marriage Manuel Brunette 
settled on a single acre of land he had 
previously purchased with money earned 
by hard daily labor, and built a small 
frame house, 20x26, thereon. With no 
capital, save good health and determina- 
tion, he, for sixteen years, followed boat- 
ing, and haulinir lumber, shingles, etc., 



190 



COM ME MO RA TI I 'E BIO GRA PHICA L RECORD. 



by frugality and attention to business 
managing to accumulate some cash cap- 
ital. In 1873 he V)ought the Duck Creek 
Stone yuarry, the business which chietiy 
engages his attention at present, but in 
the meantime had purchased various tracts 
of farming lands, to the cultivation of 
which he has given his personal super- 
vision, and is now not only recognized as 
one df the most progressive farmers of 
Brown county, but as a thoroughly sub- 
stantial business man. The Duck Creek 
Quarry stone is described to be the most 
substantial for sub-structure in the North- 
west, and is so acknowledged. The es- 
tablishment supplies engine beds, fur- 
nishes cut and dimension stone to order, 
and has a steam barge to deliver orders 
wherever practicable. It runs steam 
drills, a channeling machine and polish- 
ing machines, giving constant employ- 
ment to about fifty men, and is yearly 
extending its trade. Many of the finest 
buildings in the Northwest are constructed 
from the product of this quarry, and Mr. 
Brunette deserves great credit for placing 
the valuable material before builders and 
architects of the country. 

In politics our subject is a Democrat, 
and cast his first Presidential vote for 
George B. McClellan. He has served 
his fellow citizens fifteen years as super- 
visor, for several terms as member of the 
Brown county board, and in other local 
offices, in every one of which he has 
given the utmost satisfaction. He is the 
present treasurer of the school board, and 
has been postmaster of \'elp since Grovcr 
Cleveland's first administration, with his 
daughter Margaret as assistant. Mr. 
Brunette and family arc members of the 
Catholic Church, toward the support of 
which he has contributed generously, as 
well as to the building up of other 
churches and schools. In fact, he is 
active and liberal in all ]iublic under- 
takings. Mr. Brunette is self-educated, 
and has been the sole architect of his 
fortune. His reading is of a most exten- 
sive character, including ancient and 



modern history, politics and current litera- 
ture. He is wise in counsel, and is much 
sought after both by business and profes- 
sional men for advice, and few men are 
more highly respected in Brown county. 
Of such men the State of Wisconsin is 
justly proud, as such lives are a living 
example to the new generation. 



WILLAKD H. r.lKDE.VU, of 
Flintville, Brown county, was 
horn December i, 1859, in 
Clinton county, N. Y. His 
grandparents, Jacob and Fannie Burdeau, 
were born near Montreal, Canada, and 
came to t.'.e United States about 181 2, 
locating near LakeChamplain, in Clinton 
county, N. Y. ; later moved to a farm at 
Chazy, Clinton county, thence to Woods 
Falls, N. Y., finally returning to Dover, 
Canada, where they died at an advanced 
age. They had a family of thirteen chil- 
dren, among whom was Isaac, the father 
of our subject. 

Isaac Burdeau was born May S, 1831, 
in the village of Champlain, Clinton Co., 
N. Y. , was reared a farmer, and was mar- 
ried December 31, 1853, to Miss Mary A. 
Cook, who was born in Clinton county, N. 
Y. , October 8, 1837, a daughter of John 
and Ann Cook. Isaac Burdeau followed 
farming in his native count\' until 1866, 
when he brought his family to Brown 
county, Wis. , and bought a farm near 
where his son Willard E. now lives, re- 
siding thereon until his death, which oc- 
curred January 13, 1894. He was one of 
the best known and most highly respected 
business men of the count}', and an old- 
time and influential Democrat. There 
were six children in his family, one of 
whom died at the age of thirty-four years, 
leaving a family of eight children. 

Willard E. Burdeau, at twenty-one 
years of age, left the home farm for Lake 
Superior, where, for two years, he was 
foreman for a large sawmill firm; then re- 
turned home, anil for the next two jears 
followed logging, working hard and mak- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGnAPHICAL RECORD. 



191 



iiifi money. On May 8, 1884, he married 
Miss Sarah A. Philhps, a native of 
Suamico township, born July 6, 1863, 
and this happy union has been blessed 
with four children, as follows: Alma E. , 
born February 18, 1886; Earl W. , born 
February 21, 1888; Leo A., born October 
5, 1891, and Flora, born March 16, 1893. 
After his marriage Mr. Burdeau carried 
on a farm until 1892, when he bought a 
general store, to which, in 1S94, he add- 
ed a large stock of farm machinery, in- 
cluding binders and mowers, besides 
wagons and buggies, in all of which he has 
made a success. He is a member of the 
Democratic party, and September 30, 
'S93, was appointed postmaster. He 
has served as supervisor and road over- 
seer, and for one year as chairman of the 
town board; he has also been a school of- 
ficer for several years. He and his wife 
are members of the Catholic Church. 

Mrs. Sarah A. Burdeau is a daughter 
of George Phillips, whose parents, Daniel 
and Nancy (Hughes) Phillips, were natives 
of County Down, Ireland, where George 
was born, in August, 1820, one of ten 
children. George came to America in 
1854, landing in Canada, where he lived 
fourteen months, and then went to 
Whitehall, and later to Clinton, N. Y. , 
thence to Syracuse, same State. While 
there he married Miss Sarah Quinn, who 
was one of a family of seven children, also 
born in County Down ; her mother was a 
daughter of John and Sarah Sloan. To 
George and Sarah (Ouinn) Phillips were 
born five children, and the family came 
to Wisconsin about the year 1856, but 
three years later returned to New York, 
where they remained one year. At the 
end of that time they came back to Wis- 
consin, locating in Door county, but 
about i860 settled in Suamico township, 
Brown county, where they now reside, 
beine among its most honored citizens. 

Willard E. Burdeau has led a very 
active and industrious life, and has made 
his fortune solely through his personal 
exertions. He is recognized by his 



neighbors as a man of enterprise, ever 
ready to promote all projects designed 
for the public good; and his fellow citizens 
have never hesitated to call ujion his ser- 
vices when in need of a faithful and reli- 
able executor of a public trust. His social 
standing is with the best people in the 
Community, and his business integrity has 
ever been without reproach. 



FRANZ LIEBMANN, a typical 
self-made, industrious farmer, and 
one of the leading, highly respected 
citizens of Preble township, Brown 
count}', is a native of Schwarzburg-Kudol- 
stadt, German}', born June zy, 1824, in 
the village of Lichte, by Koenigsee. His 
father. Christian M. Liebniann, was a na- 
tive of the same place, and by occupa- 
tion was a farmer. 

Franz Liebmann was educated in the 
connnon schools of his place of birth. 
When thirteen years old he commenced 
to learn the trade of potter, at which he 
served an apprenticeship of three years, 
and then followed same as journeyman in 
various parts of Germany, giving his 
father part of his earnings before he be- 
came of age. In the spring of 1851, con- 
cluding he could better his condition by 
coming to the United States, he bade 
adieu to his home and friends and sailed 
from Hamburg on the vessel ' ' Germany. " 
Reaching New York after an ocean voy- 
age of five or six weeks, he proceeded 
thence by boat to Albany, and from there 
by rail to Buffalo, where he took the lake 
boat to Sheboygan, Wis. From the 
latter place he came to Green Bay, where 
several families from his home neighbor- 
hood had settled. Mr. Liebmann's first 
employment in the New World was mak- 
ing ditches, at which he continued one year, 
and then spent three months at his trade, 
conducting the pottery business on a small 
scale in Green Ba}', where he was the 
first in that line. After a time his health 
became poor, and, on his recovery, he 
went to Menasha, Wis., and worked for 



192 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Mr. Hatclielder in tlio pottery in that 
town [ov about six months. Then, join- 
ing his father and brother Louis, who had 
followed him to the United States, he 
went to Washinfjton Harbor, Wis., where 
they engaged in the lishery business, and 
prospered. But here he was again taken 
sick, and he left the place one hundred 
dollars in debt. Coming to Green Bay, 
he worked in sawmills for Robinson, 
Howe, Tyler, and others, was then for 
some time employed in Bellevue town- 
ship, and finally, in November, 1859, 
came to his present farm, having sold his 
house and lot in Green Bay. 

On October 31, 1858, Mr. Liebmann 
was married, in Green Bay. to Enistina 
Meister, who came from Germany about 
1853, and children as follows were born 
to their union: Ernst, a farmer of Preble 
township, born October 19, 1859, who 
was married October 26, 1886, to Hannah 
Jobelius, and has had two children: Nellie 
(deceased) and Laura (he is a Republican 
in political connection, a leader in the 
party in his township, and has served as 
chairman of the board, supervisor, and 
for three years as assessor, still holding 
the latter officcl; Edwin, a saloon keeper 
in Preble; Ered. at home; Louisa, widow 
of Charles Wallman, of Peshtigo, Wis., 
and Caroline, Mrs. Hubbard Basten, of 
Preble. Mr. Liebmaim first purchased a 
tract of twenty acres, and now owns 120 
acres of excellent farming land, the culti- 
vation of which is now carried on by his 
sons. In January, 1865, he was drafted 
into Company B, Eourteenth Regiment 
Wis. V. I. , was first sent to Vicksburg, 
and was present at the fall of Spanish 
Fort, this being his first battle; they then 
commenced the march toward Montgom- 
ery, and we cii route at the time of Lee's 
surrender. Mr. Liebmann was mustered 
out at Mobile, and received his discharge 
October 9, 1865, at Madison, Wis., com- 
ing home at once; but after his return he 
had an attack of fever and ague, also rheu- 
matism Twhich still troubles him), being 
sick for two years as a result of exposure. 



Our subject has followed farming for 
thirty-five years, and from a start of forty 
dollars, the amount he had when he 
landed in Green Bay, he has accumulated 
a very comfortable property, the result of 
years of hard work and economy. Atone 
time, while working at day labor, money 
was so scarce that he was obliged to take 
his pay in "shin plasters" (this was in 
1856-57). But he struggled along, year 
by year improving his circumstances, till 
he now stands among the most successful 
farmers of his section. In politics he has 
been a Republican since i860, and is a 
stanch supporter of the principles of his 
party. He has held various offices in his 
township, and served for some time as 
clerk of the school board, then as chair- 
man of same for six j'ears, discharging 
his duties with credit to himself and satis- 
faction to all. During his j-ounger days 
Mr. Liebmann was a most indefatigable 
worker, and he has attended to the clear- 
ing of his entire farm, seeing the dense 
forest, once inhabited by wild animals, 
supplanted by fertile fields, representing 
many years of unrelenting toil. He and 
his family are highly esteemed, and he is 
known to be honest and straightforward 
in all his dealings with his fellowmen. 
Socially he is a member of Hermann 
Lodge," No. Ill, I. O. O. F., of T. O. 
Howe Post, No. 124, G. A. R., and of 
the Germania Bene\olent Society. 



JOHN D. ESMANN, an industrious 
well-to-do farmer of New Denmark 
township. Brown county, is a native 
of Germany, born September 9, 
1S23, a son of Herman H. and Margaret 
(Schlake) Esmann, \vho had a family of 
seven children, namely: John D., Anna, 
Geschc, Erit2, Meta, Henry, and Ber- 
nend. 

Our subject received his education in 
the common schools of his native land, 
and learned the mason's trade under his 
father, following same constantly in his 
native country. In 1852 he was married 



COMMEMiUtATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL UECOIID. 



193 



in Germany to Miss Adelaide Meise- 
gades, and, in 1861, they emigrated to 
America, landing in New York City, thence 
innnediately coming' westward to New 
Denmark township, Brown Co., Wis. 
Here Mr. Esniann purchased eighty acres 
of wild land, which, hy hard labor and 
shrewd financiering, he has converted 
into a highly cultivated improved farm, 
where he is rnccessfnlly engaged in general 
agriculture. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Esmann were born 
four children, as follows: Meta, Henry 
(deceased), Gesene, and Fritz, the latti'r 
remaining on the home farm with his 
father, their mother having died in 18S3. 
She was a member of the Lutheran 
Church, as is also Mr. Esmann In his 
political preferences' he is a Republican. 



LOKENZ HEIM, one of the thrifty 
industrious German farmers ot 
Scott township, Brown county, is 
a native of the Fatherland, born 
Februar\' 2S, 1S31, son of Martin Heim. 
In the fall of 1.S46 the latter, with his 
famiK' of three sons and two daughters, 
immigrated to the United States, and com- 
ing directh' to Wisconsin, made a settle- 
ment in Brown county. In Green I>a)' 
township, which then comprised what is 
now four townships, he purchased a tract 
of eighty acres of new land, covered with 
timber and brush, and on this farm he and 
his wife passed the remainder of their 
days, he dying in 1872, she in 1878. 

Lorenz Heim was fifteen years of age 
when he came with his parents to Amer- 
ica, prior to which he had received his 
education in the common schools of his 
native land. He secured work in Green 
Bay, for four years doing chores around 
the old " Astor House, " for which work 
he received eleven dollars per month, his 
earnings all going to assist his parents to 
pay for their new home; subsecjuently he 
worked two years at another hotel in the 
same capacity. On November 26, 1855, 
Mr. Heim was married at New Franken, 



Brown countw to Miss Barl)ara Bidde- 
john, who was born in liel^nnii, Ahirch 
22, 1830, and came to .Xmcrica in 1855. 
To this union ha\e been born scn cnteen 
children, of whom Mary is the wife of 
|oseph Ryder, of Menominee, Mich. ; 
Catherine is married to Andrew Simons; 
Frona lives at home; .Andrew is a resident 
of Marinette, Wis. ; Louis is li\-ing at 
home; Agnes is the wife of I'eter Becker, 
of Michigan; Lena, Hubart, Caroline, 
John, and Joseph all li\e at home; the 
others dietl in intanc)'. 

.At the time of his uiania;;e Mr. Heim 
had purchased a tract (if new, uncleared 
land, for which he went into debt, and 
this he has since cleared and iiiipro\-ed, 
now owning 160 acres ot prime farm 
land. He is one of the self-made men of 
his section, and is e\-erywhere respected 
for his industry and honest, straightfor- 
ward methods in dealing with his fellow- 
men. In 1865 he was drafted into the 
army, l)ut hired a substitute whom he 
paid $800. In politics Mr. Heim is a 
stanch Democrat, and, though not particu- 
larly active in politics and no office- 
seeker, has served four years as super- 
visor of his township. The entire family 
belong- to the Catholic Church. 



ARCHIE LYNN GOWEY, plumber 
at De Fere, was .born in Spring 
Vale, Fond du Lac Co., Wis., 
May 29, 1854, antl is a son of 
J(jlm H. and Jane (Parish) Gowey, na- 
tives, respectively, of Poultney, Vt. , and 
of the village of Askron, England. John 
Gowey was engaged in farming at Spring 
Vale, also carried on a lumber business 
at Fond du Lac for many years, and there 
built the Moore cS: Galloway mill. In 
1866-67 he was engaged in the milling 
antl lumber business at De Pere, but 
afterward moved to Oshkosh, Wiimebago 
Co., W^is. , where he died; he was buried 
at Neenah, same county. His widow 
still resides at De Pere. 

Archie L. Gowey was educated in the 



•M 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



schools of De Pere, and when seventeen 
years of age went to Oconto, Wis., and 
was there engaged in scaling lumber for 
the Oconto Company, and for England, 
Taylor & Company. About 1871 he 
opened a grocery and general store at 
Oshkosh, Wis., carried it on about two 
years, and then engaged in farming near 
De Pere until 1877. In 1882 he entered 
upon his present plumbing and heating 
business in De Pere. Mr. Gowey was 
most happily married, in 1876, to Miss 
Carrie Lawton, a daughter of Joseph G. 
Lawton, and this union has been blessed 
with the birth of six children, as follows: 
Archie L. , Leila C, Paul E. and Pauline 
E. (twins), Ella V. and Clarence P. Mr. 
Gowey is a member of the Knights of 
Pythias, Lodge No. 107, of De Pere. In 
politics he is a Republican, and he and 
his wife are members of the Episcopal 
Church. Socially the family hold an 
enviable position. 



M 



\KT1N VER STKATliX.one of 
the prosperous self-made agri- 
culturists of the township of De- 
Pere, is a native of North Bra- 
bant, Holland, born July 25, 1836, son 
of George and Delia \'er Straten, the 
former of whom was a farmer in but or- 
dinary circumstances. He had a family 
of eight children (three of whom lived to 
adult age), of whom John and Martin 
(twins) were the eldest. 

Martin \'er Straten attended school 
until he was twelve years of age, and then 
commenced to work at farm labor, first 
for his father, and later for others. He 
supported his parents until they died, and 
then he and his brother took care of their 
younger sister, who was then seven years 
old. In 1865 his brother John immi- 
grated to the United States, settling in 
Brown county. Wis., and, having ac- 
quainted Martin with the superior advan- 
tages for advancement offered in the New 
World, our subject concluded to follow. 
Accordingly, in the spring of 1866, he 



bid adieu to his home and friends, and 
proceeded from Rotterdam to Hull, Eng- 
land, thence to Liverpool, where he 
took passage in a vessel bound for New 
York, arriving in the latter city after a 
voyage of eleven days. He was accom- 
panied by Miss Anna \'an Den, his 
brother's fiancee, and they proceeded 
directly from New York to Little Chute, 
Brown Co., Wis., where the> found John 
awaiting his bride. Martin \'er Straten 
worked as a farm hand for five or six 
weeks after his arrival, and then came to 
De Pere township, where he found em- 
ployment in a sawmill, and later on a 
boat. His first day's work in this town- 
ship w'as for John Coenen, and shortly 
afterward he and his brother purchased, 
in partnership, forty acres of partly- 
cleared land, which he still owns, on 
which stood a small log house. In 
the fall of 1 869 he returned to his 
birthplace, and, in the spring of 1870, 
was there married to Miss Gertrude Van- 
derwise, a native of the same localitx , 
immediately after which event the young 
couple set sail from Rotterdam, landing, 
after a voyage of thirteen days, at Port- 
land, Maine. From that city they came 
over the Grand Trunk railroad to Chi- 
cago, and thence to the home in Brown 
county. Wis. In the fall of 1868 he had 
purchased the interest of his bn>ther John 
in the tract of forty acres, and he and his 
wife lived there in the log house until it 
was destroyed by fire and replaced by a 
better one. This was the home of the 
family until 1885, when the present sub- 
stantial residence was erected. To Mar- 
tin and Gertrude Ver Straten were born 
six children, as follows: George, Leon- 
ard, Annie, and Henry, living, and two 
that died young. The mother of these 
died in 1882, and was buried in the St. 
Mary's cemetery, at De Pere, and for his 
second wife Mr. \'er Straten married, in 
1 88 5, Mrs. Catherine Smit, \\idow of 
Alexander Smit. She was born in Ba- 
varia, Germany, daughter of John Burk, 
and came to the United States with her 



COM ME MORA TIVK IlIOG RAPIllCAL llECOliD. 



'95 



parents when five jears old. Her father 
had emigrated three years before and lo- 
cated in New York, reniaininj^ tlu're until 
he saved enou<^h to brinj; his family and 
two sisters from the old country. j^ater 
they removed west to Waukesha, Wis., 
and still later came to r>ro\\n count}'. 

Mr. V'er Straten now has a well cul- 
tivated farm of 1 30 acres, which rej^re- 
sents years of hard, untiring toil and 
econoni}'. He is a self-made man in 
every respect, having, from a start of 
nothing, accumulated a comfortable prop- 
erty and a snng income, his success being 
the direct result of his own individual 
labor. He is highly respected in his tow n- 
ship, where he has been elected to various 
offices of trust, serving as super\isor four 
terms with satisfaction to all, and he is 
now clerk of the school board. fn his 
political preferences he is a Democrat; in 
religious faith he and his wife are mem- 
bers of St. Mary's Catholic Church, De- 
Pere. When he was nineteen years old 
he was called to serve in the Dutch army 
five jears, by Wilhelm IH, King of the 
Netherlands, bnt at the end of one year's 
service he was allowed to return to his 
home by consent of the King. 



JOHN \ER STR.\Tf-:\, who, during 
his lifetime, was one of the best- 
known farmer citizens of De Pere 
township, Brown county, was a na- 
tive of Holland, born July 25, 1836, in 
the Province of North Brabant. He was 
a son of George Ver Straten, a farmer, 
and a twin brother of Martin Ver Straten, 
a sketch of whom precedes this. 

John Ver Straten lived in his native 
country, doing farm work nntil he was 
twenty-nine years old. He then concluded 
to try his fortune in the United States, 
and in 1865 set sail from Antwerp, taking 
passage in the "Agnace." During the 
first day of the voyage cholera broke out 
on board, and the vessel put back to port, 
where a fort was converted into a pest- 
house; the vessel started again after a few 



days, but three huntircd of the seven 
hundred passengers died of the disease. 
Immediately after lanciingMr. \'er Straten 
came to Brown county. Wis., and for 
one year worked on a faiiii. hi .\pril, 
i860, he was married, in i.ittic Chute, to 
Miss Anna Van Den, who was born Sep- 
tember I, 1838, in Holland, daughter of 
Martin and Delia \'an Den, and came to 
the United States in 1 8(.)6 with Martin 
\'er Straten, l)rotherof her late husband. 
Innnediately after their marriage the 
young couple took up their residence with 
a farmer in Holland township. Brown 
county, where they remained one year; 
but, being an.xious to ha\a> a home of their 
own, they, in 18(17, purchased private 
claim No. 39, a farm of torty acres, for 
the payment of part of \\hi(h they were 
obliged to go into debt. A small log 
house was the only building on this land, 
fifteen acres of which was cleared, and 
here they resided one year, and then for 
three years lived on a rentetl farm along 
the Dickinson road, his brother Martin 
locating on the farm they hail left. In 
the spring of 1873 they came to the 
farm in De Pere township where the 
family still make their home, and here 
Mr. \'er Straten passed tlu' remainder of 
his life. The year before they had pur- 
chased forty acres, private claim No. 38, 
where they now li\e, but a small portion 
of which tract had then been cleared, and 
on which there was not even a dwelling; 
but a rude house was soon erected, which 
served as a shelter for the family until 
their present substantial home was built. 
Mr. Ver Straten died on this farm May 
14, 1885, leaving a family of eight chil- 
dren to be provided foi-, and a home 
encumbered with an indebtedness of seven 
hundred dollars. However, by working 
together and practicing thrift and strict 
economy, the famil)' ha\e paid off ever)' 
cent of the debt, and they now have a fine 
farm of one hundred acres, equipped 
with good out-buildings and a comfortable 
residence. The children arc as follows: 
George, Henry, Martin, Delia, John, 



196 



COMMEMORATIVE BlUUHAPHICAL RECORD. 



Mar)-. Kllen, aiui Petor, all living; one 
child. Nellie, died in infanc)-. Tiie sons 
are all hard working men. and have nobly 
assisted their mother in paying for the 
home. George met with a very serious 
accident in August. 1S94. whereby he 
lost an arm. It appears that on the ::3th 
of that month, while he w as operating the 
threshing machine at the home of his 
mother ^an occupation he had been ac- 
customed to for the past eight years), he 
unfortunately got his arm entangled in the 
pulley through which the belt ran. and it 
was terriblv torn, the bone being broken 
as well. The doctors who attended him 
set the bone and did all they could to save 
the arm. but three days afterward the 
patient was sent to the hospital at Green 
Bav. where it was found necessary to 
amputate the arm above the elbow. He 
is now working his mother's farm. Mrs. 
Anna Ver Straten is a thrifty economical 
woman, and has shown no small amount 
of business ability and sagacity in the 
management o{ the farm. The entire 
famil}- are held in the highest esteem in 
the community in which the>- reside. Mr. 
Ver Straten was a genial, sociable man. 
and he had many frieniis. He was a 
member of St. Mary's Catholic Church 
in Dc Pere. as is also his widow, and in 
politics he was a Democrat, though he 
never took much interest in party affairs, 
and about fifteen years ago served as 
assessor three vears. 



ARONDOU. a prominent gar<.lener. 
and now serving his se\ enth year 
as supervisor of the First ward. 
Fort Howard, came to Fort How- 
ard in 1870, locating where he now lives 
in 1876, and engaging in gardening. He 
has an excellent farm of thirty acres, all 
inside the city limits, and is in the enjoy- 
ment of a prosperous business. He built 
a good barn in 1891. and raises small 
fruit and vegetables. 

Mr. Rondou, who is a son of John and 
Catherine (De Vray) Rondou, was born 



in 1853. in Belgium, where his parents 
lived and died. He came to Detroit. 
Mich., in 1868, finding a home with an 
aunt, an(.l from there removed to Fort 
Howard. Here he was married, in 1876, 
to Miss Johanna Carton, a native of Brown 
county, daughter of Joseph Carton, who 
was born in Helgiuni, and coming to this 
country located in Pittsfield township. 
Brown Co., Wis., in 1854. Here he 
married Mary Cabesen, and. with his wife, 
is now living with Mr. Rondou. Nine 
children came to gladden the home of the 
Rondous: Joseph, Frank, Anton, Mary, 
Katie. Nettie. Lizzie [deceased'. Fred 
and Rosa. Mr. Rondou is a Democrat 
in politics, and the leader of his party in 
the First ward, of which he has been 
supervisor since 1887. He has also 
served as alderman from the same ward. 
He and his wife are members of St.W'illi- 
brord's Catholic Church, and Mr. Rondou 
holds membership in the Catholic Order 
of Foresters, the Catholic Knights of 
Wisconsin, and St. Joseph Society, of 
which latter he is treasurer. He is one 
of the progressive, successful men of Fort 
Howard, and always active in furthering 
the best interests of the community in 
which he resides. 



JD. MORAUN. M. D.. eminent as a 
phvsician and surgeon, was born in 
Green Bay, Wis., his present resi- 
dence. May «f. 1864, and is a son of 
\"ictor and Mary (Collart) Morau.x. both 
natives of Belgium. 

Ferdinand Morau.x. father of Victor, 
was also a native of Belgium, and came to 
Brown county. Wis., in quite an early 
day, bringing his family and locating in 
Green Bay, where \'ictor found employ- 
ment in the grain business as foreman, 
being employed later by Van Dyke. Burr 
& Co., then by John Beth, and finally by 
Weise, Hollman & Co., and here died 
in January, 1894. Mrs. Mary Moraux, 
daughter of Desire Collart, Sr. , still re- 
sides in Green Bay, as does her father. 



COMMMMORATIVM BWGUAPUIUAL RECORD. 



'97 



who diici' (i|)cratu(l a sluiic iiuairy at 
Duck C'rcck. To \'i(:t(jr and Mary Moraiix 
wcro born smcii cliildrcn, as follows: J. 
I)., our suhjcct; Louis, \siio ilird of scar- 
let fever; Louis (IIj, wJKj was drowned; 
Mary, l'"elix, |ulia and I'lora. 

I)i. |. I). Moianx was reari'd m his 
iiati\ (■ y\\\ , and, idler a pioper pi elinniiary 
education, ri-ad nu'diemc with Dr. J, R. 
Hrandl. lie then entered the Colle;,,'e of 
Physicians and Surf,'eons, Chicago, where 
he j.;r,adn.iled in l''(d)ruary, 1S87, and the 
same ye.ir hej^an |)racl ice at J,u\end)oin",L;, 
I\ewainiee ( 'o. , Wis., l)ul, Ixlore t he ( lose 

of the \'ear, came to (iHeii \\\\\ , and 
formed a ])artnership with l)r. I'.artran. 
After a liiiel pr.ictiee in t Ins coiuum tien he 
bon}.^ht out i)i'. Dechesne, at Kohinson- 
ville, Urown Co., Wis,, but tlu're soon 
lost everything; by lire, and retuiiicd to 
Green Hay. The l)oitoi has al\\a)s nn'l 
with the a])pi ob.il ion o| his fellow-|)racli- 
tioners, and has been earnest in fiis en- 
deavors to maintain I he dignity and coher- 
ence of the profession. He is a iiumiiIk.'i 
of the Vii\ l\i\-er \'allc\' Medical Society, 
•and once lilli-d the ollice of viee-presiilellt 
of the Kewaunee County Medical Society, 
of wliich, also, hi' was one <jf the Censors. 
He has built up a line rejiutation as a 
physician, and enjoys i|ihte a lucrativt' 
patronage foi' a practitioner ol his \ears. 
Dr. Morau.N was married at Creen 
Bay, October I, iSSS, to .Miss Hettie 
Schellenbeck, a nati\ e of Cjieeii l!ay and 
daughter of Jacob an<l Otilia freNlon) 
Schellenbeck, wlio canu' from Ciermany 
to Green Hay about the year 1855. 
Here Jacob Schellenbeck engaged in tan- 
ning, and later in the leather business; 
he was a Republican in politics, served as 
a member of the school l)oard, and died 
full of honors in July, I S92 ; his widow is 
still a resident of Green liay. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Schellenbeck were born Inc 
children, viz. : Emma, who died at two 
years of age; Emma (2), wife of G. P. 
Kusterman, of Green Hay; Otto, who was 
engaged in the drug trade for some 3 ears, 
was a K, of P., and died in 1885, at the 



age of twenty-nine years; Ernest, who 
died when h\c years old, .ind Ilettie, now 
the wife of Dr. Moraiix. To Dr. and Mrs. 
Morau.N were born two children; Otto 
Schellenbeck. and Ilettie, the latter of 
whom died in infancy. 

Dr. Morau.N is a Republiian in poli- 
tics, IS a \\arm siip))orter of bis jiarly, l)ut 
has never been an ollice seeker. Hc'ing a 
native (jI the city he has witnessed much 
(jf its progress, and has naturally taken 
great interest in its adv.iiKcmeiil , and has 
willingly lent e\'ery .iid in his |)ow(r to- 
ward I hat desirable end. 



C.\RI. .\l.\NTllb;\', mamifactiirerof 
iiioiiiinielils, headstones aiul cein- 
rii ly woik of all di'scriptiou, and 
dealer in in.iibli-, i^ranite, etc., at 
(irecii r>a\, was bom .May M, 1S51, at 
("orlin, I'loxiiHc- o| I'omeiania, Prussia, 
Germany, a sou ol |ohaiiiia I'eterstdm, 
and in 1858 was adopted b\ llermann 
and Henrietta Manthe\, also n.itives of 
the l'ro\iiice ol I'omeiani.i, and moNcd to 
Slellin, I'riissi.i, I lir lamily caiiii' to the 
United States 111 1 8(i(), anil located on 
Clybonrne a\i-niie, ( liicago, where they 
were burned oiil (lining I he great liie, 
losing e\ cryl lnii,L;. 1 1 ere the father worked 
as a laboiei" iinlil 187.4, wdien he came to 
P>i(jwn county, Wis., and opened up a 
farm in Morrison township, which he cul- 
tiv.ited lint il his death in 188^; the widow- 
ed mtjther tluni returned to Chicago, and 
now resides on the North side. 

Carl M.-iiilhe\', the only child, was 
educated at .Steltin, Prussia, and on 
reaching Chicago began an apprenticeship 
at his present trade with the Govven .Mar- 
ble Comjiany of that citv. In Morrison, 
Crown Co., Wis., in 1874, he was mar- 
ried to Miss l'"li/a!)eth Ifansch. a native 
ol Prussia, .ind to ibis union ha\e liecn 
bcMii four sons, w/. : llermann, in busi- 
ness with his father; Otto, who works for 
Joannes Hros., and Charles and lir\ in. In 
1875 Mr. Manthey worked at his trade in 
Appleton, Wis., moving from thi-rc' to 



5 98 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



Oshkosh, thence to Fond du Lac, where 
he passed four years and, then, in tlie fall 
of 1880, came to Green Baj-. About 

1881 he formed a partnership with G. 
Kurt/, under the firm name of Kurtz & 
Manthey, but at the end of one year 
bought out Mr. Kurtz's interest, and since 

1882 has been in business for himself. In 
1892 he erected his present substantial 
brick office building at No. 132 South 
Washington street. It is 20 x 50 in dimen- 
sions, and here he contracts for every va- 
riety of work in his line, being himself a 
first-class workman, in the busy season 
employing six assistants. Mr. Manthey 
is a member of the I. O. O. F., and of 
the Turnvcrcin, of which latter society he 
was dramatic manager ten years. He has 
seen a great many changes take place in 
Green Bay since coming here, and has al- 
ways taken a strong interest in the welfare 
of both county and town. 



THOM.VS H. SCANLAN, justice of 
of the peace and notary public, at 
\\'est De Pere, Brown county, is 
a native of Askeaton, County 
Limerick, Ireland, and was born July 10, 
1837. His parents, Thomas and Mary 
(Hanley) Scanlan, who were respectable 
farming people, both died in Ireland, the 
latter when our subject was ten years old, 
the former when the boy was twelve years 
of age. 

Having received a fair education in 
the select schools of his native place, our 
subject followed his father's vocation for 
several years, and then decided on emi- 
grating to America. Accordingly, on the 
5th day of May, 1863, he embarked on a 
sailing vessel at Liverpool, and, after a 
voyage of three weeks, landed at New 
York, whence he went to Philadelphia, 
where some relatives resided. There he 
remained until the i Ith of the following 
October, at which time he came to Wis- 
consin, and for awhile stopped at Oconto. 
On May 5, 1864, he reached De Pere, 
and for two years lived in East De Pere, 



but on June S, 1866, he moved into a 
house that he had built on Oneida street, 
between Fourth and Fifth street, in West 
De Pere, and here has resided ever since. 
On arriving at De Pere, Mr. Scanlan 
began work in a sawmill, remaining thus 
employed for about two years; but No- 
vember 22, 1866, he entered the employ 
of the E. E. Bolles Wooden Ware Com- 
pany as yard foreman, and with this 
company remained twent\-onc years, 
quitting their employ March 17, 1888. 

While filling this position Mr. Scanlan 
became quite a favorite with the general 
public. In I 872 he was elected a mem- 
ber of the board of trustees of West I)e- 
Pere, and for ten years faithfully per- 
formed the functions of that office; in 
1883, he was elected treasurer of the city 
of West De Pere, in which position he 
gave such satisfaction that he was re- 
elected in 1884; in 1885 he was nominated 
for the office of mayor of West De Pere, 
but being disinclined to run he voted 
against himself, and having urged his 
friends to the same course, he was conse- 
quently defeated; in 1889 he was elected 
a justice of the peace, an office he has 
ever since held; in that year was also 
elected a supervisor, and was appointed 
city clerk same 3ear by common council; 
in May. 1891, he was commissioned a 
notary public, and is still acting in that 
capacity. It must be here observed, 
however, that 'Squire Scanlan has been 
borne into office solely on his own merits 
and unbounded popularity, and that he 
never was an oflice-seeker in the usual 
acceptation of that term. 

The marriage of Mr. Scanlan took 
place at Philadelphia, October 10, 1S63, 
to Miss Catherin Dowling, and three 
children were born to this union, all dying 
young. Mr. and Mrs. Scanlan, however, 
have reared to womanhood a niece, Mary 
Ann Loftus, who was left an orphan at 
the age of four years, her mother having 
lost her life by the explosion of a kerosene 
oil can at her home in Green Bay. Miss 
Loftus was married to John Hoks, and 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOGIIAPUICAL RECORD. 



'99 



became the mother of one child, Pater- 
nella Hoks, now nine jears old, wlio, 
having lost her parents when young, is 
being also reared by the 'Squire and his 
estimable wife. Mr. and Mrs. Scanlan 
are devout memliers of the Roman 
Catholic Church, and their quiet and un- 
assuming lives have won for them the 
respect of all who know them. 



EUGENE K. A N S O K G E. The 
beautiful land of Bohemia, famed 
for its picturesque valleys, silvery 
streams, romantic mountain scenes 
and its handsome, gay and music-loving 
people, has sent to our country some of 
its most industrious, loyal and peaceful 
citizens, among whom is found, in no small 
degree of prominence, the gentleman 
whose name is here recorded. 

Mr. Ansorge was born September 23, 
1843, in the German village of Christofs- 
grund, in the northeastern part of 
Bohemia, a son of Anton and Caroline 
Ansorge, who, in 1855, with their family 
of three children (the eldest son, Kilian, 
serving at that time in the Austrian army, 
followed in 1S66), emigrated to the 
United States, where, in Manitowoc 
county, Wis., they cleared up a farm 
from wild woodland they had bought. 
Here the mother died in 1867, the father 
at Green Bay in i8S,S, aged eighty-si.x 
years. 

The subject of this sketch was a lad 
of eleven years when the family came to 
Wisconsin, and, not having the oppor- 
tunity to visit a school, he acquired the 
greater part of his education bj' self in- 
struction in reading, etc. Up to the age 
of twenty-one he worked on his father's 
farm, learning also the trade of carpenter, 
at which time, his two-years-older brother 
returning from the war, he volunteered 
his services to the Union for the suppres- 
sion of the Rebellion, by enlisting in 
Company F, Forty-fifth Wis. V. I. From 
the commencement of his enlistment he 
served as sergeant, chiefly in Tennessee, 



and for the most part on camp and train 
guard duty. In .\ugust, same j'ear, the 
war having closed, he was honorably dis- 
charged, and came home. A short time 
afterward he went to Missouri, and for 
over a year worked at carpentry. In 
June, 1867, he started as contractor and 
builder, but being taken sick, had once 
more, in November of that year, to return 
to the ]-)arental roof. In the fdjlowing 
spring, having reco\xred his health, he 
resumed his trade us builder at home, 
continuing it until the next fall; but such 
work does not appear to have been the 
primary and great object of his ambition, 
anil he began to look around him for some 
occupation more suited to his tastes and 
inclinations. Determined to try his hand 
at insurance work, he, in December, 1868, 
entered the service of the ' ' Dodge County 
Mutual Insurance Company" as solicitor, 
and as such traveled on foot over part of 
Manitowoc county, and near all of Ke- 
waunee count}', in the following April 
opening an office in Oconto, where for 
four years he did a thriving business in Fire 
insurance. During all this time, being a 
musician of acknowledged merit, playing 
the violin, he was frequently employed to 
furnish music for entertainments, etc., 
and even now, at times, assists at concerts. 
In March, 1873, he moved to Green Bay, 
transferring his office /// toto, and has 
since conducted one of the most reliable 
and flourishing Fire and Life insurance 
businesses in northern Wisconsin. On No- 
vember I, 1892, he received into partner- 
ship E. P. Parish, the firm name being 
Ansorge & Parish, which still continues. 
In 1870 Mr. Ansorge was married to 
Miss Johanna T. Ansorge, and five chil- 
dren were born to them, namely: Herman 
and Walter, both deceased, and Clara, 
Herman and Flora, all three at home. In 
his political associations our subject is a 
Republican, and, although no office seeker, 
has served the city of Green Bay as alder- 
man. He is a member of the K. of P., 
Turnverein, German Singing Society, 
Green Bay Sharpshooters Society, and G. 



!00 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



A. K., in all of which he has taken an 
active interest, and served in various offi- 
cial capacities. A man of enterprise and 
integrity, success has crowned his efforts, 
and he is the owner of considerable 
amount of real estate. He is now a 
director of the Citizens National Bank. 
Although favored with but limited school- 
ing, as already intimated, Mr. Ansorge 
has acquired a nn)re than ordinary practi- 
cal education by extensive reading and 
close observation of men and things. He 
is the owner of an excellent library, in 
which he takes deep interest, realizing 
full well that books "arc a substantial 
world, both pure and good, round which 
our pastime and our happiness will grow. " 



AW. JOHNSON, successor to 
Johnson & Havens, is a highly 
reputable dealer in marble and 
granite monuments and tomb- 
stones, his office being at No. 310 Cherry 
street. Green Bay, Wisconsin. 

He was born in Black Brook, Clinton 
Co., N. v., in 1854, and is a son of 
William and Sarah (Delong) Johnson, 
natives of Essex county, same State. 
William Johnson was a miller and iron 
manufacturer at Black Brook, but later 
moved to Plattsburg, where he was em- 
ployed by a marble firm. He finally 
came to Wisconsin, and died at Fort 
Howard. Brown county, in 1S86: his 
widow now resides in Beekmantown, N. 
Y. They were the parents of two chil- 
dren : Ida, wife of A. Kea, of Beekman- 
town, and A. W., our subject. The lat- 
ter was reared, educated and learned 
marble cutting in Plattsburg, and worked 
at his trade in Clinton, Essex. Franklin 
and St. Lawrence counties, N. Y. , and 
then came to Wisconsin. He began 
business in Hilbert Junction, Calumet 
county, in 1876, remaining there until the 
fall of 1881. when, at Fort Howard, he 
formed a partnership with Mr. Havens. 
In 1882 the firm came to Green Bay, 



where they continued in partnership un- 
til February, 1891, when Mr. Johnson 
bought out the interest of Mr. Havens, 
and is now building up a fine trade on his 
own account, employing, on an average, 
four men. 

.Mr. |(>hnson was married at Fort 
Howard, in 18S5, to Miss Anna Klauson, 
a native of that place, and a daughter of 
Henry and Mary (Hintz) Klauson, the 
former a native of Holland, the latter of 
Germany. They were married in Fort 
Howard, and became the parents of 
three children, viz. : Catherine, wife of 
James Faulkner, of Fort Howard; Henry, 
a painter by trade, who died in 1879, and 
Anna (Mrs. Johnson). To Mr. and Mrs. 
Johnson have been born two children, 
"Wallace Kea and May Ida. Politically 
our subject is a Kepublican; socially he is 
a member of Hilbert Lodge, No. 56, I. O. 
O. 1'.. and of the A. O. U. W., of Fort 
Howard. Mrs. Johnson is a de\out mem- 
ber of St. Patrick's Catholic Church. 



ALEX.\NDER P. SCHMIDT, a 
prosperous brewer of West De- 
Pere, is a native of New York 
State, born in Tonawanila, Erie 
countv, October 3, 1846, a son of Martin 
and Mary Ann (Naglej Schmidt. 

Martin Schmidt was born near the 
city of Sweibrucken, Bavaria, was a shoe- 
maker, and came to the United States in 
1832. At Buffalo, N. Y., he met and 
married Mary Ann Nagle, a native of 
Tonawanda. whose father, Antony Nagle, 
was born in .Alsace, but who served in 
the United States army in the war with 
Great Britain in 1812 (for which he re- 
ceives a small pension); he was killed, at 
the age of ninety-six years, on the 4th of 
July, 1S76, by a railway train, being deaf 
and partially blind from old age. 

.Mexander P. Schmidt was educated 
until eight years of age at the public 
schools of Tonawanda, when, in 1854, 
his father moved with his family to Mani- 



commkmoha Tin-: liioauM'UicAi. iikcohi). 



towoc. Wis., where our subject completed 
his I'lhicatinii. The father piinhased a 
farm near the city of Manitowoc, hut 
later engaged in mercantile business, and 
since Cleveland's fust administrati(5n has 
been postmasti'r at Mlvenio, Wis., and 
has also served, as a Democrat, on the 
board of sujiervisors— a portion of tin- 
time as its chairman. Mrs. Mary Ann 
Schmidt died in the town ol Manitowoc 
Rapids in 1S55. (.)n |nne -',4, iSf'q, 
Alexander V. Schmidt enlisted in the 
Union army at l^uffalo, N. Y. , and saw 
active service in tlic department of the 
Mississippi until September, 1805, wlu'n 
he was honorably discharged. .Xfter be- 
ing mustered out he conunenced learning 
the brewing business at Nhinitowoc, and 
li\e years later, in partnership with his 
father, Martin Schnndt, built a brewi-ry 
at Silver Lake, Wis., where a jtrotitable 
business wasconducted forsixteen months, 
at the end of which time our subject 
mo\ed to Ma/o Nhinie, Dane Co., Wis., 
and here ke])t a boarding-house and saloon 
for a year, after which he settled, in May, 
1874, in De Pere, l^rown county, where 
he purchased his present site of four lots, 
erecting a fine residence and brewery and 
several commodious barns, granaries, etc. 
Here he turns out about 500 barrels of 
beer annually, the home trade consuming 
the entire [iroduct. Mr. Schmidt owns 
one-half of the bn-wery lands in partner- 
ship with Pauline Zeller, and also owns a 
neat farm of ninety-eight acres, of which 
fifty-eight acres lie within the city limits, 
fn politics Mr. Scdimidt is a Demo- 
crat, and has served as alderman of Wt'St 
De Pere ten or twelve terms at various 
periods. He is a member of Harrison 
Post, G. A. K. , at De Pere, is an upright 
member of the Catholic Church, and en- 
joys the respect of his fellow citizens. In 
1872 Mr. Schmidt married Miss Augusta 
Yasller, a native of Calumet, Fond du Lac 
Co., Wis., and of Saxon descent. Five 
children have been born to this union, as 
follows: Estella C. S., now filling her 
fourth term as teacher in the high schools 



of De Pere; I^dward A. C, attending 
the State Cniversity at Madison; Laura, 
attending the Normal School at Milwau- 
kee; and M\'rtle and l-iichard, at home. 



DW'll) /IM1).\KS, a respected, 
sell-made agriculturist of Glen- 
more township, ISiiiwn count)', 
was born b'ebruar}' 22. 1840, in 
('ierniau\, son nf |oai]nim /iiiidars, who 
had a famih' of ele\-en children, Da\ id 
being the sixth in the order ol birth. 

Our subject received a fair edue.ilion 
at the conmioii schools of his nati\e land, 
but conunetued to work at an early age, 
as his parents were only in moderale cir- 
cumstances. ,\l tlie a,t;e of twenty he 
entered the army, and sei\cd three years. 
In 1865 he was mai-ried to Miss Minnie 
Herkenhagen, who was bt)rn in Germany 
in i84_', and shortly afterward thi^ young 
couple went to work lura large farmer. 
The wages were small, but in four years 
the}- had managed to saNC enough to 
bring them to America, and. with their 
only child, Hulda, they journeyed to 
Hrcmcn. where they took ])assage on the 
vessel " F"erdinan<l," lai:ding at (hu'bec, 
Canada, after a \-oyage of eight weeks. 
At this point their funds were exhausted, 
but, receiving money from a brother-in- 
law in Mil\\ankee to come to that city, 
Mr. Zimdars took his family thither at 
once. There they remained for about 
ten years, during which tinu; he was em- 
ployed as laborer in the manufactories of 
the city, and, by economy and thrift, they 
managed to save a little. In the spring 
of 1878 they removed to Section 10, 
Glenmore township. Brown cijunty, where 
Mr. Zimdars had previously purchased 
eighty acres of wild land, which had been 
lumbered over, but was totally unim- 
proved. He built the first dwelling on 
the place, and all other improvements 
thereon have also been made by him, or 
under his direction; he now has 120 acres, 
the greater part of which is cleared and 
under cultivation. Since coming to this 



202 



CUMMM-'MUJiATiyj-: HlOUliAPHICAL RECORD. 



farm Mr. Zimdars lias iKme a great deal 
of liard work, for when he first took up 
his home here the laiul was poor, and af- 
forded but a scanty support, their jirincipal 
revenue beinj;' derived from the sale of 
timber: and his success, in the face of 
all difficulties, shows what may be ac- 
complished by industry and honest toil. 
Though in debt when he landed in the 
United States, he is to-day one of the 
well-to-do farmers of his locality. His 
wife has assisted him nobly in the ac- 
cumulation of their comfortable property, 
and they are highly esteemed in the com- 
munity for their many good qualities; they 
have a wide circle of friends and acquaint- 
ances. They are both members of the 
Lutheran Church. In politics Mr. Zim- 
dars is a Democrat, but, though interested 
in the welfare of the party, he is not a 
strong partisan, in local elections voting 
for the best man regardless of politics. 

Mr. and Mrs. Zimdars had but one 
child, Hulda, who was born in Germany. 
She was married in Glenmore township. 
Brown county, to Henr\ Goethe, a native 
of southern Germany, and one child, 
\\'illiam, was born to this marriage. Mrs. 
Goethe died September 23, 1889, in Mil- 
waukee where she was buried), deeply 
nunirned b\- her family and friends. 

JCMIN MlKrilV. widely known and 
respected in Brown county, and es- 
pecially in Glenmore township, 
where he is justly recognized as a 
public-spirited, progressive citi/en, was 
born .\pril i(>, 1S50, in Koxbury, Massa- 
chusetts. 

Timothy Murphy, his father, was 
born in County Cork, Ireland, son of 
John Murphy, where he received a com- 
mon-school education, and when a young 
man, having decided to seek his fortune 
in the I'nited States, he came to Boston, 
Mass. In that city he weddeil Ellen Ma- 
honey, also a native of Ireland, and after 
their marriage they removed to Koxbury, 
Mass., where two children — Elnora i^now 



a school-teacher of Stephenson, Mich.), 
and John lour subject) — were born to 
them. In the fall of 1850 Mr. Murphy, 
accompanied by his father and his httle 
family, migrated westward to \\'isconsin 
(where a brother had previously located), 
attracted by the cheap homes to be had. 
They proceeded to Buffalo, thence to 
Green Bay, on the steamer "Old Michi- 
gan," and from there to De Pere, where 
for a time the family resided. In the 
same year he purchased 160 acres in 
Section 23, northwest quarter, Glen- 
more township, at ten shillings per acre, 
and immediately commenced the clearing 
of the land, which was still in its primi- 
tive condition. He sf>ent some time pre- 
paring a home for his family, and his 
route from De Pere to his settlement led 
through the woods from a point on the 
Dixon road; no bridges spanned the 
streams, which had to be forded or crossed 
by means of some fallen log. The land 
was heavily timbered, and a space had to 
be cleared for the log cabin, which stood 
a short distance southeast of the present 
residence. Early in 1S52 the family re- 
moved to their pioneer home, and at that 
day the township was so wild and so 
sparsely settled that the few families 
grouped together near Mr. Murphy's 
cabin. The farm at first afforded no sup- 
port whatever to the family, and, but for 
the few dollars he had managed to save, 
they would even have wanted the neces- 
saries of life. Such stock as they had 
they were in constant danger of losing, 
for the wild beasts, especially wolves, 
made frequent visits to the farm. But 
gradually the wild animals disappeared 
from the vicinity, the forest was sup- 
planted by beautiful, smiling farms, a 
great work indeed, and one which in- 
volved many years of stern toil. Two 
more children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Murphy on this farm, Cornelius and 
Mary, both now of Chicago. Those old 
pioneers passed from earth in 1887, Mr. 
Murphy on June 30, when about seventy- 
three years of age, his wife on March 4, 



COMMKMOUA TlVh: II l<)<! I! M'll ICM, llEConi). 



203 



and tlicy imw lie iHirud in Slianl \ ti i\\ n 
cemetery. They were nienil)ers (li llic 
Catholic Church. In i)()litics he was a 
.stanch Democrat, held many ollici'.s of 
honor and trust in Ins lownshi]), and as- 
sisted materially in the inqirovemeiit of 
liis section. 

]ohn Mnrpliy, (.'Idesl son ol lliis old 
])ionei'r, was hut a child ulieii lie came 
with his ])arents to Glemnore lownship, 
and here was reared to niaidiood. lie re- 
ceived his lirst schooling; in District No. 2, 
under Maurice Casey, and later attended 
foi aliout a year in District No. 4, Rock- 
land township. ]hit, hein^tlu; el(k:st son 
his hel]) was needed on the farm, where 
he received a tlu)ronf;h tiainin^ to a).;ri- 
cnlture under his father, and during; his 
yoim},'er days he also worked at lumher- 
iui;, an occujjation then \ri\ po])ular 
amon^' young men. lint with the e.\ce]>- 
ticjii of |)rohahly a year, he remained at 
home. On May 13, 1880, Mr. Murphy 
was married in Dc Pcre to Miss |ohanna 
Ileffernan, a native of C}lenmoic town- 
ship, horn I'ehrnary ri, i860, dauf;hter 
(il |,imes and liridget (Leary) Heffernan, 
who were natives of thelimerald Isle' and 
early settlers of Ck'Uinore township. 
This union has heen hlessed with one 
child, hdlen !•:., horn April 16, 1881. 
After his marriage our suhjecl settled on 
the old homestead, where he has ever 
since resided, principally ('ngaf^ed in gen- 
eral farming and stock-raising, having 
eighty acres ol excellent land, all under 
cultivation. In his political preferences 
Mr. Mnr])!iy is a Democrat, and gives 
that ])arty his unfailing su]iport in State 
and National elections; but in township 
and county affairs he selects tlu^ best man 
vvitliout much regard for jiarty lines. He 
has been called upon to fill \arious local 
offices of trust; in 1884 1k' was elected 
township treasurer, ;ind served continu- 
ously until 1889; he has been justice of 
the peace for many years, and in 1894 
was elected to his present position, chair- 
man of the township; in every capacity 
he has proven himself an efficient officer, 



and his ser\ ice has iii\ ai ialil\ hi-en uiai ke<l 
1)\ a raicfiil. 1 < )iisi lent H mis discharj^e of 
his diltu'S, which has iie\ci lailed to give 
satisfaction. llc;.;ives a ready and willing 
sii|)|)ort to every eiiterpi'is<' ol interest o\ 
benefit to his lownslni), and his many 
N'ears ol public service have made him 
well kiiciwii and i'l lliieiit lal. In religious 
(■(iniiec t II )ii lu' .mil Ins wile are members 
ol St. Marx's ( at Imlic ( hnii h, ( ileiimore. 



Pi;i'1';k iianson sc in i.i/, an 
old settler and pmminenl i itizen 
of b'ort Howard, lirown county, 
was born in North Schleswig, 
Denmark, in I8J.1. Ills parents, |i>han 
and Christina (llansonj Schult/, were 
also natives of Denmark, in which country 
the former (lied, his excellent wife, mother 
of Peter. c:iiiie to Hrowii cniinty. Wis., 
and settled m the township of New Den- 
mark, where she died .ibiiiil 1 8J9, agx^d 
ninety-three years and liuii iiiDUtlis. She 
also had two daughters: Christimi. wife 
of Christian llart/, in Demnaik; and 
Ur<.d<a (widow of Hans Nelson), now a 
resident of New I)eniii,iik ti>wiishi|). 
Brown coiintv- 

The son, I'etei Hanson Schult/, lived 
in his native country twenty-six years. 
lie rt'ceived a l;o()iI I'ducation, and in 
1848 entered the Danish ariiiv, which 
during that year engageii in its regular 
drill, and in 1849-50 he saw act i\c ser- 
vice in a war against the Cjermans. He 
learned the traders of carpenter, |)lasterer, 
and cabiiiet-m.iker while yet a resident (jf 
fJenmark, and found em|)|oyinent in those 
lines until he concluded to conie to 
America. In 1852 he set out on tlu' sail- 
ing vessel " Alter Peter," from ll.imbnrg, 
landing six weeks later at New York, 
from which city he proceeded directly to 
to b'ort Howard, Wis., lindiii}; employ- 
ment at the carpenter's trade, which he 
folh^wed for years. In the course of time 
he acquired considerable |irn|iertv, and 
now owns three hf)uses besides the one in 
which he lives. As a Repul)lican he takes 



204 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



a lively interest in political affairs, and 
was for one year a member of the town 
council. Both he and his wife belong to 
the Lutheran Church. 

Mr. Schultz was married in 1869, at 
Fort Howard, to Anna Maria Hanson, 
daughter of Hans Jorgen and Hannah 
Marguerita (Hendrickson) Hanson, all 
natives of Denmark. The family located 
in New Denmark township in 1868, set- 
tling on a farm. The senior Hanson died 
in 1878; his widow, now over eighty-four 
years of age, yet resides on the old farm. 
Their children were: l^'redericka, wife of 
Jens Anderson, of Denmark; Carrie, wife 
of Jacob Klausen, of New Denmark 
township; Hans Henry, married and re- 
siding in the same township; Anna Maria, 
now Mrs. Schultz; Martha, wife of Hans 
Rasmussen, of Denmark; Julia, wife of 
Louie Larsen, of New Denmark, Brown 
county. When Mr. Schultz first came to 
Fort Howard, he settled in what was 
known as Tanktown, working at the 
carpenter's trade fc^r Schwarz, Kemnitz 
& \'oight, and at contracting and building. 



SIMON J()Ni:S MURPHY, JR. 
In the human race there is ever 
progressive change, and it becomes 
the part of biography, which is 
the essence of history, to record and ac- 
celerate it. It shows us how far we have 
advanced beyond the past, and it treas- 
ures up the experience of that past for 
still further advance in the future. 

Without history we would constantly 
require to begin the march of improve- 
ment or progress anew, and society would 
be moving in a narrow ever-returning 
circle, instead of in one straight and for- 
ward line. While this is true of history 
in general, that of ourselves, our relatives, 
our people — crystallized into the form of 
biography, whereby are perpetuated the 
lives of the fittest — has special, even first, 
claims upon us; and it becomes a duty to 
both the i>resent and coming generations 



to include in this biographical work 
records of the lives of such representati\e 
men of our time as the gentleman of whom 
it is our pri\ilege to now write, whose 
success in business is due to the practical 
and sensible constitution of his mind, 
and to the thoroughness of his business 
training. 

Mr. Murphy is a native of the State 
of Maine, born March 27, 1851, in the 
town of Bradley, a granrlson of Charles 
Murphy, who was born in the Kennebec 
Valley, in that State, and was a farmer 
of fair education, possessed withal of 
strong characteristics. His son, Simon 
Jones Murphy, Sr. , who is a native of 
the same locality, born in .\pril. 1S15. 
was reared bj' his uncle, Cjeorge Jones, a 
farmer on Jones Hill, remaining under his 
care till he was eighteen years old. At 
the age of eighteen he left the farm, going 
to Bangor, on the Penobscot river, where 
he became a linnberman, exploring the 
ri\er and its tributaries for lumbering pur- 
poses. After making himself acquainted 
with all the details of the business, he 
embarked in the industry for his own 
account, and, by energy, sagacity and 
prudence, became a successful lumber- 
man. He was a hard worker, but 
was endowed by nature with a rug- 
ged and strong constitution that carried 
him through many severe hardships. In 
all his ventures he met with success, and 
is to-day, in his declining years, a typical 
representati\e of a New England pioneer 
lumberman. Soon after getting well 
started in business he married in the 
State of Maine, and in 1866 removed to 
Detroit, Mich., where he has since had 
his home, although for the past several 
winters he has li\ed in Los Angeles 
county, Cal. His wife, .Ann Montgomery, 
was a daughter of Charles M. Dorr, a 
citizen of prominence in the East, and 
she was educated in Boston while living 
with an aunt. Twelve children were 
born of this union, of whom but six lived 
to maturity, as follows: Charles E., 
Simon J. Jr., Albert M.. William H., 




yyy.^ ■" '^ 




^>t--P^ &--t^ 





COMMHMOHA TIVE lUOCRAPIIICAL 1!EC()I!I). 



207 



Anna D., and Frank \i. Of these, 
Simon J. Jr., the subject projier of tliese 
lines, recei\eci his primary education in 
Bangor, Maine, hnishing at tlie high 
school, Detroit, Mich., after whicli he 
prepared himself f(jr college, in 1870 
entering Har\ard Uni\ersit_y, where he 
graduated in the class of iS/j;, in the 
Lawrence Scientific School. The object 
of his ambition at this time appears to 
ha\'e been railrcjading, and he was 
promised a jiosition on the Nt)rthern Pa- 
cific railriiatl, but the financial crash of 
that year inter\ened, frustrating his in- 
tentions, and he was fain to enter the 
employ of his father in the lumber busi- 
ness. In order to become thoroughly 
acquainted with all the details from the 
very commencement, he began at the 
bottom round of the ladder, driving 
teams, etc., and doing all other offices of 
the laboring man, in the end thoroughly 
mastering the business. There is some- 
thing to admire in the conduct of the 
young Harvard graduate working in the 
ranks, as it were, and receiving no ad- 
\antage over the common laborer. As 
soon as practicable, he was put in charge 
of a camp, and, later, he had control of 
drivers, in a few years becoming a mana- 
ger in his father's vast lumber business on 
the Saginaw river, Michigan. In 1878 
he became also interested in the White 
River lumber operations, controlled by 
his father, and in 1882 the style of the 
firm became Crepin, Murphy & Sons. In 
1883, after the election of officers, our 
subject became one of the directors, and 
was made president of the White Ri\'er 
Boom Co., remaining as such until 1885, 
by which time the timber owned bv his 
firm had been all cut. 

In February, 1886, Mr. Murphy came 
to Green Bay, and at once set to work to 
build a sawmill at the mouth of Fox river, 
on what was known as the "Whitney 
slough," which mill is now one of the 
largest in northern Wisconsin, its ca- 
pacit}- being twenty-five million feet per 
annum, running daytime onl\-. In April, 



1886, his brother Frank F. joined him, 
becoming a partner in the business, and 
he is a director and secretarx'-treasurer of 
the Murphy Lumber Co., their fatlici- 
being president, and their brother Will- 
iam H. vice-president. b'rom the ver\' 
coiiiiiiencemeiit thi^ \ast industry has 
been a pronounced success, gi\'ing em- 
ployment to some 250 men in the woods 
and in the mill, the pnuhict of which 
latter is shipped b_v water and rail to 
Chicago, Milwaukee and eastern points. 

On October 17, 1877. Mr. Murphy 
was married to Miss Helena Bogardiis 
Piatt, a latly of nuich refinement, culture 
and rare grace in entertaining. She is a 
daughter of James Piatt, of Boston, an 
Englishman by birth and education; lici 
mother Mas a Miss Bogardus, of the old 
Dutch family of that name in New 'S'ork, 
who are related to the \'an Rensselaers. 
To this union were born five children, 
named as follows: Elsie L., Florence L. , 
L<jrraine A., Yxonne Dorr, andC. Temple. 

Politicallv Mr. Mnrplu' is a Kepulili- 
can, and, in 1890 and 1894, he was a 
candidate on that ticket for memlicr of 
tiie Assembh' from Democratic Brown 
count}-, but was defeated by a small ma- 
jority. Socially he is a member of the 
F. & A. M., thirty-.second degree, A. A. 
S. Rite, of TripoliTemple, A. A. O. N. O. 
M. S., E. C. of Palestine Commandery, 
No. 20, and Gr. J. W. of the Grand 
Commandery of the State; he is exalted 
ruler of Green Bay Lodge, No. 259, B. 
P. O. E., and is a member of the Order 
of Hoo-Hoo. He was president of the 
Business Association of Green I]ay two 
terms. Since becoming a resident oi the 
city of his adoption Mr. Murphy has con- 
spicuously and effectively' contributed to 
its rapid development, and he is justly 
honored as one of its most useful, most 
substantial and most enterprising citizens. 

The valuable lessons, a young and 
thinking generation can glean from such a 
sterling character as our subject presents, 
are briefly these: that natural abilit\- with 
a good education, cou[iled with tact and 



2o8 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



restless energy, are sure roads to success 
in business, as well as in the social and 
pf)iitical fields. Only a man of the right 
material could readily doff the student's 
gown for the woodman's jacket, and learn 
the details of a vast business, and in a 
short time place himself practically at the 
head of a vast lumbering concern, be- 
sides finding time to look after the in- 
terest of his city and watch every op- 
portunity which might bring a benefit to 
his town and county; and also to be all 
that a fond father and husband should be 
to his family in the home where the inner 
life, which is the real life of any man, is 
lised. There in the home circle, where 
presides with tact and grace a true Amer- 
ican lady, Mr. Murphy gains much of that 
good cheer for which he is so well known, 
and which is so highly appreciated by his 
numerous friends. 

Mr. Murphy's youth was passed with 
a keen intelligence and much out-door 
life that built up a healthy and robust 
physique, which soon won for him recog- 
nition and respect at the hands of those 
with whom he was thrown in contact; 
thus gradually but surely placing him in 
an enviable position as a prominent citi- 
zen and business man. 

He is of sanguine temperament, though 
cool and deliberate, even when absorbed 
in the most momentous and intricate 
business proposition; in fact, he is pos- 
sessed of what might not improperly be 
styled a judicial cast of mind, which has en- 
abled him to conduct and regulate his large 
business with that perfect order which in- 
sures success; also to maintain discipline 
in, and guarantee honest service at the 
hands of, his small army of employes in 
the mill or forests, which, through the same 
potent agency, are kept in perfect accord 
and under thorough control. 

The casual observer may not always 
recognize, in his often careless attire and 
unostentatious mien, the college graduate 
or polished sympathetic speaker, for as 
such he is fast beginning to be known in 
this part of the State, because he is a 



man that hates cant and empty ceremony, 
and at all times is more than he seems to 
appear. 



ABl-.L 1). NEWTON (deceased) 
was, in his lifetime, a conspicuous 
landmark in the part of the coun- 
try in which for so many years the 
cheerful ring of his anvil was heard for 
miles around. He was a native of North 
Leverett, Franklin Co. , Mass. , born Sep- 
tember 2, iSo6, being of the seventh gen- 
eration from Richard Newton, who came 
from England to the American Colonies 
before 1640, the heads of the family from 
him down to our subject being as follows: 
Moses, Jonathan, Nathan, Paul, Edward 
and Abel I). Richard Newton, the im- 
migrant, located in Sudbury, Mass., and 
was one of the original proprietors of 
that town. 

Abel D. Newton, the subject proper 
of this sketch, was reared by his grand- 
father, Paul Newton, attending the public 
schools of his early tiay to the age of 
fifteen years, at which time he conmienced 
a six-years' apprenticeship to the trade of 
blacksmith at Deerfield, Mass., and, at 
the age of twenty-one, worked at his trade 
in Ashfield, same State and county. Sub- 
sequently he took a one-year's course of 
study at an academy in Ipswich, Mass., 
at which town he became interested in 
mission work. He united with the Con- 
gregational Church of Ashfield in 1828. 
in 1830 joined the American Board of 
Home Missions, and same year was sent 
out to Mackinaw in the capacity of mis- 
sionarv among the Indians in that region, 
continuing cheerfully and faithfully in his 
arduous duties for three or four years; but, 
his health becoming impaired, he had to 
abandon mission work. His work was to 
teach the Indian boys blacksmithing and 
other trades, reading ami the customs of 
civilized life. 

On April 29. 1834, Mr. Newton was 
married, in .\shtield, Mass. (whither he 
had returntd for the purpose), to Miss 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAl'IIICAL RECORD. 



209 



Betsey Leonard, a native of that town, 
born December 6, 1 S09, a daughter of 
Ziba Leonard, of Ashfield, who was of 
the seventh generation from Solomon 
Leonard, who came from England to the 
American Colonies in 1630, locating in 
Uuxbiiry, Mass., and whose descendants 
by generations were: Jacob, Joseph, 
Joseph, Dan, and Ziba. After marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. Abel D. Newton came to 
Wisconsin, he having entered into an en- 
gagement as blacksmith for the American 
Fur Company, at La Pointe; this was in 
1834, and for about four years he re- 
mained in this employ, at the same time 
giving some attention to missionary work. 
In October, 1839, he came to Green 
Bay, about which time he and his family 
were prostrated with fever and ague, but 
all recovered. During the ensuing winter 
he worked at blacksmithing for Daniel 
Whitney, and in the following summer 
carried on a blacksmith shop he had built 
on Adams street, between Croaks and 
Stuart, so continuing until 1851, the year 
of his coming to De Pere, where he built 
him a shop, becoming the leading black- 
smith of the locality. For edge tools, a 
branch of the trade at which he was an 
expert, his services were waited on from 
far and near, his reputation as an all- 
round artisan being widely recognized. 
In De Pere he bought four lots, built a 
house and lived there until i860. He 
had, in 1849, bought a farm of 120 acres 
in Section 33, De Pere township, for 
which he paid $200 in gold, and hither he 
moved in i860, having built a log house 
on his property, which stands a short dis- 
tance north of his present dwelling, the 
latter having been erected in 1875. Here 
Mr. Newton, by unremitting toil and tire- 
less energy, cleared a fine farm, and passed 
in peace the rest of his life, dying January 
7, 1 889, full of years and honor. His re- 
mains rest in Greenwood cemetery. In 
Church matters he was an active leader, a 
ruling elder and a prominent member of 
the Presbyterian Congregation, of which 
Mrs. Newton has also been a member for 



si.xty-seven years. Now, in her eighty- 
sixth year, she is calmly awaiting the 
summons that shall call her hence, to join 
those gone before to the Better Land. 
The children, nine in number, born to this 
honored couple, were as follows: Mercena 
L. , widow of Charles T. Dickinson, of 
St. John's, Ore.; Martha, Mrs. R. F. 
Wilson, of Portland, Ore.; Edward D., 
who died on the home farm from disease 
contracted in the army, he having served 
three years as a member of Company G, 
First Wisconsin Cavalry; Zebina Leonard, 
deceased at the age of three years; James 
K. , who died in California, June 26, 1892 
(he had studied abroad, and for sixteen 
years was professor of modern languages 
at Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio; dur- 
ing the Ci\il war he served four years, 
and W'as second lieutenant in Company ¥ , 
Fourteenth Wis. V. I.); Samuel, now re- 
siding in De Pere, who is clerk for Jack- 
son & Sons (he served one year in Com- 
pany G, First Wisconsin Cavalry); Er- 
mina E., married, June 2, 1888, to B. A. 
Leonard (sketch of whom follows), and 
living on the home farm in De Pere town- 
ship; Sarah A., Mrs. I. S. Clifford, of 
Manston, Wis., and Marion A., who died 
at the age of twenty-two years. 

BERNARD A, LEON ARD, who is now 
living on the home farm of the late Abel 
D. Newton, in De Pere township. Brown 
county, is a native of Massachusetts, born 
July 25, 1844, in Southbridge, second son 
of Manning Leonard, who was of the 
seventh generation from Solomon Leon- 
ard, who came from England to the 
Colonies in 1630, as already recorded in 
the sketch of Abel D. Newton. He at- 
tended both common and high school, and 
when of age began life for himself. In 
Iosco county, Mich., he bought some land, 
after a visit to Oconto, Wis., which, ad- 
vancing in price, he sold, thus furn shing 
himself with sufficient capital to embark 
in regular business. For three years he 
was a successful dealer in hardwood lum- 
ber in Detroit, and from there moving to 
Cincinnati, Ohio, became a leading mem- 



COMMEMOIiATiyj'J BIOGBAI'llWAL UECORD. 



bcr of tlie (iieeinvood Stove Coinpany, 
but at the end of three years, his health 
failing, he returned to Detroit and com- 
menced the manufacture of carriage 
wheels, also conducting a dental supply 
store. His health, however, not improv- 
ing, Mr. Leonard returned to his native 
State in order to recuperate, and, after a 
stay of two years, removed to Jackson, 
Mich., and here entered the retail grocery 
and wholesale spice mills of Ford, Dela- 
mater & Company, then returned to 
Mas.sachu.setts, where, from 1879 to 1888, 
he remained. 

Mr. Leonard first married. May 31, 
1 87 1, Miss Nellie T. Burr. For his sec- 
ond wife he married, June 2, 1888, Miss 
Ermina E. Newton, of De Pere, Wis., 
since when he has lived a retired life on 
the old Newton homestead. In genealogy 
he takes great interest, and he has lately 
taken up a partly completed work (left so 
by his father) treating on the Leonard 
family genealogy, to the completion of 
Avhirh he devotes much of his time. 



D.\N IE L 11. D.WIS, a thriving 
farmer of Pittsfield township, 
Hrown county, was born in Par- 
ishville, St. Lawrence Co., N. 
\. , .November 24, 1842, a son of Darwin 
and Emcline (Steel) Davis, who were the 
parents of four children, vi^. : Alonzo D., 
deceased at the age of twenty-si,\; Daniel 
H., our subject; Emeory, now the wife of 
George lenkins, of \\'rightstown; and 
William Henry, of Cato, Manitowoc Co., 
Wis. The family came to Wisconsin in 
1846, and for five years lived in Wal- 
worth county; then moved to Manitowoc 
county, where Darwin Da\is bought eighty 
acres of hard-timber land, from which he 
cleared up a farm; in 1858 he sold twenty 
acres, and in 1869 sold the balance and 
bought a house and lot in Cato, where he 
and his wife lived until May 7, 1885, when 
he died in the Presbyterian faith. His 
widow passed away at the home of her 



son, Daniel H., December 4, 1894, at the 
ad\anced age of eighty-two years, se\en 
months, two days, and was buried at Cato, 
Manitowoc Co., Wisconsin. 

On August 1 I, 1862, Daniel H. Davis 
enlisted in Company K, Twenty-first 
Wis. V. I., and served until December 
29, when, having been shot through the 
arm at the battle of Perryville, he was 
discharged at Louisville, Ky., and re- 
turned to his home, where he was laid up 
a year. Early in 1864 he began dri\ing 
team for S. A. Benjamin, and remained 
with him four years. In the meantime, 
November 12, 1865, he married Mrs. Edna 
M. (\\'ariield) Branch, daughter of John 
and Caroline (Post) ^^'arfield, and widow 
of Nelson Branch. Mr. Warfield was a 
butcher and farmer, and was twice mar- 
ried; his first wife was Caroline Post, who 
bore him three children, viz. : Mar)', 
Edna M. and John M. Mrs. Caroline 
Warfield died when Edna M. (Mrs. Davis) 
was but eight j-ears of age, and Mr. War- 
field married a widow — Caroline Howard 
— who had b\' her first marriage two 
children, Spencer and Eli; to her marriage 
with Mr. Warfield were born four chil- 
dren, \\z. : Augustus, Caroline, William 
and Julia. Edna M. Warfield (Mrs. Davis) 
was first married April 11, 1855, to Nel- 
son Branch, a school-teacher and specu- 
lator, to whom she bore one child, Rosa, 
now Mrs. Frank Hubbard, of Maple \'al- 
ley, Oconto Co., Wis. Mr. Branch had 
been married about eight years when he 
became insane, and died in an asylum. 
No children have been born to Mr. and 
Mrs. l)a\is. 

After his marriage, and after leaving 
the employ of S. A. Benjamin, Mr. Davis 
came with his wife, in 186S, toMillsCen- 
ter, Pittsfield township, and for three 
years kept a boarding house. During this 
period he bought forty acres of land. He 
got rid of the standing timber by giving it 
to charcoal burners for the clearing of it 
away, built a frame house on the cleared 
land, and a year later took possession of 
it and still lives thereon, having been en- 



COMJfE.UORA riVK Tl I(k; HM'llICAL HKCOIID. 



21 I 



gatjed in {arming ever since his removal 
hither. 

In pohtics Mr. Davis is a KepubHcan, 
and has been school clerk two terms, also 
justice of the peace six \cars, offices he 
has filled with great credit tn himself, and 
to the entire satisfaction of his ri mstituents. 



GEOIx^GE GEURTS, one of the 
well-knov\'ii farmer citi/ents of 
Ue Pere township, Brown coun- 
ts", is a native of Holland, born 
March 4, 1845, ^o" '-'f Arnold Geurts, 
who was also a farmer. In the sprint:; of 
1866 Arnold Geurts came to the Imited 
States, bringing his family, consisting of 
five children, all of wht)m are yet living. 
They sailed form Antwerji, landing in 
New York after a \'oyage of '"orty-five 
da3s, and, in three months from the time 
they leftt heir nati\e land, arrived at their 
final destination. Brown county, Wis. They 
first went to Little Chute, where some rela- 
tives had previously located, and there 
remained four months, working at an\- 
thing they could find to do. The family- 
then came to De Pere township and pur- 
chased the forty acres where Martin Ver 
Straten now resides, and which at that 
time had no improvements whate\-er but 
a small log house. There the\' made 
their home for eight or nine years, all 
working together to clear and improve the 
land, which at the end of that time was 
divided. 

In July, 1S72, George Geurts was 
united in marriage with Miss Harriet Van- 
der\'oort. who was born February 20, 
1852, in Holland, daughter of Arnold and 
Mary (Barten) VanderVoort, who came 
to the United States in 1856. They made 
the voyage from Antwerp to New York in 
thirty-five days, and then proceeded by 
water to Green Bay, Wis. At that time 
Arnold Vander\oort was a poor man, and 
for a while supported his family by work- 
ing as mason's assistant. He died in De- 
Pere township in 1871 on the farm now 
owned by our subject, with whom his 



widow, now aged seventy-two years, \et 
resides. After marriage Mr. Geurts im- 
mediately commenced farming on the 
place he now owns and residi'S upon, and 
which, at the present time, comprises 114 
acres of excellent farming land, all taken 
from the woods. To Mr. and Mrs. Geurts 
were b<.>rn children as follows: Mary, Ar- 
nold, Annie, |ohn, Nellie, Delia, and Cor- 
nelius, all lixing, ;ind four th;it died young. 
Mr. Geurts has resided on his present 
farm for o\'er twenty yerrs, during which 
time, by industry and assiduous toil he 
has done much toward its im[)ro\'ement 
and made for himself a comfortable home. 
He is well known and highly respected 
in his township, where he is recognized 
as a th(U'oiigh, hard working agriculturist 
and a kind-hearted neighbor. In politics 
he is a Democrat, and, though not an 
office-seeker, he is at present serving as 
school treasurer in his district. He and 
his wife are members of St. Mary's Cath- 
olic Church at De Pere. 



JOHN CODY, assessor of Fort 
Howartl, city and township, has 
held this responsible position for 
eighteen jears, evidence sufficient 
in itself of the esteem in which this gentle- 
man is held by his fellow citizens and of 
the trust imposed in him. 

Mr. Cody was born in 1820, in Coun- 
ty Kilkenny, Ireland, in which land of 
the Shamrock his parents, James and 
Bridget (McCarlyj Cody, passed their 
lives. Of their children, Ann died in Ire- 
land; Alice came to Philadelphia; Michael; 
a baker by trade, immigrated to Oswe- 
go, N. Y., removing thence to Ohio. 
John, who had received an education in 
the schools f)f the locality of his birth, 
set out at the age of eighteen years for 
America, and in Greene county, N. Y., 
was employed for seven summers at brick 
making. He was married, in 1841, at 
Albany, N. Y. , to Miss Catherine Ken- 
nedy, also a native of Ireland, whence her 
father came in the early days to New 



212 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



York, finally locating at New Orleans, 
where his death occurred. Eleven chil- 
dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Cody, of 
whom eight are living : James Henry, 
who enlisted in a Massachusetts regiment 
during the war of the Rebellion, served 
one }ear, and now resides in tht; Lake 
Superior region; John Edward and W'ill- 
iam, both also residents of the Lake 
Superior country; Maria, married and 
residing in New York City; Frank, a 
resident of Ouincy, 111. ; Robert, who has 
his home in Dubuque, Iowa; R. D., a resi- 
dent of Winona, Minn. ; and Delia, at home 
with her parents; Michael, who comes 
between Maria and Frank, died in i 874. 
About 1847 Mr. Cody removed to Oswe- 
go county, N. Y. , where he continued to 
reside eighteen years, owning a sawmill 
and I 30 acres of land. He came to Fort 
Howard in 1865 and settled where he 
now resides, engaging in sawmilling for 
the Howard Mill Company, and a portion 
of the time for the Astor Mill Company; 
he was also, for a few years, engaged in 
the grocerj' business. He has always 
taken an active interest in public affairs, 
and enjoys the esteem and confidence of 
all who know him. In politics he is a 
Democrat, and he and his wife are mem- 
bers of St. Patrick's Catholic Church. 



JOHN BECHER is one of the indus- 
trious joung farmer citizens of 
Preble township. Brown county, a 
son of Joseph Becher, who was born 
in Austria, where he followed farming un- 
til 1854, in which year he came to the 
United States. In his native country- 
Joseph Becher had married Anna Rosena 
Fisher, and four children were born to 
them in luirope, Annie, who is now Mrs. 
Leopold Kelner, of New Denmark town- 
ship, Brown county, being the only sur- 
vivor. The others were: Theresa, died in 
Europe; Matilda, died on the ocean and 
there buried; Karl, died in New York and 
buried there. On their arrival in America 
the Becher family came at once to Wis- 



consin, making their first location at 
Waukesha, then in Manitowoc county, 
and later in Brown county, settling on a 
farm in New Denmark township, near the 
eastern township line. The country was 
new, and they endured many hardships and 
]iri\ations in the clearing and cultivj.ting 
of the land; but being diligent and perse- 
vering Mr. Becher succeeded in convert- 
ing it into a fertile, productive farm. In 
1870 he removed to Pine Grove in De- 
Pere township, where he peacefully passed 
the remainder of his days, dying Novem- 
ber 18, 1882, a respected member of his 
comnnmity. He was a Democrat in poli- 
tics, and in religion a member of the 
Catholic Church. Since his decease his 
widow has made her home with her son, 
John. Her husband was enrolled during 
the Civil war, October 4, 1864. in Com- 
pany D, Seventeenth Wis. V. I., for one 
year's service, and was discharged July 
14, 1865. at Madison, Wis. On Febru- 
ary 12, 1 89 1, she received $2,200 pension 
as back pay for her husband, and twelve 
dollars per month up to date, which 
latter she receives as pension as long as 
she remains a widow. The children born 
to her in America, besides our subject 
were: Frank, born in Manitowoc county. 
Wis., in 1857, died in Duluth, Minn., 
November 18, 1892; Lizzie, born, also in 
Manitowoc county, in i860, married to 
Zachary Goffard, and living in the city of 
De Pere; Mary, born in New Denmark, 
Brown Co., Wis., in May, 1862, now a 
Sister of Charity; and Clara, born also 
in New Denmark, in May, 1867, married 
to Samuel Boggs, and living in Preble 
township. 

John Becher first saw the light Febru- 
ary 27, 1864, on the farm of his parents 
in New Denmark township. He received 
his education in the common schools of 
his time, and remained on the home farm 
until he reached the age of fifteen. From 
that time until 1884 he engaged in vari- 
ous pursuits, working a year and a half 
for the Van Dycke Brewing Co., nine 
months for the Menominee Brewing Co., 



COMMEMoRAriVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



three winters for Ramsey & Jones in the 
lumber woods, etc. , and part of the time 
with his parents at home. In 1884 he 
opened out a saloon and dance hall in 
Preble, conductinj; the business for his 
mother until 1889, when he purchased it for 
himself, and continued as proprietor until 
May, 1894, when he sold it back to his 
mother. He then removed to his present 
beautiful home in Preble, near the Belle- 
vue township line, the location being one of 
the most delightful in the vicinity; the resi- 
dence is situated on a knoll. Here he 
owns a small tract of excellent land, to 
the cultivation of which he now devotes 
himself; also owns one dwelling house in 
Fort Howard, one dwelling house in the 
city of Green Bay, which he has to rent 
out; also forty acres of timber and farm 
land in Glenmore township. Brown 
county. Mr. Becher is everywhere known 
as a hard-working young man, and, being 
possessed of good common sense and 
sound judgment, he has made his busi- 
ness a success. He has a wide acquaint- 
ance in his township, in which he is at 
present serving as supervisor and member 
of the board of health, having been 
elected to the latter office in 1893. In 
his political preferences he is a Democrat. 
On February 7, 1889, Mr. Becher 
was married to Miss Thersa Matcke, who 
was born in De Pere, Wis. , daughter of 
Frederick Matcke, a native of Germany, 
and to this marriage have come three chil- 
dren, namely: Frederick J., born Octo- 
ber 10, 1890; Joseph W., born October 
26, 1 891; and John Frank, born October 
6, 1894. Mr. and Mrs. Becher are mem- 
bers of the Cathedral Catholic Church at 
Green Bay. 

JOHN WALLACE ARNDT (origin- 
ally John B. Wallace Arndt), of De- 
Pere,Wis., was, born September 15, 
1815, at Wilkes-Barre, Penn., son 
of John P. and Elizabeth (Carpenter) 
Arndt. 

The family is a very old one in this 



country, the first to reach here having 
been John Philip and Ernest Arndt, who 
had lived on a farm at Frankfort-on-the- 
Main, Germany, until about 1684, when, 
being ta.xed beyond endurance, the}', with 
man}' friends, sold their property, came 
to America, and bought land of William 
Penn on the Delaware river. John, the 
elder of the two brothers above men- 
tioned, was the ancestor of our subject. 
He erected his dwelling one nule above 
Durham Cove, and this he and his de- 
scendants occupied until 1700, when the 
grandfather of John W. sold out and 
uioved to Easton, Penn., taking with him 
a son, J. P. Arndt. The latter married 
Elizabeth Carpenter, whose ancestors 
came over in the same ship with the 
Arndts, and to this union was born the 
subject of this sketch and several other 
children. J. P. Arndt met with consider- 
able losses at Wilkes-Barre, Penn., dur- 
ing the war of 1812, and in 1818 he con- 
cluded to "go west," and after a horse- 
back tour as far as Michigan and Illinois, 
selected Buffalo, N. Y., as his future 
home. In the fall of 18 19, therefore, 
with his wife and four chidren and such 
household goods as could be transported 
in three wagons, he migrated to that 
city and there engaged in the fish and fur 
trade with the settlements on the great 
lakes until 1822, when he changed his 
headquarters to Mackinac, Mich., and, in 
1824, to Green Bay, Wis. — a distance of 
200 miles, which was made in a sailing 
vessel in a tempestuous voyage of two 
weeks' duration. John W. was then a 
lad of nine years, but he still vividly re- 
members the hardships of this voyage and 
the loss of a part of the cargo. 

The life of John P. Arndt was an act- 
ive and successful one, and he filled many 
public offices — among others that of mem- 
ber of the Territorial Legislature several 
times. He died June 10, 1861, in his 
eighty-first year, just one year after the 
death of his wife. His eldest son, Alex- 
ander Hamilton, died at Point Isabel dur- 
ing the Mexican war; his second son, 



214 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Charles C. P., a f;radiiate i)f Rutgers Col- 
lege, and an attorne)' by profession, was 
elected to the Territorial Senate of Wis- 
consin in 1840, and was shot and killed 
in the Senate Chamber in 1841 by James 
R. \'inyard. The eldest daughter, Mary 
Arndt, was married to Capt. J. W. 
Cotton, of the United States army; Eli;?a- 
beth, the other daughter, was married to 
H. E. Eastman, an attorney and coU^nel 
of cavalry in the Civil war. 

J. Wallace Arndt, at the age of nine- 
teen, had received but little schooling, but 
in 1834 he entered the academy of Rev. 
Dr. John \andavers at Easton. Penn., 
studied two years, then entered Vale Col- 
lege, where he remained until 1839, after 
which he taught school one year. He 
then read law a year with his brother; but 
on the death of the latter dropped this 
study and assisted his father in the lum- 
ber business until 1S56. later working in 
the gold mines of C()lora<lo, and also at 
the oil wells of Pennsylvania. Mr. .-\rndt 
was united in marriage, September 25, 
1842, with Miss Mary C. Wilcox, who 
was his affectionate companion and faith- 
ful helpmeet tmtil her death from pneu- 
monia, Ajiril 13, 1891. She was a 
daughter of Randall Wilco.x. for many 
years a member of the Wisconsin State 
Legislature. Randall Wilcox was born 
at Lee, Mass., was of English descent, 
and settled in De Pere in 1S36. He here 
became president of the De Pere Hy- 
draulic Co., ha\ing had much previous 
experience in hydraulics as a builder of 
many bridges and dams in Pennsylvania 
and Maryland. The mother of Mrs. Arndt 
bore the maiden name of Lydia Eield; her 
ancestors were early settlers near Pom- 
fret, Conn., and their old home is still 
known as Field's Point, where a branch 
of the family still lives. The children 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Arndt were as fol- 
lows: lulward W. , born February 8, 
1845, a resident of Superior, Wis.; Elcey 
M., born November 27, 1846, who mar- 
ried Charles A. Lawton September 5, 
1866; Emily, born March 26, 1848, mar- 



rieil to Peter S. Loy September 7, 1869; 
Mary, born November 28, 1849, and mar- 
ried to James R. Shepard; Lizzie V., 
born June 17, 1851, died October 24, 
1870; Alice, born May 8, 1854, married 
to Thomas D. Bowring; Randall, born 
March 9, 1855, married to Annie C. Ash, 
September 26, 1878; Lydia, born Sept- 
ember 13, 1857, died November 7, 1879, 
and Martha .Ann, born May 20, 1859, 
married to John F. Byers August 2, 1882. 
John Wallace Arndt has been actively 
identified with the business interests and 
public impro\ements of De Pere nearly 
all his life, and the interests of the entire 
territory comprising Brown county have 
received his close attention. He has 
given his aid to every enterprise that 
could in any way benefit the people at 
large, especially toward promoting the 
incoming and outgoing of railroads and 
their construction throughout the county 
as connecting links for traffic between 
local ami distant points of trade. Fra- 
ternally he is a Freemason; politically a 
Republican, and in religious belief a Prot- 
estant. Sociallx' he and his family stand 
as hiLrh as an\- in the county or State. 



J.\Mi;S PALMER WETER, dentist. 
lit De Pere, is a native of Floyd, 
Oneida Co., N. Y., and was born 
May 2, 1844. His parents were 
Mahlon Palmer Weter and Jane G. (Pal- 
mer) Weter, of whom the latter died 
when our subject was but a year old. 
The father again married, and in 1846 
came with his family to Wisconsin, lo- 
cating in Linn township, Walworth coun- 
t\-, and he now resides in Sharon township, 
in the same county. 

lames P. Weter resided with his father 
in Walworth county until just past eight- 
een years of age, when he enlisted, in 
.August, 1862, in Company C, Twenty- 
second Wis. V. I., and served in Ken- 
tucky until June, 1863. when he was hon- 
orably discharged on account of having 
contracted typhoid pneumonia, by which 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



2'5 



he was iiualiilcd lor two years after his 
return hoiiu'. When sufficiently recov- 
ered, he attended a iiri\ate seminary at 
Hebron, 111., lor six months, and next an 
academy of sciences at IChnira, N. \.. 
for a }'ear, and tiiis training;- was supple- 
mented with a course in a ciunmercial 
collcf^e, followed 1)\' a six-months' study 
of the law in the office of Smith, 1-Jolnrt- 
son cS; h'asset, IClmira; hut his health 
proved to he too frail fcu'the continuance 
of till' latter, and In therelore became a 
stu<lent ot dentistiy in the otiice of Dr. 
K. C". Terrs, of l-Lluura, \. "W, with 
whom he remained for two years, later 
forming a |)artiu'rship lor one \ear with 
Dr. IC. (). J->eers, of the same cit\-. In 
the spring of 1S70 he manied Miss Sarah 
A. Nichols, of Windsor, ] ierkshire Co. , 
Mass. ,and immediate l\ located in Sharon, 
Wis., when' he practiced his profession 
until I '^74, wluMi he came to l)c Pere, 
and has here built iij) a line professional 
reputation. In iS,Si) he took a post- 
graduate course in the College of Dental 
Surgery at Chicago, 111., thus ad<ling 
largely to his already extensixc knowledge 
of his art. 

In politico the Doctor is a stanch Pro- 
hibitionist, and has ser\ed the cit}' of I)e- 
Pere three times ,is alderman in a most 
satisfactor)' maimer once b\ ap]ioint- 
ment to \acanc\' and twice b\ election. 
He has also taki'ii a most acti\e interest 
in educational matters, and has served as 
secretary to the West De l^ere board of 
of education lor ten \ears. In the sum- 
mer of 1870 he was appointed United 
States marshal for taking census statis- 
tics. He is a member of tlie G. A. K., 
of the Temple of Homir, and of the I. O. 
O. F. In religion he isade\-oiil member 
of the M. E. Church, having joined that 
denomination in 1867. He has taken an 
active interest in church work, has served 
as superinteiulent of Sinulay-school for 
the past twenty-four years consecutively, 
and has also tilled the positions of stew- 
ard, trustee and treasurer, as well as 
minor offices. 



On the Doctor's start in life his father 
ga\e him one thousand dollars; hut, 
meeting with an accident, he was laid u]) 
so long with an abscess, fever and other 
ills, that his funds were I'xhausted, so 
that he was compelled to work his way 
up to an education, and w .is \irtuall\- livt; 
hundred dollars in debt when he began 
practice. Since his residence in De Pere, 
however, he has paid off all his indebted- 
ness, and has accumulateil a comfortat)le 
property. The children born to his mar- 
riage were three 111 muiilier, nanu'ly: 
Mary ()., who died in |aniiar\, i,S88;. 
Winifred .\., now attiiiding Lawrence 
Uni\ersit)' at .Apjijetoii, Wis.; [anies P.,, 
jr., a student in the Sl.ite rni\ersit\- at 
Madison, Wis. The Weters are descended 
from one ol the very early settled families 
of the United Stat(.s, and on the paternal 
side are ol imdoiibted (leinian origin, 
while on the maternal side thev .are of 
Hi ill.ind descent. 



EDMUND I'. LIh;H.\l.\NN. a well- 
known pros))eroiis young larmer, 
t>l Preble township, Brown county, 
is the eldest son of Louis and 
C"hristina ( Ojistfelder) Liebmann, both of 
whom are natives of Cermaiiv. 

Louis Liebmann was boi n Mav 29, 
iSj8, aiul was reared in his native coun- 
try, receiving ;i common-school education. 
In 1853 he Set out with his parents for 
the United States, landing, altcT a vovage 
of several weeks, in New "N'(uk, and thence 
proceeding westwanl, their destination 
being Green Hay, Wis., where a brother 
of Louis, Prank Liebmann, had located 
two v'ears previously. They made their 
home in Brown county, aiul, some time 
later, Louis, his father and brother, P'rank, 
commenced the fishing business at Wash- 
ington Harbor, Door Co., Wis., in which 
the\' prospered. In 1 8(io Louis Liebmann 
removed with his parents to the f.arm 
where he passed the remainder of his life 
(the same on which our subject now re- 
sides). On June 26, 1861, he was united 



2l6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in marriage with Miss Christina Opstfelder, 
and they had three children, viz.: Edmund 
F., subject of sketch; Ida, now Mrs. 
August Fontain, of Humboldt township; 
and Emma, Mrs. Louis Uudeau, of Merrill, 
Wis. His widow now makes her home 
with her son, Edmund F. 

The land was entirely new at the time 
of Louis' location, and had to be cleared, 
but his was an energetic nature, and, going 
to work with characteristic (lerman in- 
dustry, he soon transformed the forest 
into a productive farm. At the time of 
his death he was in comfortable circum- 
stances, the result of years of stern labor 
and strict economy. A quiet, unassuming 
man, he was universally respected. Po- 
litically he was a Republican, but took 
little or no interest in party affairs, and in 
church connection he was a Lutheran. 
He died on the farm February 5, 1886, 
and now lies buried in Woodlawn ceme- 
tery. Green Bay. 

Our subject was born October 11, 
1862, in Preble township. Brown county, 
on the farm where he yet resides, re- 
ceived in his youth a common-school edu- 
cation, and has followed farming all his 
life. On May 10, 1887, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Elizabeth I^archied, 
who was born July 29, 1868, in Preble 
township, daughter of Anton and Ger- 
trude (Bastcn) Larchied, and to this union 
have come two children, Christina E. and 
Julia L. In his political preferences Mr. 
Liebmann is a Republican, and in 1890 
he was elected township overseer. He is 
a systematic agriculturist, and, possessing 
the industry so characteristic of the fam- 
ily, has a prosperous career before him. 

WM. WORKMAN, the well-known 
and popular druggist, of West 
De Pere, was born in Ripon, 
Wis., December 13, 1850, and 
is a son of William and Margaret ("Miller) 
Workman. 

Our subject was educated in the city 
schools, also at Brockway College, Ripon, 



and was also highly trained in vocal and 
instrumental music. At the age of 
twent}' he was proficient on many instru- 
ments, including nearly all the pieces 
used in a brass band. Although troubled 
with pulmonary ailments, he accepted a 
lucrative position with the Blakely Con- 
cert and Oratorio Compaii}', as tenor 
singer, and, later, made an engagement 
with the Harry Robinson Minstrel Com- 
pany, also as tenor singer, traveling with 
the same for about four jears. His 
versatility as a musician was so great that 
he could at any time be relied on to take 
the place and instrument of almost any 
member of the compan\' who might be 
absent from a performance on account of 
illness or for other cause. Mr. Work- 
man was also a most excellent book- 
keeper, and, when he came to De Pere, 
April 4, 1S74, was employed in that 
capacity by the De Pere Car Works, of 
which his father was superintendent, but, 
at the end of the year the business was 
discontinued, and he then became book- 
keeper for the Menomonee Furnace Com- 
pany, at Menomonee, with which he re- 
mained until 1877, when he accepted a 
position with the De Pere Agricultural 
Works, contracting to do all its painting 
for a year. He then became bookkeeper 
for the same company, then its secretary, 
filling the latter position until Fcbruar)' 
24, 1885, when he resigned and engaged 
in breeding trotting horses on a farm six 
and a half miles south of Ripon, in part- 
nership with D. Thomas. Among the 
trotters here bred, one, "Barney F. ," 
made a record of 2:29.^ when five years 
old. Mr. Workman also brought to 
Brown county, " Achilles, " No. 2535 in 
Wallace's Trotting Register — the first 
registered, trottiiig-bred stallion brought 
to the count)-. At Ripon, in 1892-93, 
Mr. Workman was secretary of the 
Farmers Mutual Fire Insurance Com- 
pany, which company carried risks aver- 
aging $1,500,000 annually. In 1893 he 
settled in West De Pere, and, on Novem- 
ber I , began his present drug business. 



COMMEMOHATIVK BIOGRAPIHCAL RECORD. 



317 



He carries a full line of dru^s, paints, oils, 
wall paper, stationery, etc. , and is doinj^ 
a thriving business. Mr. Workman is a 
member of the Masonic Lodge at De- 
Pere, in which he has passed all the sub- 
ordinate chairs, and has served as wor- 
shipful master; he has also filled the 
position of chief templar of the Temple of 
Honor at De Pere, and for eight years, 
all told, was a member of the West De- 
Pere fire department, serving four years 
as chief. 

Mr. Workman was married October 
24, 1878, to Harriet S. Stewart, who has 
borne him four children, viz.: Jean (de- 
ceased), William Stewart (deceased). Dean 
and Nannie. Mr. Workman and family 
stand very high socially, and he is looked 
upon as one of the most enterprising and 
substantial residents of West De Pere. 



AUGUST GREILING, a respected, 
self-made farmer of Preble town- 
ship, Brown count}', is a native of 
the Fatherland, born August 5, 
1836, son of Nicholas Greiling, a stone- 
mason, who had three children : Fred- 
erick, who died in Germany; Caroline, 
yet residing in her native land; and 
August. 

Our subject received his education in 
the common schools of the time, attend- 
ing until his fourteenth year. He learned 
the cabinet-maker's trade, serving an ap- 
prenticeship of three and a half years at 
same, after which according to the rules 
of that time, he traveled for three years, 
then followed the business on his own 
account, later employing three or four 
men. On August 23, 1864, he married 
Miss Amelia C. Overlander, who was 
born September 21, 1840, in Germany, 
si.\ miles from the birthplace of her hus- 
band, daughter of Christopher Over- 
lander, an ironworker employed at the 
furnaces there. Two children were born 
to this marriage in Germany, namely: 
Hugo H. and Louis L. , both of whom 
are now farmers in Preble township. Mr. 



Greiling managed to save some monej' 
from his hard-earned wages, and in 1866 
concluded to trj' his fortune in America. 
Accordingly, on October 13, that year, 
he and his family sailed from Hamburg 
on the steamer " Allmonia," of the Ham- 
burg-American line, bound for New York, 
where they landed after a voyage of fif- 
teen days. Having friends in Green Bay, 
Wis., they proceeded thither at once, 
traveling by rail via Chicago, and arriving 
November 13. Mr. Greiling secured 
work with Bender & Phal, furniture 
manufacturers, of Green Bay, remaining 
with them one year, and then remaining 
another year and a half with Mrs. Phal, 
who continued the business after Mr. 
Bender's death. By strict economy dur- 
ing this time he had saved a hundred dol- 
lars, which in part paid for the forty acres he 
had purchased in Section 33, Preble town- 
ship, the present homestead, where he buiit 
a small house and took up his residence 
thereon in April, 1868. Here for a year 
he continued to follow his trade, making 
furniture and hauling it to town for Anton 
Burkhard, and then abandoned cabinet 
making, and for twelve to fifteen years 
engaged in contracting at various places 
in the township, building houses, barns, 
etc., and doing anything else in that line. 
He has never discontinued carpentry alto- 
gether, and still does odd jobs for others 
besides such work as he requires for him- 
self. When he first settled on the farm 
it was covered with timber and brush, 
and the task of clearing was an arduous 
one; but he has succeeded by industry in 
converting it into a fertile, productive 
tract, and has also added another forty 
acres, now having a well-improved farm 
of eighty acres. Mrs. Greiling, by her 
economical management has been no 
small factor in her husband's success, and 
the children have also assisted faithfully. 
Much credit is due her for bringing up 
and caring for so large a family as was 
their's, of whom she takes, in her later 
days, so much pride. 

In this country Mr. and Mrs. Greiling 



2lS 



C0MMi:M(inA TIVI-: niodUAPmcAi. hecorb. 



have had the following; children born to 
them: Charles and Herman, contrac- 
tors, now the firm of Greiiiiig Bros., 
in Green Bay; Fred C, Frank, Caroline, 
Albert L. and Henry, all living at home; 
John, deceased in infancy; and Emma, at 
home. Mr. Greiling and his sons are 
stanch Kepnblicans, and, though not by 
any means an active partisan, he is an 
ardent supporter of the principles of his 
party, and is a strong advocate of protec- 
tive tariff. His friends credit him with 
being a strong adxocate of moreliberal edu- 
cational facilities and stringent laws go\- 
erning same. Mr. Greiling has won the 
respect of his fellow citizens for his fair 
dealings and honest methods; aiid is self- 
made in the full sense of the term, ha\ing, 
from a start of nothing, accumulated the 
comfortable property he now enjoys and 
richly deserves. At present he is enjoy- 
ing his daily papers. 



FKi;i) M.V'IZKI-:, an upright, ener- 
getic citizen and farmer of De- 
Pere township, is a nati\e of the 
village of Gross-Pogul. W'ohlau, 
Prussia, born March 2, 1826, son of 
Anton Matzkc, a farmer in ordinary cir- 
cumstances, who died when his son Fred 
was si.\ years of age, leaving six children, 
four sons and two daughters. 

Fred Matzke received his education in 
the common schools of his native place, 
attending until he was fourteen years of 
age. When sixteen years old he hired 
out as a farm hand, and thereafter worked 
as a farmer and shepherd. In 1S55 he 
married Mary Herda, a native of the vil- 
lage of Gleinau, Wohlau, Prussia, and 
shortly afterward he and his young wife 
emigrated to the United States, sailiTig 
from Bremen to Quebec, where the\' 
landed after a voyage of seven weeks. 
From Quebec they came to Green Bay 
Wis., and here resided a short time, Mr. 
Matzke also working in sawmills at 
Oconto, his wife remaining in Green Baj'. 
Subsequently, having a let in Green Bay, 



he traded half of it for a farm of thirteen 
acres in 13ellevue township. Brown county, 
and forty-five dollars in cash; the other 
half of the lot he sold for $250. On 
this farm in Bellevue township the family 
resided in a log house, Mr. Matzke labor- 
ing in the harvest fields for others, and at 
first they endured many hardships. The 
land was uncleared,- and Mr. Matzke 
chopped wood on the farm at six shillings 
a cord. On March 1, 1864, he rented a 
farm (if eighty acres of cultivated land one 
mile from his own farm in Bellevue town- 
ship, and here worked hard and indus- 
triously, doing well. On October 7, 1864, 
while on his wwy to visit his brother-in- 
law in Minnesota, he enlisted at LaCrosse, 
Wis., in Company D, F(jrty-fourth Wis. 
W I., and was sent to Nashville, where, 
under Gen. George H. Thomas (who was 
his commander during his entire service), 
he participated in his first active engage- 
ment, a three-days' battle. He served 
until the close of the war, and on August 
28, 1865, was honorably discharged at 
Paducah, Ky., immediatel\' returning to 
his home in Bnnvn countj'. Wis. In the 
meantime, during his absence, his wife 
sold all the ]iersonal property and grain, 
and moved liack to their own log house in 
Bellevue township, where she remained 
with her five children; and to add to the 
general unpleasantness of the situation 
the family were considerably annoyed by 
thieving Indians in the neighborhood. Mr. 
Matzke takes this opportunity to return 
many thanks to the good neighbors who- 
assisted his wife during his absence in 
the war. 

In the fall of 1865 he purchased eighty 
acres of partly improved timber land in 
De Pere township, going into debt for 
same to the extent of seven hundred dol- 
lars, and here he has ever since made his 
home. To our subject and wife have 
been born children as follows : August 
and Mathias, farmers of Glenmore town- 
ship; Annie, now Mrs. X'ictor Fonder, of 
Glenwood Springs, Colo. ; Mary, now 
Mrs. Albert Kadke, of Milwaukee, Wis. ; 



COMMEMon.X Tl \'K niOUHAPIIlrAI. llECOltl). 



Rosa, Mrs. Joseph Raster, of Dc Pere 
township; Paul, a fariiifr, of W'rif^hts- 
tovvn. Wis. ; Theresa, Mrs. John Beclier, 
of Preble; Sylvester, residing; in Millhank, 
S. Dak. ; and Elizabeth and Philip, at 
home. In politics Mr. Matzkc was 
originally a Democrat, but he is now in- 
dependent, voting as his conscience and 
judgment dictate; he has ser\ed nine 
N'ears as supervisor of De Pere t(.)\\nship, 
and school treasurer fourteen }ears; the 
first school building ever erected in his 
district he bought, and is now using as 
his granary on the farm. He and his 
wife are niemliers of tlu' St. Marx's 
Catholic Church of De Pere. Mr. Matzke 
has been one of the most industrious men 
in his township, and his noble wife has 
also done her share of work in the rearing 
of their large family and the careful 
management of the household. He is 
straightforward and honest in all iiis 
dealings, and has won the respect of the 
commnnit)' by his fair methods and sterl- 
ing worth. Thougli he was !iot wounded 
during his service in the Civil war, his 
general health was seriously impaired, 
and he has ne\er been a robust man since 
before the three-days' battle referred to 
above, when he was taken sick. During 
that fight he was so unwell that he had 
to lie down on the wet ground in the 
rain, which increased his illness. When 
he and his faithful wife hrst arrived in 
Green Ba\' about forty years ago, he had 
only about $150 in cash, and ever\thing 
the}' now possess has l)een accumulated 
by honest industry and judicious econ- 
omy. As good Christian people the\' are 
deservedl\- honored and respected by the 
entire community. 



TIMOTHY I^VAN (deceased), who 
was known during his lifetime as 
an industrious farmer, was a na- 
tive of County Tipperary, Ire- 
land, where he grew to manhood. Timo- 
thy was but a young boy when his father 



died, and consequently he was obliged to 
commence work when still \ery young. 

In L-arly manhood, having saved 
en(}ni.;h to brmg him to America, Mr. 
Ryan emigrati'ci from his nati\e countr}', 
to try his fortune in the New World, 
locating lirst in New York State. In 
Cooperstown, N. Y., he x\'as united in 
marriage to Miss Bridget Ryan, who was 
born in County Limerick, Ireland, daugh- 
ter of Timothy Ryan, and came to the 
United States in her girlhood. After 
their marriage the young couple concluded 
to go west where work was plenty and 
land was chea]), and, coming to Wiscon- 
sin, spent the hrst winter in CTreen Bay, 
Mr. Ryan finding employment in the 
lumber woods. The following spring he 
purchased a totalK* unimprox'ed tract of 
land in Rocklanil township, 15rown count}', 
and while waiting for their dwelling to 
be built they lived at the home of An- 
thon\- Dw}er. The surrounding country 
was all new and ver}' wild, liut Mr. Ryan 
bravely set about the task of clearing 
away the forest; and being a tiiligent 
worker and anxious to make a comfort- 
able home for himself and family, he soon 
had a fine farm. He died on this place 
Ajiril 12, 1.S74. and was buried in De- 
Pere cemetery. In politics he was a stanch 
Democrat. During the Civil war he was 
a soldier in the Union army, and he never 
fully recovered from the hardships en- 
dured in the service. He left a family of 
eight children fthe eldest then but sixteen 
years of age), viz.: Nora, now a resi- 
dent of Chicago; Joanna, Mrs. John 
Underwood; Patrick, of Ashland, Wis., 
Timothy, on the home farm; Mary, Mrs. 
Fred Bettinger; Simon, a lumberman; 
and Morris and Katy, at home. At the 
time of the father's death the home had 
not been fully paid for, and a portion of 
the land was allowed to go to pay the 
balance. Mrs. Ryan has since managed 
the affairs of the place with ability and 
success, and has been faithfully assisted 
by her children. The agricultural work 
is now attended to by the son Timothy, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and the farm yields a comfortable sup- 
port to the family, being a fertile, well- 
cultivated piece of land. Mrs. Ryan has 
seen her home transformed from the 
dense forest, taking no small part in this 
work herself. She is a member of St. 
Francis Catholic Church, De Pere, and 
is highly respected in the community 
where he has resided for so many years. 



JOHN !•. W ATERMOLEN, attor- 
ney at law in his native city of 
Green Bay, was born in 1862, and 
for three years has been actively en- 
gaged in the practice of his jirofession, at 
first under the tirm name of W'atermolen 
& Wavrunek. His parents were natives 
of Belgium, and in 1857 came to America, 
settling in Bellevue township, Brown Co., 
Wis., where the father engaged in farm- 
ing, and where he and his wife still re- 
side. Of their eight children, seven are 
still living, viz.: Joseph P., William, 
Henrv, Mary, Philiji, John p., and 
John B. 

J. P. Watcrmolen was reared and ed- 
ucated in the township of Bellevue until 
the age of twenty-three, and then at- 
tended the business college managed by 
Murch & Hills, at Green Bay; he next 
taught in the district schools of Brown 
county, reading law in the meanwhile, 
and finally entered the law office of 
Wigman & Martin, studying until Decem- 
ber 29, 1 89 1, when he was admitted to 
the bar with highest honors at Milwau- 
kee, Wis., since when he has enjoyed a 
lucrative practice. He is United States Cir- 
cuit Court Commissioner for the Eastern 
District of Wisconsin. He was married, 
April 18, 1893, in Green Bay, to Miss 
Ella M. Wigman, daughter of J. H. M. 
Wigman, a prominent attorney at law. 
One child, James J., is the fruit of this 
congenial union. Mr. and Mrs. Water- 
inolen are devoted members of St. Willi- 
brord's Catholic Church, and socially are 
held in high esteem by a large circle of 
personal friends, as well as by the com- 



munity at large. Mr. Watermolen is a 
member of the Catholic Order of Fores- 
ters and of Navarino Camp, No. 534, 
Modern Woodmen. His business is daily 
increasing, and his abilities as a lawyer 
are full}' recognized as being far beyond 
those of any practitioner of his age in 
the county. He is one of the manj' young 
men, self-educated and self-made, who 
have made the most of the golden op- 
portunities open to the ambitious Ameri- 
can youth. 



CONSTANT DE JONGHE. the 
leading baker of De Pere, was 
born in 1S31, in Belgium, a son 
of Frank De Jonghe, who was a 
butcher by trade, and had a numerous 
family. 

Constant was but three jears old when 
he lost his parents, and, until he reached 
the age of twenty years, was reared by his 
maternal step-grandfather, at the end of 
which time he commenceti learning the 
baker's trade, and worked at same in the 
old country until he was twenty-four 
j'ears of age. He then, on July 5, 1856, 
set sail from Antwerp for the United 
States on the ".American .-Mexander, " 
which should have sailed the previous 
day, but was detained in port one da}- in 
order to give the crew an opportunity of 
celebrating the "P'ourth" onshore. On 
September 25, Mr. De Jonghe landed at 
New York, whence he came directly to 
Wisconsin, landing in Green Bay with 
but twenty-nine cents in his pocket. He 
soon found work, however, in sawmills, 
in the woods and on the lakes, all along 
saving some money; and, as he was always 
faithful in his service to his emplo}ers, he 
never had to ask for work a second time 
from any employer. Fourteen years of 
his life were passed in the lumber woods 
of Wisconsin, but he lost his earnings; he 
was also for some fifteen or sixt<;en years 
in Menominee, Mich. In 1873 he came 
to West De Pere, and with what capital 
he had manaEred to save from the time 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOGIiAPIIICAI. RECORD. 



he lost everything, as above referred to, 
he started a bakery which he carried on 
there until 1887, when he moved into 
De Pere and opened his present business, 
on the corner of Broadway and Charle? 
street. Here he has built a very substan- 
tial l)rick block, two and a half stories 
hij;h, and containing two business rooms. 
His bakery is now the leading one in the 
city, and his success is the result of his 
own hard work and indomitable perse- 
verance. 

In July, 18S2, Mr. De Jonghe was 
married in West De Pere to Miss Romaine 
Van De Walle, a native of Belgium, and a 
resident of Wisconsin since 1881. The}- 
have one child, Mary, who is a natural 
musician, and, forherage, quite a wonder 
as a piano player. In his religious faith 
Mr. De Jonghe is a devout Catholic, and 
he enjoys the respect ant! esteem of all 
who know him. 



OTTOMAN GEORGI. As a living 
example of what resolute work- 
ing, earnest endeavor and indom- 
itable perseverance will accom- 
plish, this gentleman stands prominent 
among the worthy citizens of Brown 
county. He is a native of Prussia, Ger- 
many, born February 24, 18^17, in the 
village of Blankenburg, son of Philip 
Georgi, a tanner by occupation, who 
passed his entire life in the Fatherland, 
dying there in 1859. 

The boyhood experiences of Ottoman 
were not different from those of other 
lads in his rank of life — attending school 
with regularity for a few years, and then 
learning a trade. This latter part of his 
education cur subject received under his 
father's tuition, he serving a three-years' 
apprenticeship in the tannery, after which 
he did journeyman work at various places. 
In 1853 he was nearing the age when he 
should enter the army, according to the 
law of his country, but through his father's 
personal intercession with the King of 
Bavaria he was given exemption. His 



father ha\ingnow presented him with one 
hundred Prussian dollars to commence 
the world with, young Ottoman concluded 
to try his fortune in the Western World. 
Accordingly, securing passage on board 
the ship "George Corning," from Ham- 
burg to New York, he set sail with a 
light heart and bright prospects, and, 
after a six-weeks' voyage, landed at the 
port of debarkation. l-'rom New York 
he at once jiroceetled in the ilirection of 
his destination. Green Bay, \Vis., but on 
his arri\al in Detroit found his money all 
gone. Assistance, however, coming from 
friends in Green Bay, he was enabled to 
pursue his way, but, through some mis- 
take, landed in the town of Madison, a 
total stranger, and penniless. Here he 
could find no employment, and, de- 
ciding tci make his way to Portage 
City, where he hoped to be more suc- 
cessful, he set out on fodt, getting an 
occasional meal from farmers cii roiilc. 
In Portage he succeeded in securing work 
at eight dollars per month; but, never 
losing sight of his proper detination, he 
left there after saving little monew and, 
traveling by way of Madison, Milwaukee, 
Sheboygan and Manitowoc, finally reached 
Green Bay, arri\ing .August 26, 1854, 
after many adverse experiences. Here he 
readily secured work in F. B. Gardner's 
sawmill, remaining there over five years, 
or until early in the spring of 1859, when, 
having received news of his father's death 
in Germany, he set out in the month of 
April for his old home, taking passage at 
New York for Bremen, the voyage occupy- 
ing fourteen days. At his old home he 
spent about one month, and then returned 
by the same boat, from Hamburg to New 
York, bringing with him to Green Bay his 
sister, Sophia, and brother, August, the 
latter party arriving in August, 1859. 
Our subject then returned to his work in 
Gardner's sawmill, continuing there until 
1862, at which time he went to Onton- 
agon, Mich., and there worked in a 
tannery a couple of months, and also in 
the mines. Returning to Green Bay. 



COMMEMOllATIVE lUOGHAPniCAL RECORD. 



Mr. Georjji secured employment in Fred 
Schellers' Cedar Creek Gristmill, in Preble 
township, but in October, i 864, he had to 
leave, havinj^ been drafted into Company 
E, Seventeenth Wis. \'. I., which was 
mustered in at Camp Randall, Madison, 
Wis. From there the regiment was sent 
to Louisville, thence to Kingston, Chatta- 
nooga and finallj' to Atlanta, where they 
experienced their first battle. They then 
participated in Sherman's march to the 
sea, and followed the fortunes of the arm\' 
till the Grand Review at Washington in 
1865. At Louis\ille, Ky., our subject 
was honorably discharged July 14, 1865, 
and was mustered out at Madison, 
Wis., whence he at once proceeded to 
Green ISay thence to Preble township, 
where his wife and infant son were, 
and at once resumed the pursuits of 
peace. In 1867 he purchased twenty 
acres of land in Preble township, on which 
his present residence stands, and to this 
he from time to time added until he found 
himself the owner of over 230 acres — part 
of which he has given to his children — all 
the result of his own individual hard work, 
untiring energy and sound judgment. 

On January i, 1864, Mr. Georgi was 
married to Miss Maria Barbara Hasten, 
born .\pril 24, 1835, in the village of 
Kosen, Prussia, who came to the United 
States in 1852, along with her parents. 
The children of this union are Fred and 
Philip, both of whom are farmers in Preble 
townshi]i; Lena and Charles, at home; 
and .August, who died May 22, 1876. aged 
eight years. The mother of these died 
January 14, 1890, and sleeps her last 
sleep in the cemetery at Green Bay, since 
when the daughter, Lena, has presided 
over her father's house with becoming 
grace. In 1870 our subject revisited Ger- 
many, and on his return brought with him 
his aged mother, who passed the rest of 
her life at his home, dying November 
9, 1892. 

In politics our subject is a Republi- 
can, and for some eight or ten years 
served his township as supervisor, having 



been elected on that ticket; but he is no 
partisan, in county and township affairs 
invariably supporting such men and 
measures as he deems best for the com- 
munity at large. Socially he is a member of 
Herman Lodge, No. ill, I. O. O. F. ; of 
the Germania Society, and of T. O. Howe 
Post, No. I 24, G. A. R. , all of Green Bay. 
Taken all in all, Mr. Georgi is a thoroughly 
representative citizen, universalh" respect- 
ed, and is a typical self-made man. 

DON F. SMITH, one of the most 
prominent and active citizens of 
Suamico village, Brown county, 
was born July 28, 1836. in Onon- 
daga county. N. W, a son of Hiram J. 
and Elsie H. (Adams) Smith, also natives 
of New Yr.rk. Hiram J. Smith was born 
March 6, 1 800, was a shoemaker by trade, 
and died Maj' 26, 1845, in Erie county, 
N. \'. ; Mrs. Elsie H. Smith, whose par- 
ents came from Rhode Island, was born 
September 4, 1802, and died October 13, 
1872. Of the six children born to them 
but two are still living. Don F. and Ho- 
ratio, the latter a resident of Michigan. 

Don F. .Smith was reared on the farm 
of an uncle from the time he was hfteen 
until he reached the age of twenty-one, 
when, in i 857, he came to Wisconsin with 
his brother-in-law, H. J. Ayres, and locat- 
ing in Duck Creek, Brown county, worked 
here two years in a sawmill. Then for a 
time he taught school in Howard town- 
ship, and later engaged by the month in a 
saw and shingle mill in Suamico town- 
ship, being thus empkn'ed at the time of 
his marriage. On .•\ugust 25, 1863, he 
wedded Miss Julia A. Woodruff, who was 
born at Norton, Summit Co.. Ohio, but 
was reared and educated in Akron, same 
State, and when quite young came west 
for the benefit of her health, teaching 
school until her marriage, when she re- 
linquished that vocatit)!!. The union of 
Don F. and Julia A. Smith has been 
blessed with six children, as follows: (1) 
Hattic M.. born Ant^iist 2i>, 1864; was 



Ts, 



^ 







A'^ 



«l 




r 




COMMKMdHA Tl V E ISlnC l: M'll ic A L HKCOUH. 



first married to C. (). Stevens, who died 
leaving one son, now also deceased; lier 
.second niarriagi; was to 1). W. 15in"ns, and 
to tluMii has come om; dauf^ditcr, listher 
(.'.., horn Auf;ust 12, 1.S93. {2) ICstella, 
Ixjrn iVpril 12, 1.S66, was married to V. 
13. Stevens, and to this iiinon were Ixini 
three chikiren lliram 1)., (Jctoher 4, 
i8yo, Ethel, November — , i.Syi,and I'^l- 
sie, Febrnary 21, 1893. (3) Frank A. 
was born April },<:), 1868. (4) Don 1). was 
born July 21, 1870. (5) I^loyd was born 
April 30. 1 88 1. (6) Cora was born Octo- 
ber 9. 1883. Mrs. Jnlia A. Smith is a 
<langhler of (iiles and listher fWetinorej 
Woodruff, natives, respectively, of Massa- 
chusetts and (Connecticut, (iiles Wood- 
ruff, who is a farmer, was a pioneer of 
Ohio, ami servetl as colonel of a rej;iment 
of home guards. I le died in Akron, Ohio, 
at the age of seventy-six years, leaving 
two children, Mrs. Julia A. Smith and 
.Mrs. Lucia I',. \'osburg. 

.After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Don I'". 
Smith localt'd in Suatnico village, where 
for a year and a half he worked in a 
sawmill, and then went to Akron, Ohio, 
at which j)lace he l)ouglit a meat market, 
and conducted same one summer. He 
then returnc'd to Siiamico, where he had 
■charge of the shipping interests of sevi;rai 
large firms for two or three years. When 
the ("hicago & N(jrtinvestern railway was 
built through the town of Suamico he was 
appointed, on July 1, 1872, agent forthe 
company, a position he has held ever 
since, giving the utmost satisfaction. He 
has also served as postmaster for the last 
thirty years: township treasurer for over 
three years, and has tilled several other 
local offices with great credit and accepta- 
bility. His first \'ote \\as cast for Abraham 
Lincoln in 1860, and he has been a faith- 
ful member of the Republican party ever 
since. He is a notary public, acts as 
agent for the American Express Company, 
and has always manifested marked busi- 
ness ability, industry and activity. He is 
treasurer of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church at Suamico. Mr. and Mrs. Smith 

13 



were both school teachers, and full) ((Hii- 
pi-tent to rear their family. No man m 
the coiintv is more ca])able of lilling the 
responsible ])ositionsto whitdi he has been 
callcil than Mi. Smith, and Mrs. Smith is 
a l.idv of line intellect, highly arcomplishe<i 
and imicli lovecl by all. The lamih' lia\e 
a delightful home 111 the town, and also 
own a small farm, which is rented out. 
.Mr. .Smith has, assisted b}' his amiable 
wife, made his comfortable prop(;rty 
through indiistrw and backed by a deter- 
mination to succeed. By his unswi-rving 
iiitegrit\' he first gained the conlideiice' of 
his fell<iw citizens, and by his faith! iil at- 
tention to the duties of the various posi- 
tions he has filled as a public officer, and 
as an employe, he has won the ap[)roba- 
tion of all jiarties concerned. Socially, no 
family in the township occupies a more 
einiable position. 

JACOB KliTTENliOLlCN, a wide- 
awake, progressive citizen, ami the 
leading blacksmith of Wrightstow n, 
l^rown county, of whi(di city he has 
been a resident some twenty years, is a 
native of Khein-Province, (iermany, born 
|iily 16, 1854, 111 Irsch, Kreis Saarbriick, 
Kegicrungsbezirk Trier. l''or ten genera- 
tions his ancestors were blacksmiths before 
him, some serving in the armies of Europe, 
and they were, for the most part, educated 
above their station, many members oftlu- 
families being educators. Grandfather 
Mathias Kettenhofen followed blacksmith- 
ing in Orsholtz, Germany, and also his 
sons. 

Feti'r Kettenhofen, father of Jacob, 
(Kir subject, carried on that trade in Irsch 
till 1862, when he was induced to come 
to America by his sisters, who had pre- 
ceded him to the Western World. Com- 
ing with his family to Wisconsin, Peter 
located in Hollaml townshi)), lirown 
county, where he followed his tra<le in 
connection with farming till 1872, in 
which year he removed to Wriijhtstown 
ami established the blacksmith shop now 



226 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



occupied by his son Jacob. He died 
October 2 1 . 1887, as;ed about sixty years, 
esteemed and respected by all who knew 
him as a bright, intelligent, active and 
honorable man. In Europe he had been 
educated for the profession of teacher; 
but the ruling trait of the family was so 
strong in him that he preferred the trade 
he followed throughout life, and he had 
five brothers, all also blacksmiths. He 
was considered a first-class mechanic, 
making a success of his business, and 
much of his work is still to be seen in 
various parts of the county. In his native 
land he had married Miss Anna Fish, who 
was also born in Irsch, near Trier, Rhein 
Province, Germany, and nine children 
were born to them, six of whom are yet 
living. The mother was called from 
earth August 27, 1892. Peter Ketten- 
hofen was a consistent member of the 
Catholic Church; in politics he was a 
stanch Democrat, and served as delegate 
to county conventions. 

The subject proper of these lines, 
whose name opens the sketch, was eight 
years old when his parents brought him to 
this country, and in Holland township. 
Brown county, he received a good com- 
mon-school education. In 1871, when 
seventeen years old, he commenced to 
learn blacksmithing in Menasha, with 
Philip Sensenbrenner, a master mechanic, 
and at the end of two years came to 
Wrightstown, where he entered his 
father's shop, and has remained there 
continuously to the present time, a period 
of over twenty years, in which connection 
it were superfluous to add that he is a 
master of the business in every detail, 
and a thoroughly expert horse-shoer. On 
June 29, 1880. he was married to Miss Liz- 
;;ie Brenzel, who has borne him nine chil- 
dren: Catharina, Annie, John, Helena, 
Jacob, Mary, Clara, Eva and Peter. Mr. 
and Mrs. Kettenhofcn are members of the 
Catholic Church. Politically he is identi- 
fied with the Democratic party, has con- 
siderable influence in local and county 
politics, being well known all over the 



southern part of Brown countj' and the 
northern part of Outagamie, and generally 
serves as delegate to convt-ntions. So- 
cially he is an active member of the Cath- 
olic Knights of Wisconsin, is president of 
the local order, was elected a delegate to 
the State convention at Oshkosh in 1894. 
He has taken an interest in educational 
matters, and is trustee of the Sisters' 
school at Wrightstown. 

On March 28, 1894, he was chosen 
chairman of the caucus, being the first 
caucus held in the new town hall at 
Greenleaf, to nominate officers for the 
town election. 



JAMES McKONE, a popular livery- 
man and horse breeder, of Green 
Bay, was born in County Cavan, 
Ireland, April 15, 1854, and is a 
son of James and Ann (McCabe) McKone. 
The father, who was a prosperous farmer, 
died in 1858, leaving a widow and six 
children, \\z. : Patrick. Catherine, John, 
James L. , Terrence and Ann — all living 
with the exception of Ann, who died in 
Minneapolis, Minn., leaving one child, 
also named Ann. In 1868 the mother of 
our subject sold her property in Ireland, 
and with three children came to America, 
her other children having preceded her. 
She bought a place in Oshkosh, Wis., 
where her three brothers, Cornelius, [nhn 
and Frank, then lived, and where John 
still has his residence. Here Mrs. Mc- 
Kone passed away December 5, 1885. 

The subject of this sketch, after pass- 
ing six weeks in New York, was employed 
in a sawmill at Oshkosh, W^is. , until 
December, 1879, when he went to Wau- 
sau. Wis., and for four years profitably 
carried on a dairy; he then moved to 
Clintonvillc, Wis., and bought a livery 
stock, which he transferred to Fort 
Howard, where he remained fourteen 
months, and then settled in Green Bay, 
and here he rented the barn which he 
now owns. He has had his business mis- 
fortunes, but, on the whole, has been re- 



commemohativk biographical record. 



227 



maikably successful. His stables con- 
tain thirty-four horses, some of which 
are very valuable, among them being a 
two-year-old mare, "Bourbon Break," 
with a record, as a two-year-old, of 2:31! ; 
for this auimal Mr. McKone has refused 
$3,000. Among other promising animals 
in this stud are "Anna May," "Wilkes," 
"J. C," "Skylark," "Ben Crosier," 
"Fancher, "and " Daisy H." While a resi- 
dent of Oshkosh, Mr. McKone married 
Julia Helpen, daughter of Patrick and Jen- 
nie (Mallon) Helpen. She bore her hus- 
band two children — James L. and Mamie, 
the former of whom resides with his father, 
the latter dying in infancy. Mrs. Mc- 
Kone died May 15, 1881, and her re- 
mains were interred at Wausau. The 
second marriage of Mr. McKone took 
place at Clintonville, Wis., to Miss Mary 
Geary, a native of Hazleton, Penn., and 
daughter of Patrick and Catherine (Mulli- 
gan) Geary, the former of whom died in 
Chicago in 1876, while on his way home 
to Clintonville from a trip to Texas; the 
latter is now a resident of Philadelphia, 
Penn. The second marriage of Mr. Mc- 
Kone has been blessed with three chil- 
dren : Frank, John and Alvin, the last 
named ds'ing in infancy. Mr. McKone is 
a member of the Royal Arcanum, and, 
with his wife, attends St. John's (Catho- 
lic) Church. He is a gentleman of great 
native energy, has made himself what he 
is, in a financial point of view, notwith- 
standing some severe business reverses, 
and, through his affability and straightfor- 
ward dealing, has won hosts of friends. 



MICHAEL PATTON. This gen- 
tleman, who is now living semi- 
retired on his farm in Glenmore 
township. Brown county, en- 
joys the distinction of being its oldest liv- 
ing settler. 

He is a native of the Emerald Isle, 
born about 18 14, in County Waterford, 
son of Martin and Mary (Powers) Patten, 
farming people in moderate circumstances. 



They had a family of six children — four 
sons and two daughters — of whom 
Michael was the eldest, and consequently 
his educational opportunities were some- 
what limited. When a mere boy he com- 
menced to work in the copper mines, con- 
tinuing thus while in his native country. 
In young manhood he was married to 
Miss Mary Hayes, who was also a native 
of County Waterford, and three children 
were born to them in Ireland, namely: 
William, who is now a resident of Fort 
Howard, Brown county; Martin, of Glen- 
more township; and Mary, who married 
Leonard Miller, and died in Marinette, 
Wis. Having by economy managed to 
save a few dollars from his meager earn- 
ings, Mr. Patton concluded to emigrate 
and try his fortune in the New World, 
and, bidding their early home farewell, he 
and his family sailed on the "Admiral," 
in the spring of 1844, 3^nd landed in Que- 
bec after a voyage of five weeks and three 
days. Mr. Patton had intended to go to 
the Lake Superior copper region; but 
learning that work was scarce there, he 
went instead to Lowell, Ohio, where he 
found employment at a furnace. Later 
he worked at other towns in the Mahon- 
ing Valley, and also in the coal and iron 
mines of that country, remaining in the 
vicinity of Youngstown until 1848, when 
he came to \N'isconsin to look over the 
land. In Section 8, Glenmore township. 
Brown county, he purchased a half-section 
of wild land, and then went back to Ohio 
for his family, returning to Wisconsin in 
the fall. There were no roads laid out 
at this time, the path to his farm led 
through the forest, and their neighbors 
were the Whitmores, who lived two miles 
away, along the Dixon road. The trees 
were so thick that a spot large enough 
for the dwelling had to be cleared, and 
Mr. Patton put up a log cabin, into which 
the family moved. Wild animals were 
numerous, but thev gradually passed away 
with the clearing and settling of the coun- 
try. The settlers labored under many 
disadvantages in the improving and culti- 



!2S 



COMMEMOliATIVK niOGRAI'IIICAL RECORD. 



vating of the land, for almost the only 
tools they had were an axe and a- grub- 
hoe, and oxen were the only beasts of 
burden. Hut the prospect of having a 
conifort;d)ie property of his own cheered 
Mr. Patton through the first few years of 
hard work, and encouraged him to prese- 
vere until the land became jiroductive and 
yieklt'd a good income. As his sons grew 
up the)' proved a great assistance to 
him, and in turn he has given them a 
comfortable start in life; he, at one time, 
owned between 400 and 500 acres of good 
land, but he has given the greater part 
of it to his sons. In US92 a new resi- 
dence was erected on the farm. 

After coming to the United States Mr. 
and Mrs. Patton had the following chil- 
dren: Kate, Mrs. Richard Gorman, of 
Marinette. Wis. ; Morris, who died in 
Youngstown, Ohio, where he was buried; 
Patrick, a resident of (jlenniore town- 
ship. Brown county; Edward, who died 
in Glenmore township in 1893; John, 
who is mentioned farther on; Michael, 
who died in Glenmore township; and 
Morris, of Green Bay. Mr. Patton is 
now retired from active farm work, en- 
joying the fruits of his early toil, for the 
past twelve years having made his home 
with his son John. He is a typical self- 
made man, for, landing in this country 
with no capital save health and energy, 
he rose by his own efforts to an enviable 
position among the leading farmers of 
Glenmore township. In his political af- 
filiations he is a stanch Democrat, and in 
his earlier years he served as supervisor 
and school treasurer in his township, but 
he was never an office-seeker, always pre- 
ferring to give his undivided attention to 
his business. In religious faith he is a 
member of St. Francis Church De Pere. 
His estimable wife was railed from earth 
January i, 1888, when aged seventy-two 
years, and her remains now rest in .'M- 
louez cemetery. 

John Patton was born March 25, 1856, 
on the farm where he is yet living, and 
here obtained a thorough knowledge of 



agriculture under his father, at the same 
time receiving his literary education in 
the common schools. On May 2, 1882, 
he was married in St. Francis Church, 
De Pere, to Miss Frances A. Lawlor, who 
was born in April, 1865, in Glenmore 
township, daughter of Thomas and Mary 
(Connors) Lawlor. To this union came 
children as follows: Mary, Lizzie, Fran- 
ces, and Pearl, living; Lucy, deceased; 
and James Rhaman, living. Mr. Patton 
is a hard-working, prosperous farmer, and 
one of the substantial, public-spirited 
citizens of his township. He de\otes his 
time exclusively to the cultivation of his 
farm, which comprises 120 acres of excel- 
lent land. In his political preferences 
he is a Democrat, and in religious connec- 
tion a member of St. Francis Church, 
De Pere. 



WD. RICE, of Pittsfield town- 
ship. Brown count)-, was born 
I'ebruary 14, 1838, in Fitz- 
william, N. H., the eldest of 
the four children born to John and Caro- 
line (Hayden) Rice. The other three 
were Eliza, who died leaving three chil- 
dren, Lizzie, Ellsworth and Fred; Wins- 
low, who was killed in the Civil war; and 
Sarah, who died leaving a husband and 
two children — Eva and Nellie. 

W. D. Rice, since the age of fifteen, 
has earned his living through his own ex- 
ertions. From his native State he came 
directly to ^^' isconsin, and was one of the 
early settlers of Pittsfield (then Suamico) 
township. Brown county, where he 
bought eighty acres of land which he 
still owns, having first earned the money 
by hard work in the lumber woods — a 
business he followed thirty-nine years be- 
fore he ceased active work, having al- 
ways had charge of a camp from the age 
of eighteen. He cleared off the timber 
from his farm at odd intervals, ridding it 
of trees, Indians, bears and wolves, until 
it became one of the model farms of the 
township. Having commenced the prep- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUIt'AL RECORD. 



229 



aration of a lioinc, he was married, on 
April 2^, iJ^j'J. to Miss Hannah E., 
daughter of Cornelius and Marj;aret 
(Leonard) Keefe, put up the house they 
at present occupy, and in 1860 ino\ed 
into the new home. It was in this year 
that the town was set off, the poll at that 
time being 13; in 1S94 it had reached 
230. To Mr. and Mrs. Rice were liorn 
five children, as follows: Lizzie, John, 
James (who died in infancx'l, Clara and 
Leonard. 

In politics Mr. Rice is a stanch Re- 
publican; in i(SS5 he was elected chair- 
man of the town, and has held the posi- 
tion for several years. He has been true 
to his party from the time he cast his 
first Presidential \"ote, for .\brahani Lin- 
coln, and this circumstance has been 
fully recognized by his political friends. 



HM. r.hXIv, M. I). This esteemed 
citizen of Green Bay, and well- 
known physician and surgeon, is 
a nati\'e of Ha\'aria, ("lermanj', 
born November i, 1855, a son <if Leon- 
ard and Eva (Gesner) l^eck, also of Ba- 
varian birth, the former of Avhom died in 
1892 in his natixe land, where his widow 
is yet living. They were the parents of 
six children, viz.: Valentine, in Bavaria; 
H. M., subject of sketch; Barbara, wife 
of John Schenck, of Brown county, Wis. , 
Velp P. O. ; Johanna, Iska, and Anna. 
Of these, two came to Green Bay, and 
are here now residing, to wit: H. M. and 
Barbara. 

H. M. Beck received his primary edu- 
cation at the public and preparatory 
schools of Bavaria, after which he at- 
tended the P(5lytechnic High-shod at 
Munich. In 1876 he immigrated to the 
United States, arriving in Green Bay, 
Wis., in December of that year. Here 
for about one year he gave music lessons, 
after which he engaged in the drug busi- 
ness, carrying same on for several years. 
In 1879 he commenced the study of 
medicine with Dr. B. C. Brett, in 



1881 entering Rush Medical College, 
Chicago, where he graduated in March, 
1883, thereafter at onci' ccimmencing 
the general practice of his pn'ofession 
in Green liay, in which he has met 
with well-merited success. In 1879 
Dr. Beck married Miss Mar\' I'o.\, daugh- 
ter of Paul l'"o.\, an early settler of Brown 
count}'. This wife died in 1886, lea\-ing 
line son, ()ttii, ,iiid in 1888 the Doctor 
was united in marriage with Miss Irma C. 
\'an Dyke, daughter of Louis \'an Dyke, 
and two children lia\-e come tn brighten 
their home, viz.: Irma and I'lorence. 

Dr. I:>eck is a member of I'Ox River 
Valley Medical Socic'tx, and of the State 
Medical Society. He is examining sur- 
geon for the Northwestern Mutual Life 
Insurance Company; for the .Ivtna, Equi- 
table, Connecticut Mutual, the National 
Life [iisurance Company of Montpelier, 
Metropolitan of New ^'ork, Mutual Life 
of New York, etc., besides for three or 
four societies. He has been local sur- 
geon for tht; Chicago, Mimieapolis & St. 
Paul Railroad Compan\- for o\er ten 
years. Socially he is a member of the 
R. of P., Pochequettc Lodge, No. 26 (of 
which he is Keeper of Records and Seals), 
and of the ITniform Rank; also a mem- 
ber of the Elks, No. 229, Green Bay. In 
his political associations he is a Repub- 
lican; served as county commissionertwo 
years; as member of the school board also 
two years. Taken all in all, the Doctor 
is a thorough representative of the best 
citizenship of Green Bay. 

ADAM DOHN, a prosperous agri- 
culturist, and one of the most 
highly respected citizens, of De- 
Pere township, Brown county, 
was born February 4, 1835, in Bavaria, 
Germany, son of John G. Dohn, a shoe- 
maker, who had three children, Adam 
being the eldest. 

Our subject attended the common 
schools of his birthplace until he reached 
the age of fourteen years, when he began 



230 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



to assist in the support of the family. 
When he was seventeen years old his 
father died, leaving a home unpaid for, 
and the property was thus lost. In the 
fall of 1852 the widowed mother and her 
three children set out from Germany for 
Havre, France, where they took passage 
on the vessel " Lindy " for the United 
States, landing in New York after a voy- 
age of forty-two days. From there they 
proceeded by rail to Dunkirk, N. Y. , 
thence by boat to Detroit, Mich., by rail 
to Chicago, 111., and from there by boat 
to Milwaukee, Wis. Their destination 
was Waukesha, Wis. , and, their funds hav- 
mg been exhausted by the time the}' 
reached Milwaukee, they walked the re- 
mainder of the way, twenty miles, arriv- 
ing in Waukesha seven days after landing 
in New York City. Mrs. Dohn made her 
home in Waukesha with her brother, Philip 
Eiler, who had loaned them money to 
help pay the e.xpenses of their journey to 
the United States; and Adam, who being 
the eldest was looked to for support, hired 
out as a f^rm hand, receiving sixty dollars 
for his first year's work. He not only as- 
sisted in the support of his mother, but 
also paid back the mone}', one hundred 
and twenty dollars, which they had bor- 
rowed from his uncle, and for the first few 
years his life in the New World was one of 
constant toil and hardship. Of the other 
two children, his brother William received 
a liberal education in the common schools, 
and later engaged in business in Gibson- 
burg, Ohio, first in merchandising, and 
afterward in the lime business; he died in 
Gibsonburg. The sister, Catherine, died 
in Waukesha at the age of thirteen years. 
Mrs. Dohn died in Ohio at the home of 
her son William. 

On May 6, 1858, Adam Dohn was 
married, in Milwaukee, Wis., to Margaret 
Miller, who was born, August 28, 1833, 
in Hesse-Darmstadt, a daughter of John 
and Anna Miller, the former of whom died 
in Germany when his daughter, Margaret, 
was three years old. She set out with 
her mother for the United States in 1853, 



sailing from Bremen on the " Elizabeth," 
and, after a voyage of forty-two days, 
landed in New York, from which city 
they came at once to Milwaukee, Wis., 
the journey occupying one week. After 
his marriage Mr. Dohn purchased four 
acres of land in W^aukesha, taking up his 
residence thereon, and, in addition to 
cultivating his own land, worked at farm- 
ing for others and also at railroading. In 
1870 he removed to Brown county, locat- 
ing on the farm where he has ever since 
resided. Private Claim, No. 40. De Fere 
township, containing eighty acres of highly 
cultivated, productive land. When he 
came here, however, it was still in a 
primitive condition, and he set to work 
at once to clear and improve it, giving 
his attention exclusivelj' to general 
farming and stock-raising. The first 
house Mr. Dohn erected on the place was 
built of logs, and the family lived in it 
until 1 89 1, when the present comfortable 
residence was erected. From a start of 
nothing, and without assistance from any 
one, our subject has accumulated a com- 
fortable competence, and his life furnishes 
an example of what ma\' be accomplished 
by determination and energy and indus- 
trious habits. He has won the esteem of 
his fellow citizens for honesty and ster- 
ling worth, and he and his family are 
highly respected in their community. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Dohn have been born seven 
children, viz. : George, John, William, 
Minnie (Mrs. William Delzer, of Wood- 
ville township, Calumet county;, Anna (of 
Dc Pere), and Maggie and Herbert E., 
both deceased. 

On February 18, 1864, Mr. Dohn en- 
listed, at Milwaukee, in Company D, 
Forty-eighth Wis. \'. I., and was sent to 
St. Louis, Mo., thence to Fort Scott. 
Kans. , on patrol duty, remaining in the 
service until April, 1866, when he re- 
ceived an honorable discharge at Madison, 
\\'is. ; he was mustered out at Fort Leaven- 
worth, Kans. He had served in the In- 
dian campaigns, during which the men 
suffered greatly from exposure and lack 



COMMEMORATIVE BWUUAI'UICAL RECORD. 



231 



of provisions. From Colorado thev 
marched 600 miles over the plains to Fort 
Leavenworth, Kans. , and, for thirty-two 
nights, they had to sleep on the ground, 
although it was covered with snow. For 
300 miles of this long march each com- 
pany had but one load of firewood, and 
the men were allowed to make coffee but 
once a day; on the remaining 300-mile 
march they had no wood at all. Mr. 
Dohn's health was so seriously- impaired 
by the hardships he endured that he has 
never fully recovered. In his political 
affiliations he was originally a Democrat, 
but he is now an advocate of protection 
and a member of the Republican party. 
He has served his township as supervisor, 
and for eight years as member of the 
township board, but his ill-health com- 
pelled him to resign this position. He 
and his wife are members of the Presby- 
terian Church of De Pere. 



FRANK KOZLOWSKY, a worthy 
citizen of New Denmark town- 
ship. Brown county, where he has 
been actively engaged in farming 
for over thirty years, and of which he is 
one of the oldest and most highly honored 
residents, was born March 14, 1834, in 
Bohemia, Austria. His parents. John and 
Anna (Horenej Kozlowsky, the former 
of whom was engaged in farming, had a 
family of three children, namely: Joseph, 
Frank (our subject), and Philip, now a 
resident of CoopersLown, Wis., who is 
married and has seven children. The 
mother died when her son Frank was 
eight years old. 

At the age of twelve Frank Kozlowsky 
commenced to learn the tailor's trade, 
continuing to follow same in his native 
country for si.\ years. When eighteen 
years old he set sail from Bremen, Ger- 
many, and landed in New York after a 
nine-weeks' voyage, thence continuing 
his journey to Chicago, 111., where his 
funds were exhausted, and he had to wait 
for his baggage. He waited in that city 



until his goods came after him, then he 
started for Wisconsin, coming across Af- 
ton to Milwaukee, thence by wagon to 
Port Washington, from which place he 
proceeded on foot to Manitowoc, a dis- 
tance of si.xty-five miles, whence he walked 
to Kossuth township, Manitowoc county, 
where his uncle resided. Here he engaged 
in clearing land for about a year and a 
half, and then invested in a tract of eighty- 
acres in Cooperstown township, in part- 
nership with a Mr. Nejedlo. They erected 
a small shanty and connnenced clearing 
the place, continuing together for about a 
year, when Mr. Nejedlo sold his share, 
our subject becoming sole owner of the 
tract. On January 19, 1856, Mr. Koz- 
lowsky was married to Miss Anna Pivonka, 
and walked afoot, along with two wit- 
nesses, to the justice of the peace, Charles 
Rieter, at Manitowoc, about fourteen 
miles, and back the same day, along a 
good snow road. They lived in the shanty 
four years, when it was supplanted by a 
comfortable log dwelling. Besides at- 
tending to the work of clearing, Mr. Koz- 
lowsky engaged in the manufacture of 
shingles, an occupation that brought him 
a small revenue until the farm afforded 
a comfortable support. All the provisions 
had to be carried by him from Kossuth, on 
his back or in his hands, and on one oc- 
casion, having lost his way, he wandered 
about for several hours before he found 
the path. After living on that farm si.x 
years the\' sold it and come to New Den- 
mark township. Brown county, here buy- 
ing 120 acres, which forms part of the 
present homestead. This was also new 
land, totally unimproved, like all the sur- 
rounding country, and there were no roads 
in the township, only Indian trails, over 
which they brought their supplies from 
De Pere and Green Bay. I'he work of 
clearing was commenced in earnest, and 
besides reducing the first purchase to a 
condition of fertility, he purchased and 
improved forty acres additional. When 
he first started to cultivate his land he 
had no team with which to plow, and all 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



the ground for planting or sowing of grain 
was made ready with a grub hoe. Mr. 
Kozlowsky is a Democrat in politics, and 
has served his township two years assuper- 
visor and four years as clerk of the school 
board. In religious faith he and his 
family are devout members i>f the Catho- 
lic Church, and he donated the land for 
the Catholic Church situated near his resi- 
dence. In 1862 he was drafted into the 
army, and was sent to Madison, whence 
in four days he proceeded to Fond du 
Lac, and then was sent home. Being 
drafted a second time, he \\as sent to 
Green Hay. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Kozlowsky have been 
born eight children, namely : Antone, 
Catherine, .-\nna, Mary, Frank, Joseph, 
Adolph antl Ennna, of wh(jm Frank has 
always resided on the farm; the others re- 
mained at home up to the time of their 
marriage. Mr. Kozlowsky is now retired 
from active farm work, he and his wife 
living with their son Frank, who now 
owns the farm and carries on the agricul- 
tural work, and in 1888, besides attending 
to all his work on the homestead, he 
(Frank, Jr.) cleared five acres. 

On January 31, 1888, Frank Koz- 
lowsky. Jr., was united in marriage with 
Miss Anna Konop, bringing his wife at 
once to the home farm. Their union has 
been blessed with four children, namely : 
Joseph, Mary, Emma and Annie. 



WILL1.\M LARSEN, mayor of 
I'ort Howard, and one of the 
most extensive shipping mer- 
chants and traders of north- 
eastern Wisconsin, was born Ma\' 29, 
1850, in Buffalo. New York. 

His father, OleLarsen, who was a natnc 
of Norway, with his first wife, a son and ! 
four daughters, came to the United States 
in 1844, and first embarked in the groc- 
cery business at Buffalo, remaining there 
imtil 1852, when he came to Wisconsin. 
For a short time he resided in Fort How- 
ard, then removed to Door county, and 



was engaged in farming until his death, 
which occurred when he was sixty-five 
years of age. Before leaving Buffalo his 
first wife had died, and he married, for his 
second. Miss Rachel Weisenberg, also a 
native of Norwa}', who came to the 
United States with her friends when 
about thirty years of age ; she now lives 
at the home of our subject. To this 
marriage were born four children : A 
daughter that died in infancy; William, 
whose name introduces this article ; Otis, 
a merchant of Chicago ; and Henry, who 
is associated with \\'illiam. 

^^'illiam Larsen attended the district 
schools of this State until about fifteen 
years of age, then passed a year at Ap- 
pleton College, after which he entered the 
general store of M. E. Tremble & Co., 
at Suamico, as head clerk, having charge 
of the store and books for the firm. 
This position he held four years, when, 
at the age of twenty, he married Miss 
Sarah Krouse. He at once settled in 
Fort Howard, and, with $700 he had 
saved during his clerking days, engaged in 
the grocer\- business with M. C. Johnson, 
conducting same most prosperously for 
seven jears, when both partners sold out. 
Mr. Larsen then established a general 
shipping business, handling principally 
fruits, produce, hay, etc., and this has 
reached enormous proportions, the vol- 
ume of his trade at present representing 
half a million dollars per annum at a low 
estimate. His pay-roll is in excess of 
three thousand five hundred dollars per 
month, and his payments for produce in 
the season exceed ten thousand dollars 
per month; during the same part of the 
year his transactions in hay are pro- 
digious. Mr. Larsen is also a stock-hold- 
er in and vice-president of McCartney's 
National Bank, and holds a large interest 
in the Columbia Bakery Co., a very ex- 
tensive, popular and prosperous establish- 
ment. Besides attending to his immense 
mercantile and financial interests, he finds 
time to devote to the care of a forty-acre 
garden plat, from which he also derives 





/J/K-^/uv 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



*35 



a considerable profit. Pulilic duties, 
moreover, have claimed and still claim 
much of his time and attention ; for 
three years he was alderman from the 
Second ward of Fort Howard, and he is 
now serving his third term as mayor of 
the cit}'. 

Mrs. Sarah Larsen was born in Suain- 
ico, Brown Co., Wis., and is a daui^hter 
of Ferdinand and Sarah Krouse, who 
had a family of fi\e children. T<> her 
marriaf;e have been born ten children, oi 
whom one died when but a year old ; the 
names of the others are Mabel, Austin, 
Leslie, Fdith, Grace, Charles Sumner, 
Marie, Milton, ami Warren. The eldest 
of these is proficient in music, and is 
still takinj;- lessons at the Auditoriu-n in 
Chicago, while several of the others are 
being educated at the best colleges ot 
Wisconsin. Mr. Larsen and his wife at 
first lived in a rented house, for which 
the\' paid $S (u- $io per month, and con- 
tinued to residi.' there until about |8S8, 
when he completed his present magnifi- 
cent home at a cost of nearly fifteen 
thousand dollars. It is the most mod- 
ern, handsouK- and complete house m 
this section of the c(juntr\', and the fur- 
niture and grouncls are in appropriate har- 
mony with the residence. f-Iis business is 
now one of the most extensive commercial 
enterprises of the entire State, and Green 
Bay, as well as Fort Ho\\ard, is especially 
benefited through its dealings in country 
produce. He is endowed, in a remarkable 
degree, with the characteristics possessed 
by his hardy, brave and ad\-enturous an- 
cestors — traits of character which enabled 
them to secure a more than prominent 
place in the history of the world. These 
"Norsemen" were old-time heroes, whose 
indomitable spirit made them the most 
adventurous navigators of their time, and 
who undoubtedly \iewed the shores of 
the New W^orld at a period long antedating 
its "discovery" by Columbus, the Geno- 
ese mariner. And not only as navigators 
were they supreme, but as warriors in the 
field, also; for, in all western and northern 



I^urope, they came to be known and 
dreaded as redoubtable and fearless 



fighters; 



iter days admired and re- 



spected as an enlightened and Christian 
people. Mr. Larsen may be justly termed 
a representative self-made man, one who 
in his early life received little, if any, 
financial aid. His youth was passed 
with a keen mtelligence, and a healthy, 
robust physique that soon won for him 
recognition and respect at the hands of 
those with whom he was thrown in con- 
tact, thus gradually, but surely, placing 
him in an enviable jKjsition as a citizen 
and business man. He is of a sanguine 
temperament, though cool and deliberate 
e\en when absorbed in the most mo- 
mentous and intricate business proposi- 
tion; in fact, he is possessed of what 
might not improperly be styled a thor- 
oughly judicial cast of mind — a quality 
that has stood liim in good stead, placing 
him in the trout rank of the strong array 
of merchants in his adopted cit\', and 
enabling him to conduct and regulate his 
large and varied business with that per- 
fect order \\hich insures success; also to 
maintain discipline in, and guarantee 
honest service at the hands of, his army 
of employes, either at home or attending 
to his affairs elsewhere. The minutest 
as well as thi.' most e.\tensi\'e details of 
his intricate business are supervised by 
the master mind, and kept in perfect ac- 
cord and imder thorongh control through 
the same potent agency. Tn all his deal- 
ings he is recognized as one of the most 
fair and honorable of merchants, and, as 
a citizen, he is held in such a high degree 
of regard as to be honored with election 
to many positions of honor and trust — 
including the highest in municipal affairs 
— all which he has filled faithfully and 
well, ever giving his best endeavors for 
the benefit of the cit}', and using the 
same sound judgment and shrewd sagacity 
that have so successfully militated in 
building up his own business — now the 
largest of the kind in northern ^^''isconsin. 
No man is more highly honored than 



236 



COMMKMOBATH'E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Mr. Larsen, regardless of politics, re- 
ligion or nationality, his talents as a busi- 
ness man ha\ing won for him the un- 
grudged esteem of his fellow citizens at 
home and abroad, who have ever had 
conmiunication with him, either in person 
or in the channels of trade. He and his 
wife are both members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, and both are active 
in the extension of the good work car- 
ried on by their church, while their 
private works of charity, which are multi- 
tudinous, go without record. 



AUGUST BAUMGART, who for 
more than twenty years has been 
identified with the farming inter- 
ests of Glenmore township. Brown 
county, is a native of the Fatherland, 
born November 28, 1848, son of .\ugust 
Baumgart. 

Our subject received his education in 
his native land, and after leaving school 
commenced work in a brickyard, continu- 
ing in that vocation until about twenty 
years of age, when he came with his par- 
ents to America, and to Brown county. 
Wis. On September 29, 1874, he was 
married, in Green Bay. Wis., to Miss 
Honora Murphy, born in that city May 
19, 1856, daughter of Dennis Murphy, 
who came from Cork, Ireland. After com- 
ing to Brown county August Baumgart 
remained with his parents four years, 
helping them to pay for their farm, and 
one year prior to his marriage purchased, 
on his own account, eighty acres of land 
in Section 14, Glenmore township. A 
few acres had been partially cleared, but 
otherwise there were no improvements 
except an old log shanty, in which he 
made his home until the comfortable 
house now occupied by the family was 
built. To Mr. and Mrs. Baumgart were 
born ten children, as follows: Charles, 
Gertrude, Joseph, Edward, John, and 
Anton, all living, and four that died young. 
By industry and assiduous toil Mr. Baum- 
gart has succeeded in clearing all his land, 



and now has a well-cultivated, impro\ed 
farm, the result of years of energy and 
persevering labor, his wife having assisted 
him greatly in the accumulation of their 
comfortable property. They are respected 
by all who know them as kind-hearted, 
hospitable neighbors, and as members of 
St. Mary's Catholic Church, of which he 
has served as trustee the past three years, 
and he is at present a member of the 
board of education. In politics Mr. Baum- 
gart is a Democrat, and at present he is 
serving as assessor of his township, but 
has refused other offices, as he prefers to 
give his principal attention to his farm. 
In connection with his other agricultural 
interests he has for the past fifteen )ears 
operated a threshing-machine. Mr. Baum- 
gart has always been ready to listen to 
the distressed and unfortunate, and has 
ever been willing to extend pecuniary aid 
and give wise counsel. 



IVl 



ATTHIAS LINSSEN, the pop- 
ular treasurer of Bellevue town- 
ship. Brown county, in which 
incumbency he has served since 
1 89 1, is one of the leading young farmers 
in his township. 

He was born February 19, 1859, in 
Holland, son of Henry Linssen, a car- 
penter, who. in 1 87 1, came with his wife 
and ten children to America, sailing from 
Liverpool, England. They lamled at 
Quebec, Canada, thence coming to Wis- 
consin on May 24. 1871, arriving in Green 
Bay with just seventy dollars to com- 
mence life in their new home. They 
made a temporary location on a farm in 
Bellevue township. Brown county, where 
Mr. Linssen shortly afterward purchased 
and removed to a new farm, and there 
made his home until 1S90, in which year 
he removed to Preble township, where he 
has since resided, highly respected by all 
who know him. After coining to Amer- 
ica he abandoned his trade anil turned his 
attention exclusively to farming. His 
first wife died in Holland, and before 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



237 



coming to the United States he there 
married his present wife; four children 
have been born to them in Wisconsin. 
Matthias Linssen is the second son and 
fourth child born to the first marriage. 

Our subject received the greater part 
of his education in Holland, and when 
eleven years old came with his parents 
to America. He commenced to work 
early in life, being thoroughly instructed 
in the duties of the farm on the home 
place, where he remained until his mar- 
riage. In 1880 he wedded Miss Annie 
Wald, a native of Scott township, Brown 
county, daughter of Michael Wald, at 
which time he had one winter's earnings 
with which to conmience life for himself. 
The first winter they resided with Mrs. 
Linssen's parents, and soon afterward he 
purchased a piece of timber land, which 
he cleared, realizing good returns for his 
labor; subsequently he bought forty acres 
of new land in Bellevue township, which 
he afterward sold, the investment proving 
a good one, and then purchased the place 
in Preble township where he lived until 
1891. In that \'ear he came to the farm 
where his home now is. a beautiful tract 
of eighty-four acres, highly cultivated, 
well improved and systematically con- 
ducted, everything about the place evi- 
dencing the owner's thrift, good manage- 
ment, and prosperity. Mr. Linssen has 
no superior in his township as an agricul- 
turist, and he is a striking example of a 
successful, self-made man. Forsi.x years 
he was employed at the National furnace, 
in De Pere — one year in the stock-house 
and five years in the casting-house, and 
thus obtained capital to start with. In 
addition to his general farming interests 
he has a part ownership in a modern 
threshing outfit. In his political prefer- 
ences Mr. Linssen is a stanch Democrat, 
and in 1891 was, without solicitation, 
elected treasurer of his township, in which 
office he has since served; and, though the 
youngest man who has ever held that 
office in the township, he has given com- 
plete satisfaction to all. In church rela- 



tion he and his wife are members of the 
Holland Catholic Church at Green Bay. 
To them were born eight children, viz. : An- 
nie, Nellie, Mary, Elizabeth, Catharine, Jo- 
seph, and Gertrude, all li\ing; and Michael, 
who died in infanc\ . 



GEORGE HUISENFELDT, one 
of the substantial farmer citizens 
of Rockland township, Brown 
county, is a native of same, born 
October 28, 1856, son of Stephen and 
Wilhelmina (Sultan) Huisenfeldt. 

Stephen Huisenfeldt was born in Hol- 
land, and in 1847 came to the United 
States, landing in New York City. Having 
heard of the superior advantages offered 
to settlers in the great West, he came to 
Green Bay, Brown Co. , Wis., and thence, 
after a short stay, to Bay Settlement, where 
for two years he made his home with his 
brother, Reinhard, after which he came 
to De Pere township, where he was em- 
jiloyed three years on the farm of James 
Boyd, and then for two years following 
rented and worked a farm along the Dixon 
road. Mr. Huisenfeldt was married in 
Green Bay to a Miss Hazacher, who 
passed away eighteen months afterward, 
the mother of one child, who also died. 
He subsequently married Miss Wilhelmina 
Sultan, a native of Holland, and, after 
living on the rented farm a short time, 
they came to the place in Rockland town- 
ship, now owned by our subject, on which 
they passed the remainder of their lives. 
He first purchased forty acres in Section 
10, at $2. 50 per acre, and, after clearing a 
small space erected a 12x14 log shanty, 
in which they lived five years. The task 
of clearing was commenced at once; but, 
owing to the lack of necessary farming 
implements, the work was slow and labo- 
rious, several years of hard labor being ex- 
pended on the place before it yielded any 
return. For seven years after their settle- 
ment they had no team, and either had to 
hire one or exchange work with others. 
When the ground had been cleared and 



23S 



COMMEMOUA TI I 'K BIO GRA PHICA L RECORD. 



prepared for the tirst crop, Mr. Huisen- 
(eldl found himself without money to buy 
seed, and accordinf^ly he exchanged an 
acre of ground for four buslieis of wheat 
seed, thus obtaining a start. In 1870 he 
purchased thirty-six acres more (wliich 
also needed clearing and improving;, the 
home farm now containing seventy-live 
acres of highly cultivated land. Mr. and 
Mrs. Huisenfeldt had four children, as 
follows: Cornelius, who resides in Mar- 
shall. Minn. ;George, subject of this sketch; 
Johanna, who died at the age of eighteen 
years; and one that died in infancy. 
Stephen Huisenfeldt passed from earth 
November 9, 1889, at the age of seventy- 
nine years, and was followed to the grave 
by his wife February 4, 1892. 

Our subject was reared to farm life, in 
early boyhood commencing to assist his 
father in the work on the pioneer farm, 
taking no small share in transforming the 
wilderness intu a pleasant farm. He 
always remained at home assisting his 
parents, and on the death of his father 
the home place came into his possession, 
his mother residing there with him until 
her decease. On April 19, 1889, Mr. 
Huisenfeldt was united in marriage with 
Miss Christine .\lbers, daughter of Cierard 
and Johanna Albers, who emigrated from 
Germany to. \merica in 1882, comingwest 
to De Pere, Wis., where Mr. Albers fol- 
lowed his trade, that of a carpenter. Mr. 
and Mrs. Albers had thirteen children, 
seven of whom are living, viz. : Mary, 
Henry, Johanna, Nellie, Dora, Christine 
and Peter. After their marriage our sub- 
ject and wife came at once to the home 
farm, which he conducts in a systematic 
manner, engaging successfully in general 
farming. Their union has been blessed 
with tw(3 children, namely : .\nna Minnie. 
born.'\pril 17, 1 890, and Stephen C.. born 
May 24. 1 893. Mr. and Mrs. Huisenfeldt are 
members of the Holland Catholic Church 
of De Pere. Politically he is independ- 
ent, and though not an active politician 
has served his township as supervisor, 
discharging the duties of his f)fTice in a 



conscientious, business-like way. He 
stands in the front rank of the progres- 
sive farmers of his section; and commands 
the respect of all who know him for his 
integrity and uprightness. 



P 



AUL BAUMGART. who ranks 

among the industrious, rising 

\oung farmers of his section, is a 

native of the Fatherland, born 

August 9, 1858, in Breslau, Prussia. 

His father, August Baumgart, was a 
farmer and land-owner in Prussia, and for 
several years also engaged in the manu- 
facture of bricks. He and his wife had 
seven children, nainel)': Charles (who died 
in Germany), Joseph, Caroline, August, 
Edward, John and Paul. Deciding to 
bring his family to America, Mr. Baum- 
gart sold his property, and in the spring 
of 1868 they sailed on the "Schiller," 
which vessel was bound for Baltimore, at 
which port they arrived after a stormj' 
pa.ssage of eight weeks and three days. 
They then came west over the Baltimore 
& Ohio railway, via Columbus (Ohio) and 
Chicago (111), and on July 6, same year, 
landed in Green Bay. Wis., locating 
eventually in Bellevue township. Brown 
county, where, shortly after their arrival, 
Mr. Baumgart purchased seventy-two 
acres of new land, all of which was still 
in the woods, not even space enough for 
a house having been cleared. But they 
set to work at once, and soon had a 
dwelling 16x20, near the site of their 
present home. The farm was gradually 
cleared and cultivated, and there Mr. 
Baumgart made his home until 1882, in 
which year he removed to another farm 
in Bellevue township, where he and his 
wife yet reside. They are members of 
the Catholic Chinch, and in politics he is 
a Democrat. 

Paul Baumgart was nine years of age 
when he came with his parents to Wis- 
consin. He had attended school for three 
years in Germany, and the rest of his edu- 
cation was received in the district schools 



COMMEMORATIVE niOGRAPIIICAL RECORD. 



239 



of the period in the \icinity ul his new 
home. He was reared a fanner boy, 
thoroughh' trained to af^ricultnral pursnits 
on the farm he now t)wns and resides on, 
wliicli he has seen transformed from the 
dense forest to a fertile tract. On April 
17, 1S83, he was married, at Francis 
Creek, Manitowoc Co., Wis., to Miss 
Lizzie Anntholtz, a natixe of that county, 
born May 31, 1861, (fau;;hter of Henry 
Auntholtz, who came to Wisconsin from 
Prussia in an early day. The young couple 
immediately settled on their present farm, 
and in 1888 Mr. Baumgart erected the 
substantial, comfortable dwelling where 
they now make their home. They have 
had children as follows; Nettie, Theresa, 
Sylvester, Paul, Peter and William, all 
living. Our subject is a self-made man, 
and by hard work and thrift has acquireti 
the comfortable property he now owns; 
the farm is an excellent one, and he con- 
ducts a profitable general farming busi- 
ness, in which he can not fail to prosper. 
Politically he is a Democrat, and though 
not an office-seeker, he has served his 
township as road master. The family are 
all members of St. Francis Catholic 
Church, De Pere. 



H 



ERRMAN EHLE, one of the 

early pioneers of Brown county, 

was born in the village of Bari- 

gau, Schwarzburg- Rudolstadt, 

(iermany, lanuary 6, 1830. 

His father, Nicholas Ehle, a farmer, 
died in that country al)out 1853, and his 
mother, who afterward came to Brown 
county, Wis., died about 1878. Of their 
seven children, four came to Brown coun- 
ty; Herrman in 1855; August in 1856 (he 
was a blacksmith by trade and removed 
to Texas, dying at Houston in 1861 or 
1862); Caroline in 1857 (she was the wife 
wife of Gottfried Undehaun, and died at 
Green Bay about 1888); Henrietta in 
1857 (she married Theodore Mahn, and 
now resides at Green Bay, her children 
were seven in number, as follows; Albert, 



who was accidently killed \\hile on a 
hunting trip; Lena, wife of Herman Kajjp, 
of Green Bay; William, a tailor, residing 
at Green Bay, who is marrietl to Mamme 
\'andenhubel; Mary, wife of Conrad Beth. 
also of Green Bay; Theodore, a tailor, of 
P^ort Howard; Anna, \\ifc of iM'ank Miller, 
of Green Bay, and Herman Mahiij. 

Herrman Ehle, the subject proper of 
this sketch, was reared and educated in 
Germany, and was engaged in farming 
previous to coming to the Umted 
States. Aftei- locating at I'ort Howard, 
on August \2. 1855, he learned the car- 
penter's trade, and followed that \(ication 
many j-ears. On arriving at Wisconsin 
he first located at Mcl\ane. near Milwau- 
kee, remaining theie ten weeks before 
coming t(.i h'ort Howaid. He was en- 
gaged in building in Fort Howard, and for 
live years was connected with Mr. C. 
Schwarz in contracting ;uul building, con- 
timiing in the same business for himself a 
long period following. He erected a large 
number of residences in Fort Howard and 
Green Bay, building the first brick resi- 
dence in the city of Green Bay in 1866; 
in 1870 he erected a brick building in Fort 
Howard, and another in I 871. He is the 
owner of thirteen dwellings in the Fifth 
ward of Fort Howard, five of the mnn- 
l)er being c< instructed of brick, and it will 
be seen that Mr. Ehle has done much 
personally toward building up and im- 
proving the city. He has, in addition, 
been prominently connected with affairs 
generally incident to the development of 
Brown county, and is recognized as a 
substantial citizen and representative bus- 
iness man, with progressive ideas and 
vigorous methods. Politically he is a 
Republican, and has served for twelve 
years as alderman from the Fifth ward of 
Fort Howard. Industrious and careful, 
he has in the nearly forty years of his 
residence here been fortunate in l)usiness, 
and has a record and a reputation justly 
the source of pride. He has never mar- 
ried. Mr. Ehle was reared under the 
influence of the Lutheran Church, and has 



240 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



always been considered one of the most 
straightforward business men and upright 
citizens of Fort Howard. 



BARTHOLOMEW DOOLAN, a 
tlirifty and wealthy young farmer, 
of Morrison township, Brown 
count}', is a native of Massachu- 
setts, born September 7, 1846. 

John and Julia (Noonan) Doolan, his 
parents, natives of Ireland, were the 
parents of five children, namely: Mary, 
Michael, Bartholomew. Ellen, and John. 
The father was a farmer, and, with his 
wife and his eldest (then his only) child, 
came to the United States in 1832, land- 
ing at New York after having passed seven 
long weeks on the ocean. From New- 
York the family went to New England, 
and lived there for a period of eleven 
years, principally in Rhode Island, also 
residing for a few years in Massachusetts. 
In 1849 ]ohu and his family reached Wis- 
consin, and settled in Franklin township, 
Manitowoc county, where he bought 304 
acres of land in its primitive condition, 
from which he. in due course of time, 
hewed out a farm that was the pride of 
the township. Their first dwelling was a 
log cabin, 16x24 feet in size, in which 
they lived twelve years, after which they 
erected a comfortable frame dwelling. 
The first schoolhouse was erected after 
the family had been in the township five 
years, and in this Bartholomew received 
his education. The father died May 1 1;, 
1877, the mother in 1882, and the re- 
mains of both were interred in Franklin. 
Bartholomew Doolan did good and 
faithful service in assisting his father in 
clearing up and tilling the home farm un- 
til he was twenty-one years of age, with 
the exception of a short time passed in 
working in the woods. Employing his 
time thereafter on his own account until 
he had reached the age of twenty-five, he 
married, September 19, 1871, Miss Sarah 
Watt, a daughter of Thomas and Sarah 
(O'Conncll) Watt, natives of Ireland who 



came to America in 1845, and after their 
marriage here settled in Maple Grove, 
Manitowoc county, Wis., and reared six 
children — Anna, Sarah, Michael. Thomas, 
Mary, and John. After his marriage Bar- 
tholomew and his wife came to Morrison 
township, Brown county, and here Mr. 
Doolan bought eight}' acres of wild land, 
on which they erected their present home, 
with Indians, wolves, bear and deer for 
their companions and neighbors. Here 
was begun that life of toil and hardship 
developed only in pioneer life, but which 
resulted in after years in the possession of 
all the comforts and conveniences of civili- 
zation. The eighty-acre tract was in- 
creased to a farm of 200 acres, and the 
old log house, which is still standing, was 
their habitation fully twelve years, but 
their present residence, erected about 
1884, is a modern frame, with every de- 
sirable convenience and comfort. But the 
acquirement of all this has required toil, 
economy, and the willing efforts of man 
and wife and the cheerful aid of the elder 
children. The children, eleven in num- 
ber, were born in the following order: 
John, July 4, 1872: Thomas. July 27, 1874; 
Marv, October 4, 1876; Agnes J., Janu- 
ary "21. 1879; Sarah E., May 28, 1881; 
Helen A., May 14, 1883; Frances B., 
September 11, 1884; Catherine G., No- 
vember 17, 18S5; Margaret, March 19, 
1888; Lucy.L., Noveml)er 17, 1890; and 
Theresa, October 3, 1892. Of these. 
Frances B. died September 15. 1884; the 
others are all living at home, with the ex- 
ception of Thomas, who is attending a 
business college at Manitowoc. The 
family are all strict members of the 
Catholic Church, with the exception, of 
course, of the younger members, who 
have been baptized in that faith. Mr. 
Doolan has served as trustee of his Church, 
and, as a Democrat, is serving as school 
clerk of his township, but he takes no 
special interest in politics. 

Mr. Doolan and his famil\ rank among 
the best and most respectable citizens of 
Morrison township, and it is such as he, 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOGllAPUICAL RECORD. 



241 



with strong inuscles, willing disposition, 
industrious habits and law-abidinj; princi- 
ples, that have made the township and 
county what they are. 



FERDINAND SMET, one of the 
highly respected citizens of De- 
Pere township. Brown count}', 
where he owns a well-improved 
farm, is a native of Belgium, born Jan- 
uary 12, 1832. His father, Albert Bene- 
dictus Smet, was a life-long farmer, in 
comfortable circumstances, owning a good 
farm, and he passed his entire life in his 
native country. He had a family of seven 
children — four sons and three daughters — 
of whom Ferdinand is the eldest. 

Ferdinand Sniet attended the schools 
of his birthplace until he was thirteen 
years old, and then commenced to work 
on the home farm, where he remained 
over thirty years. They lived but a short 
distance from Antwerp. He was married 
in Belgium to Constance Boart, and they 
had tiiree children born to them there, 
viz. : Ozarine, now Mrs. August Johnson, 
of De Pere township; Emma, Mrs. John 
\'an Vedron, of Rockland township; and 
Martin, of Washington. About 1868 Mr. 
Smet disposed of his business and prop- 
erty, he being a merchant and store- 
keeper, and set out with his family for 
the United States, where he thought to 
find better opportunities for his family. 
He journeyed from Antwerp to Hull, 
England, thence to Liverpool, from 
which port he sailed for New York on 
the "Colorado," making the voyage 
in twelve days. Their destination was 
Green Bay, Wis. , whither they traveled 
by rail, arriving si.x days later, on Satur- 
day, and spent the first night with John 
Martin. A few days afterward Ferdinand 
Smet secured work in the hub factory at 
De Pere, and here he continued to work 
for two and a half years, until, in 1872, 
he purchased his present farm in De Pere 
township. It then consisted of forty acres 
of new land, upon which stood only a log 



house and a small barn, and all but ten 
or twelve acres was in the woods. He 
had saved enough to pay for the land, 
but was obliged to go into debt for the 
farm implements, etc., which he ni'eded 
to clear and cultivate the place. How- 
ever, he set to work with a determination 
to make a comfortable home for himself 
and family, and after much hard work 
they succeeded in reducing the land to a 
culti\'ated condition. He now owns a 
good farm of eighty acres, the accumula- 
tion of which had involved no small 
amount of hard work. But he has been 
greatly assisted by his family, and they 
have cleared and imjiroved the place un- 
til it is now a fertile, well-equipped tract, 
with a good residence and outbuildings, 
and all free from debt. In this country Mr. 
and Mrs. Smet had children as follows; 
Louis, now a farmer of De Pere town- 
ship; Mar)', .'\lice, and Henry J. at home. 
and Edward, who died in infancy. On 
.•\pril II, 1877, the mother died, since 
which time the daughters have had charge 
of the household work. The entire family 
are highly respected for their industry 
and sterling worth, and Mr. Smet is 
exerywhere known as an honest, upright 
citizen. In politics he is a Democrat, but 
takes little active interest in jiarty affairs. 
Religiously he is a member of St. Mary's 
Catholic Church, De Pere. 



ALPHONSE MARIA KERSTEN, 
M. D., of De Pere, l^rown coun- 
ty' is of Cerman origin, and was 
born in 1848, at Rees-on-the- 
Rhine, in Rhenish Prussia, the oldest of 
five brothers, one of whom, the Very 
Rev. Norbert U. Kersten was, for many 
years, Vicar-General of Bishop F. X. 
Katzer. of Green Bay, and Chancellor of 
that diocese, and its administrator when 
Bishop Katzer was promoted to the .Arch- 
bishopric of Milwaukee. 

His parents, Edward and Anna (Rutjes) 
Kersten, were residents of the city of Rees- 
on-the-Rhine, in Rhenish Prussia, where 



242 



COMMEMORATIVK DIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



the father was a dry-goods merchant, dying 
there January 31, 1S91, and where the 
mother still li\es. The Doctor was edu- 
cated, classically, at the Jesuit collej^^e at 
Feldkirch, in the Province of \'orarlberg, 
Austria; the college of Gaesdonk, in 
Khenish Prussia; and the Gymnasium of 
Muenster, in Westphalia. Coming to 
America in 1868, he conducted a drug 
store in several Wisconsin cities up tothi 
year 1879. He then attended two courses 
of lectures at the Medical Department of 
the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 
and then became a student at the Detroit 
Medical College, from which he graduated 
in 1883. He then began practice at 
Petoskey, Mich., whence he removed to 
De Pere, Wis., in 188^, and has here been 
in active practice ever since, being recog- 
nized as one of the most skillful physicians 
of northeastern Wisconsin. On first 
coming to the United States, the Doctor 
located at Fredonia. Ozaukee Co., Wis., 
where he operated a drug store, in part- 
nership with a physician; in 1S78 he 
moved to Kaukauna, built a new store, 
and from there moved to Ann Arbor, 
Mich., for the purpose of pursuing his 
medical studies, as above narrated. In 
politics the Doctor is a Democrat, and. 
while a resident of Ozaukee county, tilled 
various minor offices; in 1887 he was ap- 
pointed, under President Cleveland, as 
pension examiner, and was re-appointed 
under President Harrison, but resigned 
after one month under the latter appoint- 
ment. In 1891 he was appointed, by 
Governor Peck, State Superintendent of 
Inspectors of Illuminating Oils for Wis- 
consin, was re-appointed in 1892, and 
again on April i . i S94. antl is still serving 
in that office. 

The marriage of the Doctor took place 
in 1871, at Barton, Washington Co., 
Wis., to Miss Mary V'andeboom, a native 
of the city of Calcar, Rhenish Prussia, 
and this felicitious union has been blessed 
with nine children, named as follows: 
Annie M., Clara M., Edward M., Norbert 
M.. Sylvan M.. Theresa M., Leo M., 



Paul Ernest M. and Hugo Henry Louis 
M., all living at home in De Pere. The 
Doctor is a member of the Catholic 
Knights of Wisconsin, and vice-president 
of the local branch of that order. He has 
achieved a fine professional reputation, and 
his social standing is a most enviable one. 

BISHOP SblBASTIAX GEHHARD 
MESSMER was born August 29, 
1S47, at Goldach, Canton of St. 
Gall, Switzerland. The ancestors 
of Bishop Messiner were Swiss Catholics, 
and resided in Thai, Canton of St. Gall, 
Switzerland. At the time of the Refor- 
mation one branch of the family became 
adherents of the Protestant faith. Grand- 
father Messmer also resided in the above 
place. His son, Sebastian G. Messmer, 
Sr. . moved to Goldach, and there resided 
till his death in 1873, when he was aged 
sixty-si.\ years. He was a man of con- 
siderable wealth and education, and a 
farmer by occupation. He held offices in 
the Canton, by representing his district in 
the (General .Assembly, and in the Catholic 
Administrative Council, and was a useful 
and conscientious legislator. He was 
greatly belo\ed in his town, and was a man 
of influence and importance there, making 
himself useful and beloved among his 
friends and fellow citizens. He was a 
strong character, noted for his rugged 
independence and honorable social and 
business career. A stanch Catholic, he 
was active in church work, and was presi- 
dent of the town council and of the board 
of church trustees for many years. The 
great-grandmother of our subject, on the 
father's side, was a Miss Kalb, an Aus- 
trian from Bregenz. The mother of 
Bishop Messmer was Rosa Baumgartner, 
a native of Moerschwyl. Canton of St. 
Gall. Switzerland. She died in the prime 
of life, highly esteemed for her many good 
qualities of head and heart. 

Bishop Messmer is the eldest in a 
family of six children. He received his 
primar}' education in the common schools 



COMMEMOUA TIVK DWGliAl'IIICAL llECOliD. 



-45 



of his nati\e town, and then attended 
the Hij^h School (or Real School) in 
Rorschach, on Lake Constance, for three 
years, or till 1861. There he first met 
Otto Zardetti, his life-Ion^ friend, who 
later became Bishop of St. Clcmd, Minn. 
Following the clerical xocation, lie en- 
tered the diocesan College of St. George's, 
near St. Gall, where he became known 
for his de\'otion and clnse application to 
his studies, and obeilience to his superiors. 
At that school he remained till 1866, and 
then entered the University of Innsbruck, 
in the Tyrol, in Austria, where he studied 
philosophy and theology, remaining there 
fi\'e vears. Those were years of hard 
work, yet full of pleasant recollections. 
On July 23, I 87 I, he was ordained to the 
priesthood for the American mission. 
He remained at home onl\' a short time, 
and came to America, landing in New 
York October 4, I 87 I. Previous to this 
he had applied for and received an ap- 
pointment b\' Bishop Bailey, of Newark, 
N. J,, as professor of theology at the 
Seton Hall College, South Orange, N. 
J., whicii is also a diocesan seminary. 
There he remained till August, 1889, dur- 
ing which time he made himself general- 
ly beloved by the thoughtful and kindly 
interest he manifested to all with whom 
he came in contact. .\s teacher, chap- 
lain and Iriend, he bound man\' hearts to 
liim, and le<l them into a brighter thought 
world and chjser communion with the 
Creator, the Savior and the Church. 
During those eighteen years he also did a 
great deal of pastoral work in St. Peter's 
Church, Newark, N. J., which is a Ger- 
man congregation with the largest paro- 
chial school in the diocese, containing at 
present fifteen hundred children. It was 
in this church, that, at his own request, 
he was consecrated by Bishop Zardetti, 
March 27, 1892, because he was so well 
known and beloved there, and because of 
the many pleasant recollections which 
clustered around St. Peter's. While act- 
ing at the college as professor, he had 
also charge of St. Mary's Orphan Asjluni 

14 



as chai)lain, besides doing a great deal of 
pastoral work. He also had charge of 
St. Leo's congregation, at Irvington, N. 
J., for two years. 

Ha\ing been called m 1889 to the 
chair of Canon Law in the Uni\'ersit\' of 
Washington, D. C. , he went to Rome tt) 
prepare more fnlh fur the special work 
assigned to him. As Canon Law had 
been one of his classes when professor at 
Seton Hall, he now devoted himself to 
the study of the olil Roman civil law, aii<l 
graduated with the degree of D. C. L. 
(Doct(jr of Canon Lawj, at the CoUegio 
Apollinare. In September, 1890, he en- 
tered ujion his duties at the university, 
where he taught with great credit to him- 
self till he came to Green Bay, Wis. 
While at Seton Hall he was selected as 
one of eight theologians to prepare the 
matter or decrees for the Baltimore Plen- 
ary Council in 1884. He was also one 
of the Secretaries of the Council at its 
sessions, and afterward with Dr. O'Con- 
nell, now rector of the American College 
at Rome. Bishop Messmer prepared for 
publication the proceedings of that fam- 
ous Council, which work was published 
ill 1886, and is a model of scholarship. 
After the publication of the l)Ook he re- 
ceived the title of Doct<_)r of Divinity 
from the Pope, which was remarkable 
when we consider the rarity of such be- 
stowal. Bishop Messmer has written a 
few works of merit, displaying both 
scholarship and talent as a practical 
writer on topics concerning his noble pro- 
fession. He was assistant secretary of 
the Provincial council of New York in 
1883, and wrote a little work in Latin 
called "Praxis Synodalis," which was 
later used at the Council of Baltimore. 
In 1 886 he edited for the American 
clergy, an English translation of a Ger- 
man work, entitled " Caminical Procedure 
in Criminal Cases of Clerics, " which is 
still an authority in clerical law. He has 
also written articles for a German monthly 
clerical paper published at St. Louis, Mo., 
called "The Pastoral Blatt," and for the 



h6 



COMMEMOIiA TIVE BloGIiAl'lllCAl. liKCORD. 



"American Ecclesiastical Review," of 
Philadelphia. 

Bishop Mcssmer was appointed Bishop 
of Green Bay, December 14, 1891, but 
did not arrive here till April 7, 1892. 
Here a wide and useful, but also hard 
field of labor awaited him, which for the 
time seemed to check his literarj' efforts. 
But the strong mind that brouf^ht order 
out of the manifold accumulations of a 
great literary council has already made 
him fully acquainted with wc^rk in the 
Diocese of Green Bay. Here his influ- 
ence, always for good, is felt in every 
nook and corner. The respect which he 
inspired on his arrival has not abated, 
but is increased as time goes on. To 
the talents of a pastor and bishop is added 
the learning of a scholar and literateur, 
which (united with rare business tact and 
ability to govern) has made him already 
a conspicuous figure in the Church and 
State, and has gained him the confidence, 
good will and love of all classes, denomi- 
nations and nationalities. 



JOHN L. LAMARRE (deceased), who. 
in his lifetime, was one of the most 
intelligent and prosperous agricul- 
turists of Preble township. Brown 
county, was a native of Belgium, born 
August 4, 1822. 

He was a lifelong farmer, having been 
reared to the plough from early life, his 
education at the same time not being 
neglected; and. as his parents were well- 
to-do, the}' were able to give him some 
assistance when he first commenced farm- 
ing for his own account. In I^elgium he 
owned about five acres of land, which was 
then considered quite a comfortable little 
farm, and by careful cultivation he had 
good average returns from it. He was 
married in his native place to Miss Vir- 
ginia Merrick, who was born in Belgium 
in 1832, and children as follows blessed 
their union: Joseph E., Victor, Alphonse 
and Mary, all of Belgian birth, and all 
yet living. In 1871, the sons growing up 



around the little home, Mr. Lamarre de- 
cided to emigrate with his family to 
America, where he knew there was room 
for all, with plent\- to spare; and on April 
I, that year, they took passage on a ves- 
sel bound for New York, the father having 
previously sold all his propert}', goods and 
chattels, which brought him a consider- 
able sum. From New York they at once 
traveled westward to Wisconsin, and in 
Green Bay township, Brown county, Mr. 
Lamarre purchased some land, on which 
the family resided until 1884. when tiiey 
removed to Preble township, settling on 
160 acres of land bought by Mr. La- 
marre. having sold his place in Green Bay 
township. Here he passed the rest of his 
life, dying April 18, 1885, his remains be- 
ing interred in Shantytown cemetery. 

A Democrat from the time of his be- 
coming an American citizen, he always 
\-oted that ticket, but was in no sense a 
politician, attending sedulously to his bus- 
iness on the farm. He was a quiet, unas- 
suming man, very domestic in his habits, 
one who strictly minded his own business, 
and he was respected by all. Having 
died somewhat suddenly he left no will, 
and no provision having been made for 
the disposal of the property, his widow 
and children have since conducted the 
farm conjointly. Mrs. Lamarre. though 
now si.xty-three \ears old. is remarkably 
acti\e. and performs her share of work at 
the homesteail more like a woman of half 
her age. The sons are a trio of indus- 
trious, hard-working young men, whose 
equal, it is said, is not to be found in any 
one family in the township for progres- 
siveness and enterprise, worthy sons of 
worthy parents. In April. 1893, they 
purchased the Cedar Creek Flouring Mills 
from George B. Hess and H. A. Walter, 
and. by the latter jiart of 1894. expect to 
have the concern in full operation. The 
home place, now comprising 1 20 acres of 
well-improved land, is well managed, re- 
flecting great credit on the family, and on 
the sons in particular, for their industry 
and energy. 



COMMKMOnATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL liECOItD. 



^47 



JOHN LEBAL, who for the past 
qiiartor of acenturyhas been a well- 
known fanniT of Glenmore town- 
ship, Hrown county, is a native of 
l-)oheniia, born April 28, 1837, son of 
Wencel Lebal, who was a farmer in com- 
fortable circumstances. 

Wencel Lebal had four children, viz. ; 
Wencel, who is a farmer of Cilenmore 
township; [ohn, whose name introduces 
these lines; Joseph, of Allouez townshij*; 
and Mary, Mrs. Wencel Vilda, of Ne- 
braska. In the fall of 1852 this family 
left their native land, and crossing from 
Hamburg; to Hull, Mnf;land, journeyed by 
rail to Liverpool, where they took pas- 
sage for New York, landing after a voy- 
age of four weeks and three days. They 
pushed westward at once to Milwaukee, 
W'is. ; thence, after a halt of three days, 
coming to Kossuth township, Manitowoc 
count}-, where a friend from their town in 
Bohemia was living, and they remained 
with him three weeks. In the same fall 
they came to Cooperstown, same county, 
taking up 160 acres of government land 
in Section 28, for w Inch they paid seventy- 
five cents per acre, and which at that 
time was heavily timl)ered and entirely 
unimproved. A rude shanty was erecteil 
on the place, in which the family lived 
for ten years, and. before the land \'ielded 
a support, thost! able to work earned a 
small income making shingles by hand, 
selling tlu'ut in Manitowoc, some eighteen 
miles distant. The mother died on this 
farm, and was laid to rest in Kossuth 
townshiii; the father subsequently passed 
from earth in .Mlouez township, Brown 
county, at the home of his son Josejih, 
and he was buried in Green Bay ceme- 
tery. I'loth were members of the Reform 
Church. 

John Lebal recei\ed a fair education 
in the conunon schools of his native land, 
and was reared from boyhood to agricul- 
tural life. He came to the United States 
with his parents, and remained with them 
in Manitowoc county until his enlistment, 
August 21, 1862, in Company F, Twenty- 



si.xth Ivegimeiit, Wis. \'. 1. The com- 
mand was sent to Miluaid<ec, thence, 
after being drilled, to Washington. Their 
first engagement was a Frederickslnirg, 
following which came the battles of Chan- 
cellors\ille and (jettysburg, where, on the 
aflcrnooii of JuK' 1, i8()3, oiu' suliject 
was woLUided in the rii^ht knee by ;i 
imisket-f)all. He was lirst taki'U to the 
field hospital, and thence conveyed to 
Baltimore, where he lay twenty-one days, 
afterwhieh he was removed lotlie general 
hospital at Washin;;ton, and here re- 
mained until early in |annar\, 1864. 
Joining the \'eteran Resi'rve ("orps at 
Alexandria. Va., he remaiiu'd tlu're some 
time, and then returiie(l to Washington, 
doing guarii duty about that eit_\'. He 
was next transferred to Svraiuse, N. Y., 
and thence to Elmira, same State, where 
he received an honorable discharge July 
13, 1865, having served continuously 
since his enlistment without furlough, and 
he saved two hundred dollars while in the 
st-rvice. Returning to his old home in 
Wisconsin, he ctjntinued to work lor his 
parents three years, recei\'ing a piece of 
land in Cooperstown township for his 
services. 

In the fall of 1869 Mr. Lt'bal married, 
in Cooperstown township. Miss Rosa 
Rudolf, a native of Bohemia, who died 
one year later, and was buried in Coop- 
erstown. About 1 87 1 he was married, 
in Kossuth townshi]), for his second wife, 
to Miss Eliza Krieneek, a native of Bohe- 
mia, to which marriage came six children, 
of whom a son and two daughters died 
young; Emma, Annie and Joseph are liv- 
ing at home. The mother of these passed 
from earth April 3, 1881, and was buried 
;it b'rancis Creek, Manitowoc county. In 
January, 1882, Mr. Lebal weilded in Gib- 
son township, Manitowoc comity, for his 
third spouse. Miss Mary Holub, a native 
of Carlton, Kewaunee Co., Wis., and 
this imion has been blessed with children 
as follows : Wencel, Christina, Edward, 
Helen and Jolm, living, and Etlward (i), 
who died yoimg. The mother of these 



348 



COMMKMOltAriVE BIOGIiAPiriCAL BECORD. 



was called Irotn earth May 17, 1894, and 
is buried in the Lutheran j^raveyard at 
Glenmore. 

About the year iS6(j Mr. Lcbal came 
to Glenmore township, and in Section 20 
purchased forty acres of new land, on 
which the timber was still stantiinfj. He 
erected a dwelling on the place, at once set 
about the work of clearing, and, after 
j-ears of labor, found liiniself possessed 
of a fertile farm. From time to time he 
has added to the original tract, and owns 
200 acres in Glenmore and Rockland 
townships. He has been the architect of 
his own fortune, for he started in life a 
poor bo\\ and he has won the respect of 
all who know him for his industrx' and 
integrity. In political affiliation he is a 
Republican, but not active in party 
affairs, and in religious connection he and 
his family are members of the Protestant 
Church, 9t Francis Creek, in Kossuth 
township. Manitowoc county. 

JOHN MICHELSON. of Pittsfield 
township, Brown county, was born 
August 28, 1S38, in Denmark, and 
is one of a famih" of nine children 
born to Michel Peterson and his wife, 
Carrie Peterson. The father was a cabi- 
net maker, and with liim our subject re- 
mained until fifteen years old. He then 
worked out as a day laborer for one year, 
for sixteen dollars; then as a coachman 
four years, at sixty-five dollars per year. 
In June, 1862, he entered the army and 
served three years; in 1S65 he sailed for 
America, landing in New York, whence 
he came directly to Wisconsin. For three 
months he worked on a farm near Racine, 
thence going to Manistee, Mich., where 
he worked three weeks in a sawmill, and 
tiien worked in the woods for twenty-six 
dollars per month during the winter. Re- 
turning to the mill in the spring, he in the 
fall went into the woods again, at thirty- 
five dollars per month, and remained 
about eighteen months. 

On )anuar\' 8, 1869, he married Mar\ 



Nelson, one of a family ot elc\ en children 
born to Nels and Keirsten (Fredericks) 
Anderson. Mrs. Michelson was twenty- 
four jears of age when she came to Amer- 
ica. After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Michel- 
son remained five months in Manistee, 
and then remo\ed to Fort Howard, Brown 
Co., Wis., lived there a year and a half, 
and then settled in Pittsfield township, 
where Mr. Michelson bought a forty-acre 
farm, of which about twelve acres were 
cleared, and on which stood the house in 
which they now live. To this farm have 
been added twenty-three acres, all cleared, 
and in good condition. To the marriage 
of Mr. and Mrs. Michelson have been born 
seven children, in the following order: 
Constance, November 8, 1869; Nellie, 
August 3, 1 871; Lena, July 12, 1873; 
Frederick, August 7, 1875; Mcta, April 
7, 1877; Alvin, July 15, 1879, and .\ndy, 
September 20, 1882. All the children 
are living, and five still make their home 
with their parents. Lena, who attended 
college at I3attle Creek, Mich., has been 
a teacher since sixteen years of age, and 
is still in the profession. In religious con- 
nection the family are Seventh-Day Ad- 
ventists. and in politics Mr. Michelson is 
a Re])ublican. He is a self-made man in 
the full sense of the term, and well de- 
serves the high esteem in which he is held 
bv his fellow citizens. 



ELBRIDGE G. BOVDEN, a pros- 
perous merchant and agriculturist 
of Mills Center, Brown county, is 
a native of the State of W'iscon- 
sin, born December 2, 1853, in Manito- 
woc county. 

His father, Charles Boydcn, was one 
of fi\e children born to Amos and Abigail 
(Wood) Boydcn, at Orange, Mass. Amos 
was a mill-man, and died in his native 
State at the age of seventy, preceded to 
the grave by his wife, who only reached 
middle age. Charles Boyden passed his 
early years in his father's mill, later made 
a wiialing voyage, and afterward became 



COMMEMORA Tl VK BIO (lit A PIIICA L RECORD. 



249 



a boatman on the Erie canal, wlu-ic he 
met his future wife, Au<;usta Dunham, 
whom lie married |une 15, 1X50. She 
was horn |ul\ 4, 1S25, in W'mdsoi" iduii- 
ty, Vt., a daughter of WiUiam and Sarah 
(Metcalfj Dunham. Botli the paternal 
and maternal grandfathers ol .\li-. I-)oy<len 
were heroes in the war of the KeMilution, 
and did valiant ser\ice. Charles j-loyden 
was born November 14, 1804, came to 
Wisconsin in May, 1852, via the lakes to | 
Detroit, Mich., h\ railroad to C'hii'ago, j 
111., and thence b\' lake to .Manitowoc 
county, where he was employed loi" some 
years in manufacturing shingK's m tin- 
old-fashioned way. He died in luown 
ccninty when nearly eighty-six years of age. 

Elbridge G. I->oyden is one ol a l.imily 
of eight children, si.\ ol whom are still 
living, for the most part engaged m busi- 
ness. He remainetl with his fathei^ until 
his marriage, April 29, 1875, to Miss 
Henrietta Hollom, a native ot Sebrc, 
Piscataquis Co., Maine, born l''eliruary 
14, 1S51, and a daughter of C'harles !'". 
and Dorothea .\. (Judkinsi Hollom. 
Charles F. Hollom was born in .S;-bec, 
Maine, in 1815, a son ol (.'harles and 
Lydia (Crockett) Hollom, the toniier ol 
whom was a native of SwimIcii, tin- latter 
of New England. Charles I'", •■roimded 
the Horn" in 1853, and died in Cali- 
fornia at the age of sixt}-oiK'. Mrs. 
Henrietta Boyden's mother, Dorothea 
A. (Judkins), was born November 22, 
18 18, in Fayette, Kennebec Co., Maine, 
a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Bache- 
lor) Judkins, the latter a native of I'ay- 
ette, Maine, the former of Scotland; they 
both died in Bangor, Maine, the lather at 
the advanced age of ninety-five, the 
mother at the comparatively early age of 
thirty-seven. 

Mrs. Elbridge G. Boyden at the age 
of fourteen began teaching school in 
Berwick, Maine, and for two years was 
very successful in that vocation. She 
then entered the composing room of the 
Portland Transcript, held cases six weeks, 
and went thence to Biddeford, Maine, 



where she held rases in the PiiUi>n-/tt 
office a Near and ;i hall, thence going to 
Boston, .Mass.. wlu-rr ■^lu■ set ty]>e 111 a 
book otiice lor o\er eighteen months. Re- 
turning to Bi(ld<'ford she wurked in the 
/<i//r//ir/ itfficc oil lliitli'i's ■• Bible Com- 
nu'utaries, " thence to Cleat b'alls, N. H., 
and \\'orke(l as ,1 compositor in the /ii//r//i!/ 
oflice a few months; then taught school in 
ISerwick a ye;ir, altiT which she came 
alone to Wisconsin, ;uid, settling where 
she now li\es, taught si llool one ye;ir. In 
till- following \ear she was married to Mr. 
BoNdeii. and the\ lia\e had li\e children, 
iKiinely: Nettie Aimeiia, born l''ebiuar\' 
11, 1876: Grace F. , born ,\ii,!_;ust 21, 
1877; Allen L. , born September 7. 1S81; 
|esse, born l'"ebruar\ 12, 1884; and one 
son that died .it the age ol nineteen 
months. 

.\fter his marriage Mr. BoNilen settled 
in Mill Center, working in the woods, 
making staves, etc., for about fi\e and a 
half years, when he opened a general 
store, of which Ins wife has since had full 
I barge. He also owns one hundred acres 
of good land, from winch he reaps a fair 
income. His hist dwelling here was a 
log structure, and he now occupies a com- 
hirtable brick dwelling erected b\- him at 
a cost of h\e thousand dollars. The total 
caj)ital of Mr. aii<l .Mrs. ]^o\cien was, on 
starting, two hundred tlollars, which, 
through their united energies, they have so 
increased that they can ( laini rank with 
the most wealthy residents of the county. 
In politics Mr. Boyden is a Republican, 
and cast his first Presidential vote for U. S. 
Grant, when a candidate for the second 
term. 



NIELS ERICKSON is a native of 
Denmark, born May 8, 1833, son 
of lirik and Lettie (Andersen) 
Peters(jn, who reared a family of 
children as follows: Rasmus, Niels, Peter, 
Anna, Christian, Hans, and Lena. 

Niels was obliged to commence assist- 
ing his parents at an early age, and ac- 



COMMKMOliATlVK BIOGRAPHICAL UECORD. 



cordinj^ly had little opportunity to obtain 
an education. He was employed princi- 
pally by the farmers in the neijjhborhood 
of his home, turning his wages over to 
his parents until he reached his majoritj', 
after which he commenced to save, in 
order to get a start in life. In 1859 he 
was united in marriage with Caroline 
Christison, daughter of Christ and Martha 
(Johnson) Oleson, all natives of Denmark, 
and to this union were born five children 
in Denmark, namely: Laura C, Chris- 
tian, Christ, Emil and Martha. Nine 
years after his marriage, in 1S68, Mr. 
Erickson set out with his family for 
America, and, after landing in New York, 
immediately proceeded westward to Brown 
county, Wis., and took up his residence 
in New Denmark township. He worked 
in a sawmill for about one month, and 
was then engaged for a few weeks peeling 
hemlock bark, after which he entered the 
employ of Casper Hansen, for whom he 
worked about two years. At the expira- 
tion of that time he invested in eighty 
acres of land in New Denmark township, 
which at that time was all in the woods, 
and was still inhabited by wild animals. A 
log house was erected on the place, in which 
the family lived for several }ears, and the 
work of transforming the wilderness into 
a fertile farm was commenced, a task in 
which he met with well-deserved success, 
as his present beautiful farm well shows. 
Their trading had to be done at Manito- 
woc or Green Bay, and, as they had no 
team, the journey had to be made on foot. 
Some years later other eighty acres, ad- 
joining the original tract, was purchased, 
making the fine farm of 160 acres now 
owned by our subject, which has been 
highly imprt)ved and carefully cultivated. 
Four children were here born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Erickson, viz. : Peter, Hans, Lettie, 
and Edith, two of whom, Peter and Edith, 
are still at home. Politically Mr. Erick- 
son is a stanch Republican. At the age 
of seventeen Peter Erickson commenced 
to work on the railroad, and continued in 
that vocation some years, becoming a 



section foreman; but he abandoned rail- 
roading several years ago in order to assist 
in taking charge of the affairs of the home 
farm. He was a stanch member of the 
Democratic party until recently, when he 
changed his views, and is now supporting 
the principles of the Republicans. 



TERRENCE DORAN, an energetic 
citizen of Pittsfield township. 
Brown county, was born in Belle- 
ville, Canada, November 20, 1838, 
and is the second in the family of seven 
children of Patrick A. and Ann (Hickey) 
Doran, the other six being named as fol- 
low's: Mary, James, John, Hugh, Matilda 
and Rose. 

Our subject was but a 3ear and a half 
old when the family moved to New York 
State, where Terrence received his edu- 
cation. In 1855 he came west, stopping 
for a time at Chicago, thence proceeding 
to Dubuque, Iowa, in order to view the 
country, returning to Chicago shortly 
afterward. His eldest sister and her hus- 
band, Michael Kirbey, who had been his 
companions as far west as Chicago, con- 
tinued their journey to Wisconsin, and 
landed at Suamico, Brown county. On 
returning from Dubuque to Chicago Mr. 
Doran took passage, via the lake, for 
Green Bay, whence he, also, came to 
Suamico. After working here about fifteen 
months, making shingle-bolts, etc., he 
made a trip to Dunkirk, N. Y. , remained 
six weeks, and then returned to Suamico, 
Wis., and bought forty acres of land, 
where now stands Tremble Station. In 
the meantime his father and mother had 
come to Wisconsin, and on this farm they 
found a welcome until their decease. Mr. 
Doran, however, only made his home 
there until October 31, 1861, when he 
married Margaret Page, daughter of David 
and Margaret (Pruc) Page. He then came 
to Pittsfiehl township, which has since 
been his home. He has speculated largely 
here in real estate, and for twenty-five 
winters ran a lumber camp; at one time 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOGUAPUICAL RECORD. 



2^1 



he owned 460 acres, ami now has 220 
acres of good land, well improved. 

Mr. and Mrs. Uoran have two chil- 
dren: Mary Ann, at home with her parents, 
and Andrew, married and living near by. 
The family are Catholic in their religious 
faith, and in politics Mr. Doran is a Dem- 
ocrat. In his Church he is treasurer of 
the building committee; he has served as 
supervisor of his township twelve years, 
and was school clerk fourteen years. He 
has also served three terms as justice of 
the peace, and no citizen in Pittstield 
township is more highly respected. 



FERDINAND WITTIG, a pros- 
]ierous general merchant of New- 
Denmark township. Brown coun- 
ty, was born October 20, 1851, in 
Denmark, son of Henry C. and Maren 
(Peterson) Wittig, the former of whom 
was a farmer, and also followed his trade, 
that of cooper, to some extent. His 
family consisted of seven children, name- 
ly: Henry C, Mary, Peter F. , Ferdinand, 
Anna, Jacobine, and Jacob. 

Ferdinand Wittig received a good 
common-school education in his native 
land, and lived with his parents until he 
reached his majority, at which time he 
decided to emigrate to and try his fortune 
in America. Proceeding to Liverpool, 
England, he embarked from that port in 
an American-bound vessel and landed in 
New York after a voyage of thirteen days, 
immediately continuing his journey west- 
ward to Wisconsin, his destination being 
in New Denmark township. Brown coun- 
ty, where his aunt, Mrs. Hans Olsen, was 
living. He reached New Denmark by 
way of Green Bay, and commenced work- 
ing on his aunt's farm, remaining there, 
however, but six months, at the end of 
which time he migrated to Negaunee, 
Mich., where he remained two months. 
From there he went to Marquette, Mich., 
thence to Minneapolis, Minn. , whence, 
after a sojourn of two months, he re- 
turned to New Denmark, and here con- 



tinued a year. He next worked six 
months in the lumber regions of Manis- 
tee, Mich., and then again returned to 
New Denmark township, where he has 
ever since resided. 

On June 28, 1877, Mr. Wittig was 
united in marriage with Mrs. Catherine 
(Buckman) Lange, a widow, daughter of 
Ahrend S. and Henrietta (Bartels) Buck- 
man, residents of New Denmark town- 
ship. She was born June 28, 1844, in 
Germany, and came to America with her 
parents, remaining at home until her mar- 
riage. May 17, 1862, with August Lange. 
At the time of his marriage Mr. Lange 
owned eight}- acres of wild land (on which 
there were about four acres cleared), 
whereon they moved, living in a one- 
room log house until a more comfortable 
dwelling could be built. They were hard- 
working and industrious, and by their 
united efforts succeeded in clearing and 
improving their tract, converting it from 
a wilderness to a productive farm. Their 
marriage was blessed with five children, 
\\z. : Herman, Ahrend, Bernard, Henri- 
etta, and Frederick, all of whom are liv- 
ing but Ahrend. Mr. Lange was called 
from earth Septeniber 14, 1872, and his 
widow continued to manage the affairs of 
the place alone for five years, or until her 
marriage to Mr. Wittig. Altera residence 
of five years on the farm Mr. Wittig 
erected his present store in New Denmark 
township, and embarked in the general 
mercantile and saloon business, in which 
he has since been successfully engaged, 
doing a thriving trade; from time to time, 
owing to the demands of his increasing 
business, he has been obliged to enlarge 
the stock, and now carries a large assort- 
ment of general merchandise. In politics 
he is a Republican, but, though interested 
in the success of his party, takes no act- 
ive part in political affairs, his business re- 
ceiving his undivided attention. In re- 
ligious faith he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Lutheran Church. To their 
union have been born three children: 
Henry, Martha and Diederich. 



i=12 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Ri:V. CLEMENT LAU, pastor of 
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Con- 
t^regation, Groen Bay, is a native 
of (iertnany, born November i8, 
1840, in the Province of Westphaha, of 
which locality his ancestry were all resi- 
dents as far back as can be traced, all 
bearing an honorable reputation, their 
life vocation, for the most part, being that 
of farming. 

He is a son of Bernard H. and Anna 
Maria (Ross) Lau, who, shortly after the 
birth of our subject, removed to the city 
of Rheine, in the same Province, where 
he attended the city schools, later the 
gymnasium, which latter institution he 
entered at the age of eleven years. Here 
he studied diligently till 1859, in which 
year he commenced a course of study at 
the gymnasium of Muenster, where he 
passed his final examination, and having 
decided to prepare himself for the priest- 
hood, in September, 1861, entered the 
university in the same city, studying there 
about twelve months. In the following 
\'ear he proceeded to Austria, and in the 
Priest Seminary at Linz (Upper Austria) 
studied theology, after which, in June, 
1863, he was ordained a sub-deacon. On 
June 13, 1865, he was ordained a priest, 
by the Right Rev. Bishop Francis Joseph 
Rudigier, after which he .served in the 
priesthood in three different Austrian 
towns. Meanwhile, in 1877, he visited 
Rome on the occasion of the Pope's jubi- 
lee (Pius IX). In August, 1878, he came 
to the United States, and on the 12th day 
of the same month was received by Bishop 
Krautbaucr in the diocese of Green Bay, 
Wis. His first appointment was to the 
church at Clark's Mills, Manitowoc coun- 
ty, where he labored diligently for four- 
teen months in a mixed congregation. 
Next he was appointefl, by the Bishop, 
rector of St. Mary's Church in Greenville, 
Outagamie county, the congregation of 
which was German, and here he built a 
school and Si.stcrs' house; at the same 
time he had charge of St. Patrick's (Irish) 
Congregation at Stephensville. 



In March, 1887, he was called by 
Bishop Katzer to Green Bay to take 
charge of the St. Francis Xavier Cathe- 
dral Congregation, where he has remained 
to the present day. He has labored faith- 
fully and well, and has done much toward 
building up the Cathedral congregation, 
especialh' the school in connection, which 
he made free himself. In September, 
1892, he opened a high school under the 
charge of the school Sisters of Notre 
Dame, and now the Cathedral congrega- 
tion possesses a school with eight classes 
instead of four classes before his adminis- 
tration. No one will know the sacrifices 
it recpiired to put them on this footing, 
which was the means of making the pros- 
perity of the congregation. In Januar)', 
1 890. at a cost of six thousand dollars, he 
built the priest's residence, which was 
completed in October. 1890. He has 
been a very useful pastor, and will long 
be remembered for his kindly counsel and 
advice, given always with a smile that 
meant more than mere words. 



CHRISTOPH GOLDSMITH, a 
tlirifty. enterprising farmer of 
New Denmark township. Brown 
countv. was born June 26. 1826, 
in the village of \'ollhousen. Prussia. Ger- 
many. He is a son of Christoph and 
Augusta Goldsmith, also natives of Ger- 
many, the former of whom was a gar- 
dener, a vocation he followed successfully 
in his native land for many years. He 
had a family of four children: Augusta, 
Christian, Charles and Christoph. 

Our subject remained at home until 
he was fifteen years of age. when he 
commenced to learn the blacksmith trade, 
at which he served an apprenticeship of 
two years, subsequently following it while 
he lived in Germany. In September, 
1854, he proceeded to Liverpool, and 
embarked at that port on a vessel bound 
for America, the voyage occupying six 
weeks. Landing at New York, he thence 
went to Albany, where he worked at his 





.^ 




COMMEMOUA TIVE BIOGIiAPUICAL RECORD. 



-55 



trade some time, afterward going to Sault 
Ste. Marie, Mich., where he remained 
one winter, and then removing to Apple- 
ton, Wis., lived there a year and a half. 
At the end of this time he came tf) New 
Denmark township. Brown county, and 
here purchased forty acres of wild land, 
on which he erected a log house near his 
present comfortable dwelling, and com- 
menced clearing the place, from which 
not a tree had been cut, nor was there 
any road at the time he moved here, 
thougli one was opened about a year 
later. .\11 the supplies had to be brougiit 
from Green Ba}-, and, as he had no ti-am, 
he had to carry them home himself. Two 
years after his remo\al to this iarin Mr. 
Goldsmith was married, July 19, il^57, 
in New Denmark, to .Nfiss Mar\' Ann 
Nocker, daughter of Frank and Jacobine 
(Seager) Nocker, who had a family of 
three children, a brief record of whom is 
as follows: Mary Ann (Mrs. Goldsmith) 
was born November 27, 1839, in Nassau, 
Germany ; August was born in Nassau, 
Germany, and resides at Mishicot, Wis., 
is married and has eight children ; Frank 
is a resident of Franklin, Wis., is mar- 
ried and has five children. In 1S53 Mr. 
and Mrs. Nocker emigrated to America, 
landing in New York after a voyage of 
sixty-three days from Liverpool, and ])ro- 
ceeding westward immediately Ui Me- 
nomonee Falls, Wis., where they lived 
three years, thence remo\ing to Franklin, 
where Mr. Nocker purchased 160 acres of 
timber land, on which he passed the re- 
mainder of his days. After his death his 
widow remoN'ed to Mishicot, Wis. , and 
resided there until her death. The old 
homestead, at Franklin, is now nwned by 
the son, Frank. 

Mrs. Goldsmith has aided her hus- 
band nobly in the accumulation of his 
property, his farm now comprising ninety 
acres of highly-improved land. As he 
was the only blacksmith in the town for 
twenty years he was a very bu.sy man, 
and, in order to carry on the farm suc- 
cessfully at the same time, Mrs. Gold- 



smith looked after it, besides attending to 
her household duties. To their union 
have been born six children, viz. ; Frank 
and August, who died in infancy; Frank 
(2), deceased; Carl G., who remains at 
home with his parents ; and Catherine A. 
and Susie, who also live at home. In 
religious faith Mr. Goldsmith is a member 
of the Lutheran Church, and Mrs. Gold- 
smith and the rhihlreu are members of 
the Catholic Church. In 1865 Mr. Gold- 
smith enlisted in the army, and served 
six months in Company C, Klexenth Wis. 
\ . I., six weeks of which term were spent 
in the hospital. He received an honor- 
able discharge toward the close of the 
struggle on account ni (lisaliilit\', and is 
now receiving a pension of $22 per month 
from the government for disalulity caused 
by exposure during his service. 



ALBERT VERBOORT, one of the 
most affluent farmers and land- 
owners of Lawrence t(j\\iiship, 
Brown county, was l^orn March 
I, 1839, in Uden, Province of North 
Brabant, Holland, son of |olui and Maria 
Verboort. 

In 1S48 the parents of our subject 
c-ame to the United States with their fam- 
il_\', sailing from Rotterdam on the 
"Libera," and landing at Boston, Mass., 
after a voyage of fifty-two days. At 
this time there were four children in the 
family, namely: John, now a resident of 
Washington county. Ore. ; William, who 
became a priest, and dit'<l in Washington 
county, Ore., at the town of Verboort's 
(named after him), where he had estab- 
lished a church (he was a well-known 
]iricst in his time; for several years he 
lived in Brown county. Wis., where he 
established five churches — one in Morri- 
son township; St. Francis Church at De- 
Pere; St. Mary's, De Pere; St. Patrick's, 
Fort Howard, and St. Willibrord's, Green 
Bay); Mary, residing at Verboort's, Ore., 
and Albert, whose name opens this sketch. 
From Massachusetts the family came by 



3S,6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



rail and water to Green Bay, Wis. , later 
removing to Little Chute, Outagamie 
county, and thence to Holland township, 
Brown county. They were almost desti- 
tute, and, having lost all their baggage, 
had practically nothing with which to be- 
gin life in the New World. They also 
had much difficulty in securing a home, 
and tried various localities, moving about 
from place to place along F"o.\ river; at 
one time they even had a house partly 
built, when it was found necessary to 
abandon it. They endured many hard- 
ships, and once they had nothing to eat 
but wheat bran. But, after reverses that 
would have discouraged almost any one, 
their prospects began to brighten, and in 
1854 they purchased 1 13 acres of land in 
Lawrence township, the place on which 
our subject now resides. The father and 
two sons commenced threshing by hand, 
receiving for their laborious work one- 
eighth of the grain, which was hauled on 
a hand-sled to market and traded for 
flour. The family resided on the farm 
from 1855 to 1875, and then removed to 
Portland, Ore., where the parents and 
son William died in 1876, the father on 
July 6, the mother June 23, and William 
July 14. They were devout Catholics, 
and were buried in the cemetery at Ver- 
boort, where, as before stated, William 
had established a Catholic congregation, 
which, at the time of his death, was in a 
flourishing condition. With the death of 
this priest the Catholic Church lost one 
of its most earnest workers, and too much 
praise can not be given him for his zeal 
and untiring industry. 

Albert Verboort attended school but a 
short time in his native country, and only 
one month in the United States; but his 
natural ability has asserted itself in spite 
of his lackof early educational advantages. 
He has an inherent genius for mechanical 
work, and learned readily the blacksmith's 
and wagon-maker's trades, at which he 
worked when about fifteen years of age. 
In the fall of 1863 he was united in mar- 
riage, in Brown county, by Rev. Father 



Spierings, with Miss Anna Johnson, who 
was born Xovember 13, 1826, in Holland, 
near the birthplace of her husband. She 
was a daughter of Jacob and Mary John- 
son, and came to the United States in 
1850 \\ith her mother and two brothers 
— Frank and Theodore. They sailed from 
Antwerp, and, after an ocean voyage of 
thirty days, landed at New York, proceed- 
ing thence via Buffalo, N. Y. , to Green 
Bay, Wis. After marriage Mr. \'erboort 
located on his present farm, remaining 
thereon until 1875, when he went to 
Oregon, and there resided three years, 
after which he returned to Brown county. 
Wis., and for a time lived on land along 
Ashwaubenon creek. He then made 
another trip to Oregon; returned again to 
Brown county, and after a brief sojourn 
here once more removed to the Pacific 
coast, where he made his home until 1892, 
when he came back to Brown county, 
taking up his residence on his present 
farm. 

There is probably no citizen in Brown 
county, in the ordinary walk of life, who 
has traveled so extensively, he having 
gone over sixty thousand miles since 1876. 
He has been most successful in his agri- 
cultural work, and to-day is one of the 
wealthiest landowners in Lawrence town- 
ship, having won success by his own 
efforts. In his political preferences he is 
a Democrat, though not strictly partisan, 
and he has never aspired to office. The 
entire family are members of the Catholic 
Church. Mr. and Mrs. Verboort have 
had children as follows: John and Will- 
iam, both living; Dora, who died when 
twelve years of age; and others that died 
in infancy. 



AKVE ARVESON. Among the 
progressive, highly-esteemed agri- 
culturists of New Denmark town- 
ship, Brown county, this gentle- 
man occupies a prominent place. He is 
a native of Norway, born February 22, 
1835, son of Christian (who was a miner 



COMilEMOUA ri VK ISKK! RAPIIICAL RECORD. 



■57 



in Norway) and Ingeberg" (Johnsonj Arve- 
son, who reared a family of five .children, 
as follows; Arve four subjectj, Mary, 
John, Martha and Nils. 

At the early age of fourteen years Arve 
Arveson commenced to work in the mines, 
his wages being about twelve cents a day, 
and continued in this labor until he reached 
the age of eighteen years, when the fam- 
ily immigrated to America. They landed 
in the city of Quebec, Canada, thence 
journeyed to Green Bay, Wis. , where 
they arrived on the old steamer "Michi- 
gan, " and thence to New Denmark town- 
ship. Brown county, where Mr. Arveson 
bought eighty acres of totally unimproved 
land. Mr. Gotfredson, another early 
settler, who owned an ox-team, assisted 
them to bring their household goods to 
their home in the woods, but they had to 
be carried some distance, as there was no 
road for the team. There were only a 
few yoke of oxen in the township at this 
time, and the Arvesons lived here three 
years before they were able to buy a team 
for themselves. For the first two years 
they lived in a i6x i6 log house, the first 
dwelling erected by a white man on the 
place, which stood in the midst of the 
forest, and then removed to another tract 
of eighty acres just northeast of this first 
home, where the parents passed the re- 
mainder of their lives, both living to the 
advanced age of eightv-two years. 

Our subject was, as above related, 
eighteen years old when he came with his 
parents to Wisconsin, and, being the eld- 
est, much of the farm work devolved upon 
him. On March 28, ICS58, he was united 
in marriage with Miss Mariane Anderson, 
daughter of Anders and Bertha (Ras- 
mussen) Christensen, and, our subject 
having purchased his present farm from 
his father, the young couple immediately 
took up their residence here, living in the 
old log house during the first five years, 
when it was supplanted by a comfortable, 
modern residence. Their marriage has 
been blessed with seven children, a brief 
record of whom is as follows: Alfred C. 



died of consumption at the age of twent_\- 
fi\'e (he was in Golorado when first taken 
ill, but came home about two months be- 
fore his death); Emma, Mrs. Christensen, 
is living in Iowa; Millie, Mrs. Hans(jn, is a 
resident of New Denmark; John remains 
at home with his parents; Rosa, Mrs. 
Nelson, is living in Oconto; Christ is at 
home; Arthur is a school-teacher in 
Antigo, W'is. Mr. Arveson is strictly a 
self-made man; recei\ing in his youth but 
meager educational advantages, he has, 
by his own efforts, actpiired a practical 
education in the broad school of expe- 
rience, and commencing life in the New 
World with no capital sa\e health and 
energy, he has accumulated a comfortable 
property, having a highly-improved farm 
of 160 acres in New Denmark to\Nnship. 
He is greatly respected by all \\h() knov\- 
him, and has been elected to fill x'arious 
positions of trust in his township, which 
he served two years as chairman, three 
years as treasurer, and also as assessor, to 
the complete satisfaction of his fellow cit- 
izens. In his political preferences he is 
a stanch member of the Republican party. 
He and his wife are, in religious faith, act- 
ive members of the Lutheran Church, in 
which he has served as deacon, and at 
present holds the office of trustee. 

In I 862 Mr. Arveson was drafted into 
the Union army, and provided a substitute; 
but in 1865 he enlisted in Company F, 
Fiftieth Wis. V. I., and served about a 
year, principally in Dakota, among the 
Indians. He received an honorable dis- 
charge at Madison, Wis., in June, 1866, 
and immediately returned to his home. 



PHILIP M. WIRTH. The life of 
a literary man seldom exhibits any 
of those striking incidents that 
seize upon public feeling and fix 
attention upon himself. His character is, 
for the most part, made up of the aggre- 
gate of the qualities and qualifications he 
may possess, as these may be elicited by 
the exercise of tl>e duties of his vocation 



i-,1. 



COMME.VOliA TIVK BIOdHM'IIICAI. ItECOHD. 



or the particular profession to which he 
may belonj;; and in this, possibly, the 
subject of this sketch presents not alto- 
gether an exception to the general rule. 
Mr. W'irth was born in Bavaria, Ger- 
many, April 25, 1823, the third son in 
the family of scN^en children— six sons and 
one daughter — of Michael J. and Theresa 
(Rauscher) Wirth. Tlu' father was a 
school-teacher in Germany, having quali- 
fied for that profession by a college edu- 
cation; and, as a natural conse<iuence, the 
sons received excellent scholastic training. 
Our subject, up to the age of ten years, at- 
tended the public schools of the neighbor- 
hood of his place of birth, then for a 
couple of _\ears received tuition under a 
private tutor, after which he entered the 
Royal C}ymnasium at Muennerstadt, stud\- 
ing at that institution of learning si.x years. 
For a year after leaving college ^fr. 
^^'irth traveled through Germany and 
Austria for pleasure and recreation, view- 
ing in his journey many scenes not easily 
to be effaced from his memory. In Ger- 
many it is the custom for youths of all 
classes to learn a trade, and our subject 
was no exception, for on his return home 
he apprenticed himself to a carpenter, 
serving two years, at the end of which 
time he answered to his call to enter the 
army, but on account of physical de- 
ficiencv he was rejected. Turning his eyes, 
now. in the direction of the Western 
World, with all its grand advantages to 
the man "who is willing to toil, and 
where the poorest may gather the fruits 
of the soil." he resolved to make it 
the battleground of his future life in 
his struggle with the world. Accord- 
ingly, on April i. 1846. he took pas- 
sage at C'uxhafen. the seaport of Ham- 
burg, on the good ship "Perseverance" 
(a suggestive title for the young emigrant). 
bound for (Juebec. and after a passage of 
fifty-eight days landed at that quaint old 
Canadian city. His destinaton, however, 
was Wisconsin, whither his brother 
George C., had previously emigrated; so 
from Quebec our subject proceeded to 



Buffalo, N. Y. , where he boarded the 
steamer "Oregon" for Milwaukee, from 
which latter port he journeyed to Green 
Bay, arriving July 11, 1846. Here he 
unfortunate!}' was siezed with typhoid 
fever, but, on the other hand — •'/''or tuna 
favct fortibiis " — he fortunateh' had the 
home and care of his brother for the 
two months he was ill and convalescent. 
The first dollar he earned in the United 
States was for work he did for Albert 
Weise, who was putting up his first dwell- 
ing on Walnut street, and for a month he 
followed his trade. Preferring, however, 
the life of a farmer to that of a trades- 
man, he hired out to Daniel H. Whitney, 
of Stockbridge, Calumet county, for ten 
dollars per month, remaining with him 
till 1849, ofttimes. no doubt, when turn- 
ing the sods with the plough repeating to 
himself lines from the Gcorgics of Virgil, 
or the l-5ucolics of Theocritus, or Xeno- 
phon and Homer. From that time for- 
ward he followed his trade as a house 
and ship carpenter till October 4, 1864, 
when he was drafted into the Union army. 
He was assigned to Company E, Twenty- 
second Wis. V. I., and served as orderly 
sergeant and clerk to Col. Chapman, 
whose head(]uarters were at Camp I'iandall. 
On May 17. 1865, he was honorably dis- 
charged and returned home to Green 
Bay. where he resumed his trade. 

The time had now come for him to 
buv land, and in I^ecember. 1865, he 
purchased fifty acres in Private Claim 
No. 43. Bellevue township. Brown coun- 
ty, heavilv timbered and without any im- 
provements, paying for same one thous- 
and dollars. On this tract stood a quan- 
tity of oak timber, and some of the heavi- 
est trees of that kind ever cut in the 
neighborhood of Green Ba)' were felled on 
this farm. By assiduous laf)or Mr. Wirth 
cleared the land, converting the primeval 
forest into a luxurious vegetable or truck 
farm, all the improvements being made 
by his tnvn hand, and under his personal 
supervision. His time, ever since com- 
mencing in this line, has been devoted ex- 



COMMEMOUA riVK BIOGllAPinCAL UECORD. 



-59 



clusivel}' to tlie farm, varied ocrasionally 
by some small job at carpentry lor the 
first two years. On Februar}' 2, 1849, 
Mr. Wirth was married in Green Bay to 
Miss Odelia Schauer, who was horn Sep- 
tember 8, 1824. in Bavaria, a daughter of 
Henry Schauer, whose family (he being' 
deceased) emigrated in 1 84O from the 
Fatherland to the United States, arri\ing 
in Green Bay, Wis., September 8, 1846. 
After marriage Mr. Wirth continued farm- 
ing in Calumet count)- until July, 1849, 
and then came to Green Ba\', as already 
related. For his first residence in the 
town he built a house on Madison street, 
which he traded later, and then erected 
tlie present commodious family residence 
on Walnut street, now owned by Leon 
Findeisen. 1 he children born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Wirth were as follows : George 
W., a marine engineer; Odelia, Mrs. 
William Dexhue, of Preble township; 
Martha, Mrs. John Heidorf, of Manito- 
woc, \N'is. ; Philip and Jacob (twins), the 
former of whom is a marine engineer, the 
latter an artesian well-borer; Mary, Mrs. 
Leonard Verdigen, of Bellevue; Frances, 
Mrs. Mathias Anheuser, of Fort Howard; 
Michael, a farmer of Bellevue; Theresa, 
who died when nine months old. Our 
subject and wife are members <_)f the 
Catholic Church. A Republican, though 
at one time a Democrat, his first Presi- 
dential vote was cast for Lincoln, and he 
has done yeoman service in political mat- 
ters : For nine 3''ears he served as clerk 
of Bellevue township; was chairman of 
the council one yeai', and member of the 
school board five years. He was enu- 
merator of the Tenth United States Cen- 
sus; in 1883-4 served in the Legislature, 
first biennial sessions; and in all his pub- 
lic trusts he has given ample satisfaction 
to his constituents, reflecting the utmost 
credit to himself for his capacity and 
faithfulness. He still finds time for an 
occasional stroll in the fields of literature, 
for, with Greek, Latin, historical, scien- 
tific and other useful books at his com- 
mand, he has always with him a substan- 



tial world, both pure and good, round 
which, "witli tendrils strong as flesh and 
blood, our pastime and our happiness 
\\\\\ jjrow. " 



JEKE.MIAH BKIiNXAN, one of the 
old pioneers of Morrison township, 
iJrown county, is a native of freland, 
born in 1834, a son of Jeremiah and 
Margaret (Fole_\') Brennan, who were the 
parents of si.x children, viz.: Kate, Mi- 
chael, John, Patrick, |ereiniah, and Mary, 
feremiah Iiremian, the father I'l the 
family, was the first of its nicmliers to 
come to this countr\ . In i S40 he reached 
Glenmore, Brown Co , Wis., where he 
entered I r)0 acres; and about iS42he re- 
turned to the East in order to bring his 
ianiily out West. I-\)r several years the 
fi-ther was employed in a grocery in Chic- 
opee, Mass., while our subject worked in 
a cotton factor}-. In 1854 tin.' family 
were prepared to come west and settle oil 
their farm, but the father was taken sick 
and died. The mother, lunvever, with 
her sons, left Springfield, Mass., some 
little time after the sad event, and ar- 
rived in Glenmore before tiie expiration 
of the year. From De Pere they carried 
their effects on their backs to the farm, 
with nothing but an Indian trail to guide 
them; but once on the land there were no 
idle or unwilling hands, and soon a small 
clearing was made and a small shanty of 
scoops, 12x16 feet, erected for their shel- 
ter, the mother doing her full share of the 
Work. \\'ild animals, which were numer- 
ous and ravenous, killed the oxen in the 
woods, while the bears would carry off 
the hogs before the eyes of the hard-work- 
ing settlers; and the Indians, although 
called civilized, would enter the dwelling 
in the absence of the inmates and carry 
off the provisions — a serious and heavy 
loss under the circumstances. But the 
hardy pioneers struggled on through the 
innumerable vicissitudes and struggles r)f 
life in the wilderness, and eventuall\- tri- 
umphed over all difficulties — even over 



26o 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGRAI'llICAL RECORD. 



the vicious, pernicious, and poisonous 
mosquitoes, which, though small in them- 
selves, were no small factor as an annoy- 
ance and an irritant to the new settlers. 
The good old mother was spared to see 
the homestead fully developed, and died 
in 1878, at the advanced age of eighty- 
five years, honored and venerated by all 
who knew her. Her mortal remains rest 
in the Morrison Catholic burying ground. 
In 1859, at the age of twenty-tive, 
Jeremiah Brennan was married to Claren- 
cy, daughter of Michael and Catherine 
Quinn, old settlers of Morrison township, 
having come here about the year 1855. 
They bought 480 acres of land, and, like all 
other pioneers, endured the hardships of 
life in the wilderness. They were the 
parents of three children, named Clarency, 
John S. and Michael, .\ftcr his marrige 
Mr. Brennan settled on his farm of 160 
acres, which he had previously purchased, 
and on which he had erected a house 
built of timber hewn by his own hands, at 
that time considered the best house in the 
township. In 1 862 Capt. Harrison and 
Mr. Brennan organized the first company 
in Brown county for service in the Union 
army during the Civil war, the comjiany 
consisting of si.\ty men; but Mr. Brennan 
resigned his commission, and Harrison, 
going to the front, was killed in the first 
action in which his regiment was engaged, 
and was succeeded by Mr. Lawton, of De- 
Pere. On March 28, 1863, Mr. Brennan, 
with eleven others, started from De Pere 
across the plains to Idaho, with sixteen 
yoke of oxen and wagons, and arri\ed at 
their destination August 14. They found 
wild Indians, a wild country, and they also 
found gold. Mr. Brennan returned to 
Wisconsin in 1867 and resumed farming. 
His first wife survived about twelve \ears 
after marriage, and died July 2, 1872, the 
mother of three children, Mary, Jeremiah, 
and Michael. In 1873 Mr. Brennan took 
for his second wife Ellen Pool, daughter 
of Hugh and Mary (Mehegan) Pool, who 
were the parents of eight children, 
vi/. : Kate, John, Thomas. Mary, El- 



len, Michael, William and Hannah. The 
father was one of the pioneers of Cedar- 
burg, having settled there in 1836; he 
now resides in Milwaukee with a daughter, 
and is nearly one hundred years of age. 

Mr. and Mrs. Brennan lived in the old 
log house about fourteen years, when it 
was replaced by the magnificent dwelling 
in which they now reside. The farm com- 
prises I 20 acres of good land, and is highly 
improved, the whole being the reward of 
Mr. Bremian's industry, aided by his 
children and their good mother. Mr. 
Breiman is a strong advocate of public 
schools, three of the children being now 
teachers. The nine children born to Mr. 
and Mrs. Brennan were as follows: Will- 
iam; Nellie, who is a school-teacher; 
Anna; John, deceased; George, whose 
death was caused by playing base-ball; 
Kate. Grace and Celia; Michael, teaching 
in District No. 6. The parents are mem- 
bers of the Catholic Church, in which 
Mr. Brennan is much interested, having 
erected the first parsonage built in the 
town. Politically he is a Democrat, and 
has served as town supervisor and in sev- 
eral other offices, but prefers the quietude 
of his private life, which has been alto- 
gether upright and industrious, and such 
as to win for him the respect of all who 
know him. 



M 



A K r I N \' A \ D E W V N - 

G A A R I). .Among the repre- 
sentative self-made agricultur- 
ists of Belle\ue townshiji. Brown 
county, none commands greater respect 
than this gentleman. He is a native of 
Holland, born August 30. 1821, son of 
Anton \'an De Wyngaard, who was a 
farmer and miller, and had eight children 
— four sons and four daughters — of whom 
Martin is the youngest son. 

Our subject received his education in 
the common schools of his birthplace, 
con)mencing when about sixteen years of 
age to learn the milling trade under his 
father. In i8;i he sailed from Hotter- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



dam on the •'Mozambique," and. after a 
voyage of forty-tive days, landed in New 
York, whence, during the same year, he 
came westward bj' way cif Cleveland, 
Ohio, to Green Bay, Wis. Here he re- 
mained but a few inonths. and then re- 
turned to Cleveland, where he secured 
employment at shingle-cutting, being will- 
ing to do anything to earn an honest dol- 
Tar. While in Cleveland he was taken 
sick, and was sent into the country, in 
the vicinity of Newburg, to recover, after 
which he returned to his native land, as 
he had learned that his father was very 
ill. He was thirty days crossing the 
ocean, during which passage, on August 
15. he dreamed he was attending his 
father's funeral, and. strange to say, he 
founil, on his arrival home that his father 
had died and the funeral had taken place 
that day. After spending five or six 
months in Holland, our subject again 
came to America, this time sailing from 
Liverpool on a Black Star liner, and land- 
ing in New York after a very stormy pas- 
sage, the vessel arriving in port with one- 
half of her mainmast standing, while the 
other masts were gone altogether. Mr. 
Van De Wyngaard again came to Cuya- 
hoga county, Ohio, and in 1854 was there 
married to Miss Catherine Ingersoll. a 
native of same, who was born August 13, 
1 82 I, daughter of Levi and Derdamia In- 
gersoll, New England people, who were 
early pioneers of the county, having come 
to Cleveland between the years 1 8 1 2 and 
18 I 5. After marriage our subject lived 
in Cuyahoga county with his wife's parents, 
and also on a farm of his own until 1871, 
in which year he brought his family to 
Green Bay, and, buying the "Camp 
Smith" farm along the ri\er, resided there 
for some years. In 1877 he purchased 
and removed upon his present place, now 
consisting of one hundred acres of good 
farming land, but which at that time was 
a new farm and not all cleared; but with 
constant care and attention to the details 
of his work, he now has a pleasant home 
and comfortable property. He conducts 



a profitable general farming business, the 
success he has met with being all due to 
his own unceasing efforts, and he is well 
known and highly respected by his neigh- 
bors and fellow citizens. 

In politics our suliject was originally a 
Republican, but during the Grant cam- 
paign he joined the ranks of the Demo- 
cratic party, with which he has since re- 
mained. Religiously he is a member of 
St. John's Catht)lic Church, Green Bay. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Van De Wyngaard have 
been born the following named children: 
Augusta E. (wife of L. Ver Berkmoes, a 
merchant of Atkinson, 111.), Christina, 
Anton, and Alphonsos (at home), and 
Barnardus (of Sheboygan, Mich.j. 

NIELS HANSON GOTFREDSEN 
(deceased) was, duringdiis lifetime 
one of the most active, promi- 
nent citizens in New Denmark 
township. Brown count}', of which he was 
one of the earliest settlers. 

He was born, March 2, 18 14, in the 
Kingdom of Denmark, where, on Febru- 
ary 18, 1848, he was married to Miss 
Laurentine Hjorth, who was born March 
8, 1824. in Langeland, Denmark, daugh- 
ter of Rasmus and Mary (IversonJ Hjorth. 
who had eight children, three of whom 
are now living, namely: Laurentine (Mrs. 
Gotfredsen), Frederick, and Peter A. 
Rasmus Hjorth was a schoolteacher for 
twenty-eight years. One month after 
their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Gotfredsen 
sailed for America, landing in New York 
two months later after a very rough voy- 
age, and coming directly to Milwaukee, 
Wis., in which city Mrs. Gotfredsen re- 
mained while her husband went farther 
north to look for land. He purchased 160 
acres in New Denmark township. Brown 
count}', on which they removed at once, 
being the second settlers in the township. 
Mr. Cooper, the first settler of Coopers- 
town, Wis., conveyed them to their home 
with his ox-team, and they located in the 
midst of the forest, which they at once 



26z 



COMilEMORA TI I 'K BIOGRAPUICA L RECORD. 



coiiiinenced to clear away and convert 
into a fertile farm. The task was not a 
light one; and. owing to the new and un- 
settled condition of the country, these 
pioneers suffered numerous hardships and 
privations incident to backwoods life, as 
well as the inconveniences to be experi- 
enced in a new country; but they perse- 
vered in their noble work, and, after years 
of toil found themselves in possession of a 
fine property hewn from the forest. By 
unceasing industry Mr. Gotfredsen was 
enabled to increased the area of his farm, 
and at the time of his death was the 
owner of 200 acres of higiily-improved 
land, and ranked among the most success- 
ful men in his i(jcalit\\ In 1851 Mrs. 
Gotfredsen's parents set out from Den- 
mark for the United States, but the father 
died on the sea, of heart trouble, from 
which he had suffered many years, and 
was buried in New York; the widowed 
mother came to Wisconsin, and passed 
the remainder of her life with her daugh- 
ter, dying about 1861; she was interred 
in the cemeterj" in New Denmark town- 
ship, donated by Mr. Gotfredsen. 

At the time Mr. Gotfredsen came to 
New Denmark township it was included 
in De Pere, and he was instrumental in 
having it set apart as a separate township, 
taking great interest in that, as well as all 
other public improvements for the benefit 
or advancement of his community. In 
political connection he was a stanch Dem- 
ocrat, and held numerous positions of 
honor and trust in his township, serving 
as chairman, treasurer, etc., in an able 
and satisfactor}' manner. He was highly 
esteemed by all who knew him, and his 
death, which occurred February 22, 1894, 
brought a loss to the entire community, 
who felt keenly the departure of one of 
the best and oldest citizens. Since his 
decease his widow has continued to make 
her home on the farm, having with her 
her daughter Jeimie. The children born 
to Mr. and NIrs. Gotfredsen were eleven 
in number, as follows: Mary (who was 
the first white girl born in Now Denmark 



township), Hilbert, Minnie, Sophia (who 
died at the age of twenty-six), Jennie, 
Frederica, Augusta, Lawrence, Benjamin, 
Laurena and Edith, most of whom are 
living in Nebraska. In 1865 Mr. Gotfred- 
sen revisited his native country, spending 
a short time there among his relatives and 
friends, who gave him a very hearty 
welcome. 



RE\'. MICHAEL JOHN O'BRIEN 
is pastor of St. Patrick's Church, 
P"ort Howard, one of the oldest 
congregations in the Fox River 
Valley, with a present membership of two 
hundred families. 

He was born February 29, i860, in 
Granville, Milwaukee Co., Wis., a son of 
Patrick and Margaret (O'Leary) O'Brien, 
who were natives of Ireland, the former 
of County Waterford, the latter of Coun- 
ty Cork. The parents had immigated to 
Boston, Mass., about 1846, were married 
in that city in 1848, and removed to Wis- 
consin early in the spring of 1855, locating 
in Granville township, Milwaukee county, 
where their son was born, on a farm in 
the woods, which they cleared and im- 
proved. In 1873 the father removed with 
his family to Chilton, Calumet county, 
dying on his farm there ten years later, 
March 23, 1883. His widow now resides 
in South Milwaukee. Of their children, 
Ellen is the wife of John McGrath, a 
farmer, and resides in Lebanon, \\'^aupaca 
Co. , Wis. ; Patrick is a resident of South 
Milwaukee; Rev. M. J. is the loved pastor 
i)f a large congregation at Fort Howard; 
Margaret, now Mrs. Charles Kelley, lives 
in Lebanon, as does also Jennie, wife of 
Patrick Cleary; Lizzie is now Mrs. Harry 
Kearns, of Buffalo, Wis. ; George resides 
in South Milwaukee. 

The future candidate for priestly hon- 
ors was a farmer in his youthful days in 
Milwaukee and Calumet counties. He 
was a member of the tirst class to grad- 
uate from the Chilton high school, in 
June, 1878, and, for three years follow- 





•Jl^^^^-l_ 



COMMEMnUATrVK rUnaUAPHWAL RKCORD. 



.•6.^ 



ing, was a teaclicr in Caliiiiii-t enmity. 
He then, in the fall (li iS.So, entered St. 
Francis Seminar}' at Milw;uik<'e, Irom 
which he was graduated with the class ul 
1888; in June, of the same year, was or- 
dained to the priesthood hy Archbislioj) 
Heiss, of Milwaukee, and the follov\ing 
month was sent to St. y\ntlrew's Church, 
at Kingston, Wis. He was next assistant, 
for two years, in St. Peter's Church, at 
Oshkosl), and subse(|uently in charge of 
St. Stephen's Church, at St(;vi'iis I'oint, 
from which place he came to I'drt How- 
ard, in May, 1895. Here the field of his 
hd)ors is large, and his efforts havt; heim 
marked with gratifying success. On tiu; 
second Sunday after his arri\al he took 
ste])s toward the erection of the luiistnit 
magnilicent church, at tlie corner of 
Cherry and Hubl)ard streets, in which 
the congregation now worship, which was 
completed in November, 1894, and is one 
of the finest in the h"o.\ River Valley. 
He labored indefatigablv to secine means 
and ad\ance the wni'k in ev'ery pnssihli' 
way; but a good constitution tln' founda- 
tion of wllich was laid 011 a lann and 
his ardent love for the work undertaken 
enabled him to give the constant atten- 
tion necessary during tlu-- construction of 
the edifice, and to jierform a large amount 
of work in addition to his regular dutit;s. 
The church is a brick building, with trim- 
mings of Duck Creek stone, 60 .\ 124 feet 
in dimensions, with basement, costing 
about twenty-five thousand dollars, anil 
is a monument to the .zeal and devotion 
of its earnest pastor, who has endeared 
himself to all classes, regardless of de- 
nomin.ition and nationality. 



FR.ANK CLI^I':KEMANS, Ji^, one 
of the well-known farmiT citizens 
of Scott townsiiip. Brown county, 
was born April 8, 1845, in Bel- 
gium, son of l'"raid< Cleeremans, Sr. , wiio 
was a farmer in that coutitry. 

In tile spring of 1867, having deter- 
mined to try his fortune in America, Frank 
l& 



(.'leereiiians, Sr., cniigrate<l Iroiii his na- 
ti\'e land, bnn;;ing his wife and faniiU' of 
ti\'e sons Charles, |ohn, i''r.ink, |r., 
Henry and Ale.x all of whom are yet 
li\ing. Sailing from Antwerp on the 
"Ottawa," tiu;y arrived in New \in\s 
after a voyage of si.xteen days, and im- 
mediately journeyed westward by rail to 
Brown county. Wis., coming via ("hicago 
to Cirecn Bay. Mr. Cleeremans, Sr. , had 
saved a fev\' hundred dollars, and in Scott 
township i)iirchased forty acres (where his 
son Frank now lives), for which he |iaid 
fifteen dollars per acre. A one-room lo^ 
shanty was the only dwelling on this place, 
and but ten acres of the land were cleared, 
the n-st being still in its |iiimitive state. 
The family lived in that house: two years, 
when a better one was built. Tlu; farm 
was gradually cleared and niaile to yield 
a gocxl income, and here the ])arents 
passed the remainder of tlicii" lives, the 
mother dying May 20, 1871, the father 
oil January 11, 1876. They were mem- 
bers of the Catholic Ciiiirch, and their 
remains now rest in Biay Settlement 
cemetery. 

Frank Cleeremans, |r. , attiMided the 
common schools of his native? land, where 
he obtained all his education, receiving 
instruction in b'rencfi and l'"lemish, being 
able to read both these' languages. His 
knowledge of llnglish he has ae;(]uireel 
since coming to the United States, by 
ch.ise a])])lieation to American Ijooks and 
papers. At the age of twenty he coni- 
nicneed to learn the blacksmith trade, 
which he followed until he came to Amer- 
ica with his parents; prewie)nsly he; had 
worked in a se)ap factory in b'rance. Afte'r 
ceiming to Wisconsin he secured weirk in 
Green Bay, and continued in the employ 
of others, giving his earnings to his par- 
ents, until the' time of his marriage, in 
I 87 I. In that N'e-ai he' we'dde'el Miss Vir- 
ginia Hejrckmans, also a native of ISel- 
giiim, wlu), when fifteen months ejld, was 
brought to America by her parents, Will- 
iam and Thcrsa (VaneierboshjIIorckmans. 
At this time Mr. Cleeremans, Jr., bought 



264 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the interests of his brothers in the home 
farm, and, building a shop on the place 
(all on credit), continued his trade in con- 
nection with farming until 1875, when he 
abandoned it, and has since given his at- 
tention exclusively to agriculture. For 
several \'ears he was engaged in the sale 
of nursery stock, and while in this busi- 
ness became widely acquainted in his sec- 
tion of the county. He is now the owner 
of the original place, to which he has 
added ten acres more, and has a comfort- 
able productive farm, free of debt. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Cleeremans, Jr., were born 
children as follows: Annie, Thersa, Odile, 
Minnie, .-Xugust, and Henr\-. all living, and 
four that died in infancy. The mother of 
these passed from earth September 14, 
1887, and was buried in the Wequiock 
cemeter}' in Scott township. Mr. Cleere- 
mans, Jr., is a stanch Ivepublican, and an 
ardent supporter of the principles of that 
party, especially those of protective tariff. 
He has been elected to various offices in 
his township, serving one term as chair- 
man, and for thirteen or fourteen jears as 
assessor, in both capacities giving satisfac- 
tion to his constituents. He has been 
self-made in every respect, and, though 
beginning life a poor man, his natural 
ability, industrious nature and persever- 
ance have enabled him to rise to his pres- 
ent enviable position. 



HU. \AN S1:C.G1:RN was born 
October 9, 1 849, in Oldenburg, 
Germany, son of Henry F. and 
Meta (Schmidt) Van Scggern, who 
had four children, as follows: H. D., 
Dedrick (who died when three years old), 
and two that died in infancy. The father 
was a sailor and carpenter, and was em- 
ployed as such for fifteen years, after 
which he worked for a time in the ship- 
yards. 

In 1859 the family caiiu' to America, 
sailing from Bremen, and landing, after a 
voyage of thirteen dajs, in New York, 



where they sojourned three days, and 
then continued their journey west. They 
traveled to Milwaukee, Wis., and thence 
by boat to Manitowoc, where the}' hired 
an o.\-team to take them to their destina- 
tion in New Denmark township. Brown 
county; but the team collapsed near 
where Mr. Fagan now lives, and they were 
obliged to finish the journe}' as best they 
could. In New Denmark township the 
father ])urchased a tract of 160 acres, 
only three acres of which were cleared, 
and the famih- took up their residence in 
a log hut, which stood on the place, con- 
tinuing to live in same eight years, when 
it was replaced by a more modern dwell- 
ing. About two jears after their arrival 
Mr. Van Seggern disposed of eightj' acres 
of his land. The father spent the re- 
mainder of his life clearing and improving 
the land he had bought; later purchased 
some more land, and at the time of his 
death was the owner of a fine farm of 160 
acres, now the home of our subject. He 
passed away at the age of seventy-eight, 
fifteen years after the death of his wife. 
Our subject, being the only son, had 
to commence work verj' early in life, 
helping his father in the labor of clearing 
and cultivating the pioneer farm, remain- 
ing at home except for three winters 
when he worked in the woods. In 
his youth the country around his home 
was sparsely settled and totally unim- 
pro\ed, and he has experienced all the 
inconveniences incident to backwoods life 
in those early days. Although no road 
had yet been cut through to Green Bay, 
he would walk there and l)ack, carrying 
butter and eggs to market, and bringing 
home provisions. On account of the 
meager educational facilities of th3 time, 
he received only eleven months' schooling; 
but he has made the best of such oppor- 
tunities as he had, antl has acquired a 
practical education by his own efforts. 
He assisted his parents faithfull}' in the 
laborious task of converting the forest into 
a fertile, productive farm, and he is now 
enjoying the fruits of those early days of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOG liAPlIICAL RECORD. 



265 



hardship and incessant toil. On May 
13' '"^791 he was united in marriage with 
Miss Martha F. Daggart, a native of Two 
Rivers, Wis., daughter of Charles B. and 
Naomi (Knibbs) Daggart, who were of 
Scotch and English descent, respectively. 
Mr. Daggart's first wife died in Two 
Rivers, leaving two children, Thomas and 
Mary, and he subsequently returned to 
New York State where he married Naomi 
Knibbs, who became the mother of five 
children, viz.: Amanda E., Andrew, 
Martha F. , Evaline Ann, and one that 
dieil in infancy. Mr. Daggart, who fol- 
lowed merchandising, served as postmas- 
ter at Two Rivers, and also for one year 
as member of the Assembl}'. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
Van Seggern took up their residence on 
the old homestead, which Mr. Van Seg- 
gern inherited, and have ever since re- 
mained here, prosperously engaged in 
general farming. To their union have 
been born eight children, their names and 
dates of birth being as follows: Matie 
N., May 32, 1880; Amanda E., Decem- 
23, 1S81 ; Charles H., November 3, 1883 ; 
Fred 1., Mav 13, 188:; ; Walter M., March 
6, 1888; Irma C, July 10, 1889; Cora 
A. A., February i, 1S92 ; Edna H., No- 
vember 23. 1894. In religious faith Mr. 
and Mrs. Van Seggern are members of 
the Lutheran Church, in which he serves 
as trustee and secretary. In his political 
preferences he is a Republican, taking 
considerable interest in the workings of 
his party, and his fellow citizens have 
honored him with election to various local 
positions of trust ; he served faithfully as 
supervisor three years, from 1880 to 1883; 
also school director, and was reccntlv 
elected to the important position of chair- 
man of his township. For the past six 
years he has been treasurer of the Farm- 
ers' Insurance Company. As a promi- 
nent, prosperous farmer, a public-spirited, 
representative citizen, and a progressive, 
self-made man, Mr. Van Seggern occu- 
pies an enviable position among his fel- 
low citizens in New Denmark township. 



JACOB CRAANEN, postmaster and 
merchant at Bay Settlement, is one 
of the most prosperous young men 
of Scott township. Brown countv, 
of which he is a nati\e, having been horn 
in Bay Settlement May 26, 1858. 

He is a son of Christian Craanen, a 
shoemaker by trade, who was born in 
Holland, anil there married Theodora 
Hooken, the young couple immigrating to 
America immediately after their marriage. 
They came to Green Bay, Brown county, 
Wis., and arrived late iti the fall of 1S56, 
the entire journey occupying eighty days. 
For two or three weeks they remained in 
Green Bay, and then came to Bay Set- 
tlement, Scott township, where Mr. Craa- 
nen purchased three or four acres of 
land, on which he built a small log house. 
One corner of the cabin was reserved for 
his work-bench, and finding plenty to do 
at his trade, he labored diligently to sup- 
port his family. Three children came to 
brighten his home, viz. : Antoinette, now 
Mrs. Henry Kersten, of Chilton, Wis. ; 
Jacob, a sketch of whom follows; and 
John, a farmer of Scott township. Mr. 
Craanen, in addition to working at his trade, 
cleared his land, and, as his sons grew up 
and commenced to assist him, he pur- 
chased a tract of forty acres, from time to 
time making other additions to his farm, 
until at his death they had 350 acres, all 
accumulated from a commencement of 
nothing. He passed from earth May 14, 
1893, and was buried in Bay Settlement 
cemetery. Mrs. Theodora Craanen died 
December 27, 1881, and was buried in 
Bay Settlement cemetery, and he sub- 
sequently married Elizabeth Noyman, 
who survives him. He was a member of 
the Democratic party, but not an active 
politician, and in religious faith he and 
his wife were members of the Church of 
the Holy Cross, of which he was treas- 
urer at the time of his death. No 
citizen in the township stood higher in 
the esteem of his fellowmen or better 
deserved their respect. He was self- 
made in the full sense of the word. 



366 



CUMMEMOUATIVE dJlOUUAl'UWAL RECORD. 



and his larfje property was acquired by 
hard work, jjood inanaj,'eiiieiit, and up- 
right dealinjj;. His powers of endurance 
were wonderful, for, durinj,' his earher 
years, when struf^ghnjj to obtain a fair 
start, he would labor day and nij;ht. The 
330-acre farm did not represent all his 
wealth, for he owned property in Green 
Bay and De Perc as well, and. from being 
a poor man o\\ his arrival in Brown 
county, he rose, by industry, to be one of 
its leading citizens. 

Jacob Craanen attended the connnon 
schools of the home neighborhood until 
thirteen years of age, and then entered 
the college at Calvarj , Wis., where he 
remained until he was si.xteen years old. 
He commenced to work on the farm, 
where he labored industriously to help his 
father. On November 19, 1889, he was 
married to Miss Mar}' Beaumier, a native 
of Scott township, and a daughter of Au- 
gust Beaumier, who came from Canada, 
and was of French extraction. This mar- 
riage has been blessed by three children: 
George, born November 21, 1890; Jacob, 
born June 8, 1892, and Myrtle, born Jan- 
uary 2, 1894. In December, 1893. Mr. 
Craanen was appointed postmaster at 
Bay Settlement, where he also conducts 
a grocery business. He is the owner of 
155 acres of land, a j^ortion of which he 
rents, and is regarded as one of Scott 
township's substantial citizens. Politi- 
rall\' he is a Democrat, and he and his 
wife are members of the Catholic church. 



Fll. W'lICSE, a pros])erous young 
agriculturist antl well-known citi- 
zen of Lawrence townshij). Brown 
countj', was born September 6, 
1862. in Lippe-Detmold, Westphalia, Ger- 
many, son of Williani and Louisa (Hage- 
meister) Wiese. 

William Wiese was for thirty-two years 
foreman in a brickyard in his native place, 
and became quite skilled in this line of 
work, understanding it in ever)' detail. 
His children, all born in the old rouiUrv, 



were as follows: Amelia, now Mrs. Will- 
iam Grimmer, of De Fere, Wis. ; Louisa, 
now Mrs. Gustav Fleck, of Kaukauna, 
Wis. ; Minnie, wife of Rev. Bock, a 
Lutheran minister of West De Fere, Wis. ; 
W'illiam, decej\sed in infancy; and Fred- 
erick H., our subject. In 1867 the family 
sailed from Bremen on the vessel ' ' Ger- 
many," and landed at New York after a 
voyage of eleven days. There they re- 
mained a short time at the "Emigrant 
House," and then proceeded westward to 
Chicago, thence via the Chicago & North 
W'estern railway to Green Ba)', Wis., 
where they made a temporary home with 
the well-known Hagemeister family. Mr. 
Wiese was totally unacquainted with the 
value of property in Brown county, and, 
acting upon the advice of relatives, he 
purchased one hundred acres of land in 
Lawrence township (the farm our subject 
now resides on), the price paid being three 
thousand dollars. A barn and frame 
house had been erected on the place, but 
otherwise it was totally unimproved, and 
it was several years before it afforded any 
revenue to the family. Being obliged to 
go into debt for the farm, and, being 
anxious to own a home free of incum- 
brance, Mr. Wiese put forth every effort 
to clear the land and create a fertile farm; 
but the hard work soon told upon him, 
and, as a result of exposure, he was 
seized with inflammation of the lungs, 
which carried him off September 3. 1868, 
when he was hfty-one years old. He was 
a member of the Lutheran Church. His 
remains now rest in Lawrence cemetery. 
The death of the father left the widow 
and children with the encumbered prop- 
erty, but they courageously set to work, 
and, although the task was no small one, 
thej' proved themselves equal to it. They 
hired a man to assist with the heavier 
work until our subject was fifteen years of 
age, after which he gradually assumed 
charge of affairs; year by year they saw 
the indebtedness diminish, and finally, 
after working together industriously for 
man\' vears, found themselves owners of 



COMMEMOllA TIVK BJOUUAPIIICAL RECORD. 



267- 



a well-improved farm, on which a sub- 
stantial residence had been erected. Mrs. 
Wiese died June 15, 1S90, a member of 
the Lutheran Church, and was buried in 
Lawrence cemetery. 

Frederick H. Wiese received but a 
limited education, as he had to conimcine 
work early in life, beinj;' the only son, and 
he has always remained on the home farm, 
which he now owns. Beini; a natural 
mechanic, he has worked at the wa,i;i)n- 
maker's trade. On October 14, 1890, 
he was married to Miss Ida E. Smith, 
who was born April 27, 1867, in Wrights- 
town township. Brown count\', daughter 
of Nicholas and Carolina (Zittlow) Smith, 
early residents of that locality. Mr. 
Wiese has followed general fanning and 
stock-raising, also taking an interest in 
the dairy business. He is industrious and 
systematic, and a leader in all movements 
tending to benefit his township and the 
community at large. In politics he is a 
Democrat, and in religious connection he 
and his wife are members of the Evangel- 
ical Lutheran Church at West De Pere. 
They have one child, Alma L. A., born 
July II, I 891. 

ANTHONY DWYER, one of the 
old and highly respected residents 
of Rockland township. Brown 
county, is a native of the Emerald 
Isle, born in May, 181 8, in County Tiji- 
perary. His parents. Dennis and Johanna 
(Ryan) Dwyer, farming people, who 
passed their entire lives in their native 
Ireland, had a family of si.\ children, of 
whom Anthony, the only son, was the 
third in order of birth. 

Our subject was reared to farm life, 
and, when a young man, married Miss 
Johanna Ryan, and while in Ireland they 
had the following children: Johanna, 
Dennis, Philip, Michael, Maurice, An- 
thony (i), John and Anthony (2). Of 
these, Johanna is now the wife of M. 
Scandlan, of Green Bay; Dennis is de- 
ceased; Philip lives in Pound, Wis.; 



Michael is deceased; Maurice li\'es in 
Lowell, Wash.; .Anthoii)' ( 1 ) is deceased; 
jnhn li\-es in Kocklaiid, Wis.; .Vnthonv 
(J) is deceaseil. In the >prm,L; nl 185J 
this famih' went ti> Lixerponl, and, tidcing 
|)assagi- on an .\merican-lHumd \essel. 
landed at New York, thcii' first home in 
the New World bciiiL; 111 Syracuse, N. 'N'., 
where tlK-\ li\c(l tor three and a half 
N'cars, Ml'. Dwver working at an\ thing 
which would tiriiiL; luiii an honest dollar. 
Here one (Inid, .\ntlioiiy (2), died, and 
one, .\iitlioii\ (3), was boiii 1 he is now 
livinj.; \\\ Lowell, \\'asli. i. In October, 
I 85 5, the\' came wi.'stward to Wisconsin, 
and for a \ear IkuI their resideu( c in De- 
Pere, where the father en^ageil in \arious 
]iursuits, and then in No\eiii|jiT, 1856, 
c;mie to the jaesent iariii 111 l\o< klaiid 
township, purchasing forty acres at .$1.50 
])er acre, and then had to borrow thirty 
dollars to make the first pa\'ment. .\t 
that time there was not a single house 
between the farm and De Pere, and the 
road was onh a path through the wfiods. 
Mr. Dwyer built the first dwelling on the 
place, and then c<iininenced the work of 
clearing away the f(.irest, the dense growth 
of oak, beech, pine, maple, etc., making 
the task a difficult one; but he was deter- 
mineil to succeed, and, after m:my years 
(}f hard work, had a fertiK.', productive 
farm, whiidi \ieldeil him a good income. 



Wlnl 



De P 



mother son, 



Jeremiah, was fiorn [he 
in Minnc;ipolis. Minn.), and the follow- 
ing named childri'ii were born on the 
farm: Patrick, h\ing at home; Mag- 
gie, Mrs. Edward Martin, of P'lorence, 
Wis. ; Mary, deceased; and Katie, living 
at home. The mother was called from 
earth March 26, 1876, and was buried 
in De Pere cemetery, and since her death 
her daughters have had charge of the 
household affairs. Mr. Dwyer has seen 
his present farm transformed from an un- 
broken wilderness into a well-improved 
farm, which represents years of arduous 
toil, this property having all been accumu- 
lated from a commencement of nothing. In 



36S 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



1890 his son Patrick bought the farm, and 
Mr. Dwyer now makes liis home with 
him, retired from active work. He is a 
Democrat, but has never taken much inter- 
est in politics, having, until recently, given 
his undivided attention to the farm. Of 
his large family of fourteen children, 
eleven are now living, and he has twenty- 
si.\ grandchildren and six great-grand- 
children. 



NIELS NELSON, an esteemed cit- 
izen of New Denmark township, 
Brown county, has been identified 
with lier agricultural interests for 
the past forty years. He is a native of 
Norway, born March 14, 1823, son of 
Nelson and Anna (Johnson) Nelson, who 
were the parents of two children : Bertha, 
now Mrs. Torkel Johnson, of Denmark, 
and Niels, our subject. The father 
worked in the iron factories of his native 
country. 

Niels Nelson lived with his parents 
until he reached the age of about twenty- 
five years, when he was married March 
25, 1847, to Miss Anna Arveson, whose 
parents, Aron Neilson and Mary (Chris- 
terson) Arveson, had children as follows: 
Christian, Neils, Emma and Anna (Mrs. 
Nelson). Immediately after their mar- 
riage Mr. and Mrs. Nelson sailed for 
America, and after a seven-weeks' voyage 
landed in New York City, thence contin- 
uing their journey westward to Buffalo, 
N. Y., and thence to Cincinnati, Ohio, 
where they remained nearly three years, 
Mr. Nelson working as a day laborer. In 
i8i;o they emigrated to Wisconsin, and in 
New Denmark township. Brown county, 
our subject invested in sixty acres of 
timber-covered land, and, having cleared 
a small space in the woods, erected a 
14 X 16 log cabin, in which they lived ten 
years, when it was replaced by a more 
modern dwelling. Their supplies were 
all brought from Green Bay, and as Mr. 
Nelson did not own an ox-team until ten 
years after his removal to this place, he 



would walk the entire distance to and 
from that town, carrying his provisions, 
his path for the greater part of the way 
lying through the forest; when he came to 
New Denmark the Manitowoc road was 
the only one leading through the town- 
ship. B}- diligent toil he has succeeded 
in converting the piece of wild land into a 
comfortable farm, with good improve- 
ments and all necessarj- outbuildings, and 
he carries on a profitable general farming 
business. Politically our subject is inde- 
pendent, and not active in public affairs; 
in religious faith he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Lutheran Church. They have 
had one child, Nellie. 



F.\THER ADOLPH SMITZ. pastor 
of St. Boniface Church, West De- 
Pcre, is a native of Holland, born 
October 25, 1844. at Oirschot, a 
village of three or four thousand inhab- 
itants in the Province of North Brabant, 
son of Henry Bartholome and Antonia 
Maria (Fock) Smitz, both also natives of 
Holland. The father, who was a physi- 
cian, is now deceased, but the mother is 
still living in Holland at the age of eighty- 
one years. 

Adolph Smitz was educated in the 
lower and higher seminaries of 's Herto- 
genbosch, was ordained priest May 25, 
1872, in the Cathedral of St. John, at that 
place, and was afterward assistant priest 
at Moergestel, at Diessen and at Zeelst 
— all in Holland. On Septembers. 1883, 
he sailed from Amsterdam on the steamer 
" Amsterdam," and landed at Hoboken, 
^'- J- (opposite New York City), soon 
afterward coming to Wisconsin. For a 
short time he officiated in the vicinity of 
Green Bay, and on January i, 1884, was 
given charge of St. Boniface Church, 
West De Pere, a position he still fills. 
This church is an offshoot of St. Mary's, 
of East De Pere; the edifice was erected 
in 1883, and, when Father Smitz took 
charge, was composed of little more than 
bare walls, with a room partitioned off at 



COMMEMORATIVK DIOGItAPIIICAL UKCORD. 



269 



the north end for a school, but since he 
assumed charge of affairs here a pleasant 
priests' residence has been built (1885J, 
the church edifice plastered, finished and 
furnished (1891J, and a coimnodious 
schoolhouse, containing six rooms, erected 
(1893), the land for both parsonage and 
school having been purchased during 
Father Smitz' administration. The reci- 
tation rooms are 24x30 feet, some of 
them being at present occupied b\' the 
Sisters for residence purposes. The 
school enrollment in 1894 was 212, for 
both sexes, and 150 families are numbered 
in the prosperous parish of St. Boniface, 
natives chiefly of Holland, Belgium and 
and lower Germany. The corner-stone 
of the sch(jolbuilding was laid and blessed 
by Bishop Messmer Ma\- 14, 1893, and 
the school was blessed by the same bishop 
September 8, in the presance of the Most 
Rev. Francesco Sattoli, Archbishop of 
Lepanto, I. P. I., and apostolic delegate 
to the United States. In February, 1894, 
the school was made free. On June 29, 
1893, the church was l^lessed, by permis- 
sion of the Bishop, by Father Martin 
Anderegg, and on the same day he cele- 
brated first mass. St. Boniface church 
edifice is not yet complete, as a sanctuary 
is to be added on the north end, for the 
purpose of enlarging its seating capacity. 
A fine bell, weighing 1,400 pounds, and 
costing three hundred and twenty dollars, 
blessed February 12, 1S88, calls the con- 
gregation to worship. 



JOHN SMITH, prominent as an at- 
torney of De Pere, Brown county. 
Wis., has been a resident of that city 
for the past twenty-five years. His 
birth took place in a small village in Zwol- 
gen, in the south of Holland, July 29, 1 844. 
His education was acquired in the com- 
mon and militar}' schools of his native 
country, in the army of which he served 
eighteen months, and he also became mas- 
ter of the bricklayer's trade before coming 
to the United States in the earlier part of 



1 869. In the sunmier of that year he 
settled in De Pere, with ten cents in his 
pocket and with an indebtedness of sev- 
ent}' dollars staring him in the face; but 
he was ambitious and skillful, and steadily 
worked at his trade until 1873, when his 
labors began to lighten. He now became 
interested in insurance and real estate, 
and to devote his spare hours to the studj' 
of law with his partner, George F. Mer- 
rill, with whom he continued to read until 
I 884, when he was admitted to the bar. 
From that date to this he has been in 
constant and active practice, in conjunc- 
tion with his insurance and real-estate 
business. He is the sole agent at De Pere 
for the sale of steamship passenger tickets 
to and from the old country for several 
trans-Atlantic steamship lines. He also 
has a Catholic book, stationery and toy 
store, which is in charge of his daughter 
Jennie, and he has proved himself to be a 
shrewd and self-reliant business man. He 
is now the owner of a large liody of real 
estate in the cit\', and has several build- 
ings, including the brick block in which he 
has his office and store. 

Mr. Smith was married, one year after 
settling in De Pere, to Miss Kate Minor- 
ette, also a native of Holland, who has 
borne him thirteen children, nine of whom 
are living, named as follows; Carrie, 
Jennie, Christian, Edward, Herbert, Frank, 
Charles, William and Fredrick, all resid- 
ing imder the paternal roof, excepting 
Carrie, who is married. In politics Mr. 
Smith is a Democrat, and for eleven years 
has served as school commissioner; he has 
also served as mayor of De Pere two 
terms, as alderman several times, and is 
now filling his fourth term as city attorney. 
He is strictly a self-made man, and enjoys 
to the full the confidence of the public. 



LEWIS KNUTH, a justice of the 
peace, town clerk and chairman of 
the town of Wrightsville, Brown 
county, was born at De Pere, 
Brown Co., Wis., February 22, 1863. 



COMMEMORA Tl 1 'K BIO GliA J'lIICA L HECOHD. 



His father, George Kniith, was born 
October lo, 1814, in Grondenz. in west 
Prussia, and was there married to Cathe- 
rine jaddaz, daughter of a prominent citi- 
zen of the place. In 1859 they came to 
the United States with their live children, 
first locating in the town of Maple Grove, 
Manitowoc Co., Wis., whence they moved 
to De Pere, where Mr. Knuth fillecl various 
positions, but was never a man to seek 
public office. In 1870 he settled in 
Wrightstown, where he made farming his 
principal occupation until his death, which 
occurred October 26, 1877. his widow sur- 
viving until February 13, 1893. 

Lewis Knuth was educated at De Pere, 
and at the little log schoolhouse of 
Wrightstown. .\t the age of eighteen 
years he entered the store of the well- 
known firm of Mueller & Spuhler as 
clerk, and this position he retained about 
eight jears. On May 13, 1887, he mar- 
ried Miss Pauline Fieck, daughter of 
Charles Fieck, a prominent farmer of 
Morrison township. Brown county, and 
the same spring he was elected to the of- 
fice of town clerk, and two years later to 
that of justice of the peace. The former 
office he has filled so well that his fellow 
citizens have retained him in it for five 
consecutive years, and he also continues 
to hold the office of justice of the peace, 
for which he has proved himself equally 
well qualified. He is also chairman of 
the town. A man of energy and of liberal 
views, he has risen to a high position in 
the estimation of his fellow townsmen, as 
is fully proven by his popularity at the 
polls. Four children make his home happy 
— two sons and two daughters, named 
respectively, Elma, William, Laura and 
Arthur. 



JOHN NIVEN McCUNN. The sons 
of Scotia, whose suggestive motto, 
" NfiHo VIC iiiipuiie laces sit" em- 
blazons every Scottish battle-torn 
banner, are to be found the wide world 
over, occupying, many of them, exalted 



positions in every sphere of life — in liter- 
ature, arts and sciences, no less than in 
the several professions — civil and mili- 
tary: foremost in war, first in peace. 

The subject of this memoir is a native 
of Glasgow, Scotland, born December 10, 
1858, of time-honored ancestry. His 
Grandfather McCunn was a sea-faring 
man, and was drowned off the wild and 
rugged coast of Scotland while acting as 
pilot on a vessel. His son, James, father 
of our subject, was born at Gourock, 
Lanarkshire, Scotland, and learned the 
trade of carpenter and joiner, which he 
successfully follo\\ed many \'ears, in the 
latter days of his life conducting a grocery 
business: but, when he was only thirtj'-six 
years old, death inter\ened and deprived 
his wife of a loving husband, and their 
four " weanies " of a devoted father. He 
was a man of more than ordinary intelli- 
gence, and of considerable enterprise, up- 
right and conscientious, and a consistent 
member of the Presbyterian Church. His 
widow, Mrs. Janet McCunn, who was a 
daughter of John and Mary (Kirkwood) 
Niven, natives of Paisley, Scotland, 
having decided, in her widowhood, to 
come to America with her little family, 
set out by the S. S. "St. David" of the 
Allan line, in .April. 1870 (our sub- 
ject being then about eleven years old), 
arriving at Point Levi, opposi*e Quebec, 
Canada, on May 6. From there they 
came direct to Wisconsin, making their 
first home in the Western World in Port- 
age county, whither James McCunn, the 
oldest son (now a farmer in that county), 
had preceded them. 

John N. McCunn had received some 
elementary education in Glasgow, and 
after coming to Wisconsin he attended 
district school, also the high school at 
Waupaca, afterward teaching for a season 
or so, at the same time keeping up his 
studies. In 1882 he entered Milton Col- 
lege, intending to take a full collegiate 
course; but impaired health prevented his 
completing it. During the summer of 
1883 he visited his old home in Scotland, 





t^, <^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



273 



and on his return to Wisconsin he re- 
sumed his studies, and again taught school, 
after which he became general agent for 
"Johnston's Encyclopedia," his territory 
covering all northern Wisconsin, while his 
headquarters were at Green Bay. In 
1887 he bought a half interest in the 
Green Bay Business College, and before 
the expiry of a year he had complete con- 
trol of the institution, to which he was 
now enabled to give his e.\clusi\e atten- 
tion. After taking charge he made a 
complete change in the general economy 
of the college, among other innovations 
having added a Shorthaml department, 
and in the spring of 1888 furnished the 
rooms with new fixtures, etc. In the spring 
of 1893 Prof. AlcCunn erected the largest 
and most expensi\e college building in the 
State, exclusively for a Business College; 
it is a three-story structure, built of red 
pressed brick, liaMUg brown sandstone 
facings, the entrance being atlorned with 
polished granite columns, basement being 
of limestone. The entire building is 
heated with steam and lighted with elec- 
tricity — in fact the Green Bay Business 
College is the most thoroughly equipped 
institution of the kind in the West, and, 
as a whole, is well worthy of the pride of 
that ambitious city. 

In 1884, after his return from his 
visit to Scotland, above alluded to, Prof. 
John N. McCunn was marrieil in \\'au- 
paca to Miss P^lorence Ida Pipe, a native 
of Waupaca county. Wis., and daughter 
of Thomas Pipe, ex-mayor of Waupaca, 
an honored pioneer and business man. 
To this union were born three children: 
Ethel May, Florence \'erna, and \\'alter 
Thomas. The mother of these passed 
from earth January 10, 1889, and in Oc- 
tober, 1890, our subject married Miss 
Ada Montgomery, daughter t)f John Mont- 
gomery, an extensive farmer of W'ashing- 
ton county, Penn., where she was born. 
She was educated at the ladies' seminary 
in Washington, Penn., after which she 
taught school in her native county and in 
the Green Bay Business College one year. 



ISy this second marriage of the Professor 
there is one child now living, Harold 
Montgomery. 

Prof. McCunn has been an active and' 
useful citizen of Green Bay ever since 
coming to the place, and has closely 
identified himself with its civic affairs, at 
the present time serving as a member of 
the city council. Socially he is a mem- 
ber of the Business Men's Association, 
Royal Arcanum, B. P. O. E., and K. of 
P., in which latter luder he was installed 
chancellor commander in January, 1894. 
Politically he is a Republican, his first 
Presidential vote having been cast for 
Garfield. Green Bay owes much to just 
such enterprising young men as the sub- 
ject of this sketch, who has brought his 
young and acti\'e life to aid in forming 
the micleus around which, in time, will 
cluster the metropolis of northeastern 
Wisconsin. In the building up of his 
Business College, alone, he has been the 
means of bringing to Green Bay many 
enterprising young people, who are bene- 
fited by the example set them by their 
upright principal. 



HENRY RHODE. M. I)., one of 
the oldest and most experienced 
physicians anil surgeons of Green 
Bav, was born in Hanover, Ger- 
many, in 1829, a son of Henry and 
Catherine I'Beil) Rhode. He was edu- 
cated at the Gymnasium at Heili.genstadt, 
Prussia, and studied medicine at the Uni- 
versit\' of Cioettingen. Hano\'er, from 
which he graduated in 1850, and then en- 
tered the Prussian army as surgeon, serv- 
ing until I 854. 

In that year he and his wife came to 
America and located in Toledo, Ohio, 
where his father and mother and two 
sisters died of cholera the same year; they 
had immigrated to America in 1 849. After 
a brief practice in Toledo, the Doctor 
moved to Chilton, Wis., in 1S56; thence 
went to Manitowoc, and in 1S59 came to 
Green Bay, where he has ever since been 



274 



COMMEMOItATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



in active practice. He has achieved a 
fine reputation professionally. He is a 
member of the Fox River Valley Medical 
Society, also of the Brown County Medi- 
cal Society, and is likewise a censor. 

Dr. Rhode has been twice married: 
'first time in Germany, in 1852. to Chris- 
tina Engelhardt, who died in Toledo, 
Ohio, in 1856, two years after the death 
of his parents and two sisters. His sec- 
ond marriage took place in Green Bay, 
"Wis., in i860, to Miss Mary Eva Becker, 
a native of Prusssia and a daughter of 
Bartholmaus and Eva Becker, who were 
«arly settlers of Milwaukee, the former of 
■whom died in Milwaukee in 1853, the lat- 
ter in Green Bay in 1886. To the Doc- 
tor and his wife were born eight children, 
of whom seven are living, as follows: 
Kunigunda, wife of Felix Johannes; Caro- 
line Matilda, wife of H. E. Bacon, Jr. ; 
Katie, now Mrs. E. A. Beaumont; Ottilie, 
wife of Winford Abrams; Ida; Henry P., 
who graduated from the College of Physi- 
cians and Surgeons, of Chicago. 111., and 
located at Forest Junction, Wis., in 1894, 
and Richard A. In politics Dr. Rhode 
is a Democrat, is serving his second term 
as a member of the board of Pension 
Examiners, and has been county physi- 
cian three terms. He and his wife are 
members of the Catholic Church, and 
their consistent Christian walk in life has 
gained for them the respect of all their 
neighbors. 



HANS PETER ANDERSEN, a 
successful farmer of New Den- 
mark township. Brown county, 
was born February 6, 1851, in 
Langeland, Denmark, son of Rasmus 
and Anna (Peterson) Andersen, natives of 
the same place, the latter of whom was a 
daughter of Peter Christensen. 

Anders Christensen, paternal grand- 
father of our subject, had a family of six 
children, namely: Christ, Rasmus, Hans, 
Mary Ann, Nels, and Frederick. Rasmus 
Andersen followed the wagon-maker's 



trade, which he had learned from his 
father, and which he in turn taught to his 
son, our subject, who followed it about 
two }ears in the old country. Seven 
children were born to Rasnuis as follows: 
Anna, .Matilda, Hans Peter, Andrew, Car- 
oline, Mary Ann, and Christiana, all of 
whom are now in this country; two of the 
daughters, Mrs. Rasmus Nelson and Mrs. 
Rasmus Rasmussen, arc residents of New 
Denmark, Brown count\'. In the spring 
of 1867 the family left Denmark and 
landed in New York after a three-weeks" 
voyage, coming directly from that city to 
New Denmark township, Brown county. 
Wis., where they invested in sixty acres 
of land, partly cleared. A log house 
standing on this place was their home for 
six 3'ears, when it was replaced by the 
modern frame dwelling in which our sub- 
ject now lives, and here the parents passed 
the remainder of their lives, the father 
passing from earth August 13, 1890, the 
mother May 24, i8gi. Their remains 
were interred in New Denmark cemetery, 
where a monument now marks their last 
resting-place. 

Hans Peter Andersen remained at 
home with his parents until he was about 
twenty-one years of age, when he engaged 
in carpentering, continuing at same for 
five years. At the end of that time, in 
1877, he bought the home farm, where 
he had been thoroughly trained to agri- 
cultural pursuits, his father having in his 
day been one of the most successful farm- 
ers of the township. On .Xpril 10, 1880, 
our subject was married to Miss Mina 
Nelson, daughter of Niels Peter and Maria 
(Peterson) Nelson,the latter of whom, a na- 
tive of Denmark, married, for her first hus- 
band, James Anderson, and after his de- 
cease was wedded to Niels Peter Nelson. 
The union of Mr. and Mrs. Andersen has 
been blessed with three children, as fol- 
lows: Mary, born December 19, 18S0; 
Alfred, born April 3, 1884, and Agnes, 
born February 21, 1887. During his 
youth our subject had very meager op- 
portunities for obtaining an education, 



COMMEMORATIVE UlUCIiAPUlCAL UECORD. 



but he has acquired a practical business 
training, and by good management has 
made a success of his chosen vocation, 
now owning 138 acres of good land, well 
improved and highly cultivated. A stanch 
Republican in politics, he takes great in- 
terest in the success of his party, and, 
though not an aspirant for office, has served 
his township as school clerk six years and 
supervisor two j'ears; also was treasurer 
of the New Denmark Mutual Home Fire 
Insurance Company eight years. In re- 
ligious connection he and his wife are 
members of the Lutheran Church, in 
which he has been an officer for the past 
fifteen years, serving as trustee, treasurer, 
secretary, and deacon. 



M 



ARTIN VAN ABEL. This lead- 
ing representative farmer citizen 
and prosperous merchant of Hol- 
land township. Brown county, is 
a living link between the pioneer days of 
half a century ago and the present ad- 
vanced period in the history of Wiscon- 
sin. With a.xe in hand he felled the first 
tree on the spot where is now his elegant 
home, and his eyes have beheld the trans- 
formation of impenetrable forests into 
bright fields of golden grain and lu.xuriant 
meadows, fragrant with the perfume of 
honey-bearing clover. 

Mr. Van Abel is a nati\'e of Holland, 
born February 13, 1827, a son of Andrew 
Van Abel, a farmer in comfortable cir- 
cumstances in that world-renowned dairy- 
land, and who was the parent of five chil- 
dren that lived to adult age, of whom 
three are yet living, viz.: William, in 
Holland tov^mship. Brown Co. , Wis. ; 
Ellen, living with our subject: and Mar- 
tin. The father of these died in 1844, 
the mother, whose maiden name was 
Mary Kempen, passing away in 1863. 
They came with some of their children 
to Wisconsin in 1851, three years after 
Martin's emigration. 

Martin Van Abel received a fair edu- 
cation at the public schools of his native 



land until thirteen years of age, when he 
went til work on a farm, and so continued 
till his emigration to the United States, 
which e\ent took place when he was 
twenty-one years old. Ha\ing been 
drafted into the Dutch army, he con- 
cluded the best way to avoid service 
would be to "take French leave," and 
emigrate. Accortlingly, on the good ship 
' ' Liberia, " bound from Amsterdam for the 
United States, he, in the spring of 1848, 
set sail from his native land, arriving, after 
a voyage of fifty-four da}-s, at Boston. 
Thence traveling westward via Buffalo 
(where he took passage on the ' ' Old 
Michigan"), he landed in Green Bay May 
10, same year. From there he came to 
what is now Holland township, in com- 
pany with the following named, who were 
among the first settlers of tlie village of 
Holland : William Kempen, Henr\' Van- 
dehey, Henry Hovener, Henry Gerrits, 
Martin Ver Kuile, Albert Vandenberg, 
John Arts, George Vanden Heuvel, and 
John Verboort. At this time the land was 
all new and uncleared,, in fact, in its 
primeval condition, totally untouched by 
the hand of man, and here they decided 
to form a purely Dutch colony. In order 
that they might not only converse in their 
mother tongue, but also worship as they 
did in their far-away native land, they 
brought with them their own pastor. Rev. 
Godhart. The party came by way of 
Wrightstown, and from there continued 
their journey by teams, in the direction 
of their destination : but at the end of 
three miles they found themselves con- 
fronted with an impenetrable forest, de- 
fying farther progress with anything in the 
shape of horse and wagon; consequently 
the teams were left behind, and all the 
goods and chattels carried through the 
woods on the backs of the immigrant 
colonists. Arrived at last at their goal, 
they made their first settlement on a piece 
of land now owned by Martin Van Abel. 
Shanties or huts were hurriedly built of 
bark stripped from the basswood tree, and 
for a long time this was their only shelter. 



276 



COMMEifORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL HECORD. 



Each member of this party took up land 
for his own account. 

During^ the first year Martin \"an Abel, 
beinj; younj;' and strong, worked for some 
of the others who liad families, and as 
there were no roads of any kind, bound- 
aries, farms or fences, he found plenty 
to do at chopping down the giants of the 
forest, and out of the hewn logs building 
dwellings of a more substantial nature. 
The first land purchased l)y Mr. Van Abel 
was forty acres, all timber-covered, in 
Calumet county, one-half mile from the 
village of Holland, for which land he paid 
ten shillings per acre, and here he cut the 
first tree that ever fell to axe on the 
place, all the preliminary imi)rovements 
on the place being made h\ his own 
hand; and, as there was no means of re- 
moving the trees as they fell, huge bon- 
fires were made, which consumed many a 
thousand feet of \aluable timber. .About 
1862 our subject removed to Section 35, 
Holland townshiji, where for one year he 
lived on rented land, then in Section 34 
he bought the twehe acres whereon is 
now his home. 

Hut Mr. \'an .\bel, since coming to 
Holland township, has been more inter- 
ested in mercantile pursuits than in farm- 
ing. Shortly after his arrival in the vil- 
lage of Holland, in partnership with his 
brother-in-law. John Wassenberg, he 
opened out a mercantile business, con- 
ducted l)\' them two years, at the end of 
which time our subject bought out his part- 
ner and afterward carried on the store alone 
until 1S80. In that year fire destroyed 
his store and stock in trade, causing him 
great loss, as he had but little insurance. 
Nothing daunted, however, he rebuilt at 
once, bought a fresh stock, later adding 
thereto a saloon business, all of which he 
has since conducted with eminent success, 
the growth of his trade necessitating the 
enlargement of his premises from time 
to time, until now he owns quite a com- 
modious establishment. To his land he 
has, by (lurchases at different periods, 
added until now he has i jo acres. 



In October, 1861. Mr. Van Abel was 
married, in Holland township, to Miss 
Ellen Wassenberg, a native of Holland, 
born May 16, 1842, a daughter of William 
Wassenberg, who came to the United 
States with his family in 185 1 on the 
same boat in which the mother of our sub- 
ject and others of the family crossed the 
Atlantic. To this union came children 
as follows : Born in Calumet county — 
John, now a farmer of Holland township; 
born in the \illage of Holland — Mary, 
now the wife of Theodore Broeren, of 
Portland, Oregon ; Hattie. Mrs. Henry 
Van Dcuren, of Green Hay; William (i), 
deceased at the age of two years; Minnie, 
one of the Sisters of St. Francis, in Mani- 
towoc, Wis. ; Michael M., at home; Henry 
H.. a graduate of Green Bay Business 
College ; Lizzie, who died young; Aimie, 
William (2), and Anton, all three at 
home; Bardene, deceased; and .Albert, at 
home. Mr. and Mrs. Van Abel and fam- 
ily are prominent members of St. Francis 
Church, at Holland. Politically he has 
always l^een a stanch Democrat, and has 
served as supervisor, although he has 
never sought office, his many private in- 
terests demanding and receiving all his 
time and attention. 

Mr. Van Abel is one of the four yet 
living of the original party of pioneers 
who came into the Holland settlement in 
1848 -nearly half a century ago — during 
which long period he has witnessed mar- 
velous changes and experienced hardships 
imknown to and not readily realized by 
the present commercial generation. He 
is a living type of the progressive man, 
who from boyhood, with but little educa- 
tion and no knowledge of the English 
language, essays to build up a home and 
reputation in the wilds of a new part of a 
new country, and succeeds by his own 
brawny muscle and indomitable will 
power. He was confrontetl with the 
stern forest, and he sulidued it ; he en- 
countered innumerable difficulties, and he 
overcame them; he met with ruinous ad- 
versity, but Pb(tnix-like, he built uji bet- 



COMMKMUUA TIVI-: JJIUGUAPIIICAL RECORD. 



377 



ter and hit;her. He and his amiable wife 
had a large family to rrar, and they 
brought tliem iiji nobly in the backwoods, 
educating them as well as il they had 
li\ed in the tinest city, and taught them 
to know and to live up to the knowledge 
that they are worthy children of worthy 
pioneer parents, respected everywhere. 



FRANK FROSCH, the postmaster 
of Wa_\side, Morrison township, 
I'lrown couiitw and a pros])erous 
merchant, is a son ot (icorge 
Frosch la rope-maker), anati\eof Baden, 
Germany, born April 23, 1817, son of 
Alexander Frosch, a merchant and also a 
rt)pe-maker. 

Ge(n"ge Frosch also served, uiidei- the 
military laws of his country, as a soldier 
for three years, and therefore became a 
free v\i\/.en. At the age of tv\'enty-six he 
had accunndated some means b\' hard 
w'ork, and determined then to i-ome to 
the United States. Embarking at Havre, 
France, he reached New York City after 
a passage of forty days, and thence went 
to Rochester, N. Y. , where, even at his 
age, he began to learn coopering, at that 
time a ver}' lucrative trade. A year or 
two later he mo\'e(l to Ohio, worked at 
the same trade a short time, ant! then 
came to Wisconsin, landing at Milwaukee; 
here he worked at coopering a Near or 
more, and then went to Cedarburg, Ozau- 
kee county, where he was employed as 
clerk by a Mr. Honnafer, proprietor ol the 
" Washington House." It was there that 
he met, and married, on Ajiril 6, 1853, 
Elizabeth Hangen, who was born Marcdi 
17, I S3 I, in the village of Sprendlingen, 
Prcjvince of Hesse-Darmstadt, Gernuiny, 
a daughter of Jacob and Catherine (Bal- 
ser) Hangen, who came to the United 
States in 1843. To the marriage of Mr. 
Frosch was born. January 20, 1854, one 
child, Frank. Late in the fall of 1856, 
relinquishing coopering at Cedarburg, 
which trade lie had followed since his 
marriage, Mr. Frosch moved to Morrison 



township, I^rown rount\', and settled on 
forty aeies ol land \\r had preNiouslj' 
bargained for in Section iS, S. li. The 
land was new, with oul\ a lew trees felled 
around a shantv l)uilt b\ the lormer owner. 
No roads W(_-re 111 the neighborhood, ex- 
cepting a loot-path thai led to the shant)'. 
Bear and deer weic pleiits, with other 
wild ganu', and woKes were \ et to l)e 
foimd to make night hideous with their 
howding. Mr. Froseh ereeti'il a small 
worksho]) on his )ilaee, and made (jnite a 
comfortal)le lixing lor his laiiiil\. (_)n 
this tra<t, on XiAcinber iS. 1807. was 
born the second son, Ceorge. .\ lew 
\ears later .Mr. ("ieor,L;e l-'iosch bought 
eighty acres in Section 17. opjiosite his 
first purchase, owning e\a'ntiially 124 
acres, which he eomcited into an excel- 
lent farm. .\bout 1 8(i(i lir retired to 
W'ayside, where his death oeeui"re<l I'ebru- 
ary 24, 1892, after one week's illness 
Irom la ''gri|)pe." f-Ie was a sincere Lu- 
theran in his religious faith, and in poli- 
tics was a Democrat, but did not aspire 
to public office. Mr. Frosch led a \irtu- 
ons and industrious life', one worthy the 
stiid}' ol the rising generation. He in- 
herite<i nothing to .give him a start, and 
yet died a compaiatively wealthy man. 
He came to .\merica with but a few hard- 
earned dollars in his possession; finally 
settled in a wilderness, whi(di he made to 
■' blossom like the rose;" worked at a trade, 
which, in his day, was unaided by the 
machinery of tlie present day, but all 
done by manual labor; won the respect of 
all who knew him, and left to his progeny 
sidTicient for an honorable l^egimiing of 
their (diosen callings. His estimable 
widow, a member of the Lutheran Church, 
is now residing with her son George. 
That she has always been an invahiable 
and earnest helpmeet to her honored 
husband it is superihious to add. 

Frank Frosch was hardly three years 
of age when he was brought to Morrison 
township by his parents. In this wilder- 
ness he was reared on the farm and in- 
ured to all the hardships of a pioneer life. 



27S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



His education was acquired at the district 
school, and was sufficient for all the pur- 
poses of a hardy but intelligent farmer. 
At the age of twenty-one he went to De- 
Pere and engaged in business with Jacob 
Falck, thus increasing his store of knowl- 
edge. In a short time, however, he re- 
turned to Wayside, and purchased the 
general store of Peter Axen, which was 
then, in 1876, a small affair, but now. 



under Mr. Frosch's 



has 



become one of the most thriving and 
largest business houses of the town. Mr. 
Frosch was united in marriage, March 22, 
1876, at De Pere, with Miss Elizabeth 
Beattie, a native of that city, and the 
children born to this marriage are as fol- 
lows: Raymond G., Frank H., Estella 
A., and Cora E. In politics Mr. Frosch 
is a Democrat; he was the first postmas- 
ter at Wayside, and has so efficiently per- 
formed the duties of the position that he 
has held the office through all the admin- 
istrations ever since; he has also been 
township treasurer for the past two years. 
His business interests have grown apace, 
and in 1892 he took into partnership his 
brother. George, the firm now standing as 
Frosch Bros. Mr. and Mrs. Frank Frosch 
are members of the Lutheran Church, and 
are highly respected in the social circles 
of Wayside and the entire township of 
Morrison. 



ANDREW HIBBERD. a resident 
of Rockland township, Brown 
county, was born August 8, 1846, 
in the State of Vermont, son of 
Lawrence and Julia (Hall) Hibberd, both 
of whom were natives of Canada. 

Lawrence Hibberd removed with his 
parents to New York State when but a 
child, and resided near Plattsburg for a 
number of years. He was a shoemaker 
by trade. In Canada he was married to 
Miss Julia Hall, and they had a family of 
eight children — six sons and two daugh- 
ters — as fcjllows: Lawrence, of Nebraska; 
Charles, John, and Silas, all residents of 



Rockland; Edmund, of Glenmore; An- 
drew, our subject; Angeline, Mrs. Frank 
Gennette, of Dixon, 111. ; and Mary, who 
died in 1894 (she was first married to 
Oliver D. Colburn, and subsequently to 
John Provost, of Fond du lac. Wis., who 
preceded her to the grave). Of these, 
Andrew and Angeline were born in the 
United States, the others in Canada. The 
father died in 1S51 in New York, and 
was buried in Plattsburg ceineter\'. The 
widowed mother and children continued 
to reside near Plattsburg until 1855, when 
they came westward to l)e Pere, Wis. , jour- 
neying via Toronto, Canada, to Green Bay, 
where they landed November i, 1855, and, 
arriving in De Pere a few days later, rented 
a house there for a time. The sons who 
were able to work found employment in' 
the logging camps then so numerous in 
Brown county, and thus assisted in sup- 
porting the famih'. In the spring of 1857 
they removed to Rockland township on a 
tract of forty acres in Section 9, for which 
they paid $335. going into debt for the 
amount. They built the first house on 
the place, which was still uncleared and in 
a primitive coniiition, and commenced the 
work of clearing, a difficult task with the 
few rude implements they had to work 
with; and, as the land did not yield enough 
to support the family for the first few 
years, the boys found work with the neigh- 
boring farmers. The mother lived on 
this farm until her death, which occurred 
November 8, 1880. when she was seventy- 
two years of age; her remains now rest in 
De Pere cemetery. In religious faith she 
was a member of St. Francis Church, 
De Pere. 

Andrew Hibberd received in his vouth 
but limited educational advantages, being 
obliged, after the settlement of the family 
in Rockland township, to assist with the 
work on the home place. He was reared 
amid all the hardships of pioneer farm 
life, and was also thoroughly initiated into 
the logging business, which he followed to 
some extent. He lived at home until 
December 28, 1861, when he enlisted, at 



COMMEMORA TIVK BIOGHAFUICA I, RECORD. 



-79 



De Perc, in Company F, Fourteenth 
Wis. \'. I., and was sent \\itl\ his coni- 
mand to Fond du Lac, thence to St. 
Louis, and tlience to Tenni'ssee, \\ liere 
he first saw active service in the enf^age- 
ments at Pittsburg Landing; then, witli 
the Western army, followed the engage- 
ments at Corinth, Holly Spirings, luka and 
Vicksburg, where he was dischargeil De- 
cember 28, 1863, on account of disability 
resulting from exposure: he was wounded 
in the foot at the battle of Corinth. Re- 
turning to Brown county, he shipped, the 
the following spring, with Capt. Campbell 
on the brig ''Oleander, " of l)uffalo, serv- 
ing for a time before the mast and later 
as second mate, thus continuing until the 
end of the seas<.)n. On No\'eniber 20, 
1864, he enlisted, at Chicago, in the 
Ninth III. \'. C, joineti his command at 
Nashville, Tenn., and during his second 
term of service participated in the second 
fight at Nashville, thence going to Tupelo 
Creek, where they had si.x weeks of hard 
fighting. They then crossed to Eastport 
in pursuit of Hood, and after continuing 
the chase for some time returned to East- 
port on garrison duty and general recruit. 
They were next engaged in destroying 
local gun manufactories in northern Ala- 
bama, and later went to Decatur and 
Montgomery, where our subject received 
his discharge, and, returning to Brown 
county in November, 1865, continued to 
live on the homestead until his marriage. 
On November 13, 1869, at De Pere, 
Mr. Hibberd wedded Miss Philomine 
Floury, who was born lune 13, 1852, in 
Francis Creek, Manitowoc county, daugh- 
ter of Louis and Margaret (Boprey) 
Floury, the former of whom was a native 
of Canada. At the time of his marriage 
Mr. Hibberd purchased forty acres of land 
in Section 9, adjoining the home farm on 
the north, and he and his wife commenced 
housekeeping in an old log house wliich is 
still .standing. Only about half of this 
tract was cleared, all the improvements 
which have since been made on the place 
have been placed there by Mr. Hibberd 



or under his direction; he has also added 
forty acres tn the original farm, making a 
comfortable place of eighty acres, well 
equipped with buildings, etc. Onr sub- 
ject and wife had children as follows: 
Andrew, Jr., Idattie J., Frank E., Wil- 
liam E., La\ina M., bki E. (deceased in 
infancy), and Louis I^. Politically Mr. 
Hibberd is one of the leaders of the Ke- 
]niblican jiarty in his townshiii; in relig- 
ious connection he and his family are 
members of St. Josejih's Church, De 
Pere. 



M 



ARTIN CURRAN, who is a 

thrift\' and ]ir<isperiins farmer of 
Glenmore township. Brown 
county, was born, in 1822, in 
County Kerry, Ireland, son of Cornelius, 
(a farmer) and Mary (Kennedy) Curran. 
\\\M^ had a family of six children — four 
sons and two daughters — of whom M;irtin 
is the third son and the fourth ihild in 
order of birth. 

Our subject receised a meager educa- 
tion in the schools of his native comitry, 
and was reareil to farming, living at home 
v\ith his parents. In the spring of 1847 
he determined to seek his fortune in the 
United States, and accordingl}' took pas- 
sage at Limerick on the sailing-vessel 
"Souvenir," bound for Ouebec, where 
he landed after a voyage of eighteen days, 
a stranger in a strange land, and with but 
twelve shillings in his [locket. l>ut he 
was young and strong and willing to work, 
and for several days was employed around 
the docks, unloading vessels. He then 
came to Burlington, Vt., and thence to 
the village of Sharon, where he secured 
work as a laborer on a railroad, remain- 
ing there one season, and here he received 
the first twenty dollars he e\'er earned, 
which was at Duce sent home to his 
mother. He continued to do railroad 
work, at various jilaces, in Bellows I'alls, 
(Vt.), New Hampshire, Springfield (Ohio), 
and Columbus (Ohio), ('where he worked 
several years on the C. C, C. & I. rail- 



28o 



COMMEMOliATH-E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



road, which was then in course of con- 
iitructioii;. and managed to save a little. 
At that time land was cheap in northern 
Wisconsin, and Mr. Curran niij:jrated 
to this then new State, coining by rail 
and water to Green Bay, and thence to 
Kaukauna. where he worked one summer. 
The preceding fall (1853) he had in- 
vested in 1 10 acres of land in Section 6, 
Glenmore township, on which not a tree 
had been felled, or an improvement of any 
kind made. He commenced to clear 
it during the winter, doing the best he 
could, in the meantime making his home 
with his brother-in-law, Thomas Sullivan. 
The entire surrounding country was yet 
in its primiti\e state; wild animals were 
still numerous; there were no roads to the 
farm, the nearest highway being the Dixon 
road, which led east from I)e Pere. The 
task of clearing was a difficult one, and 
proceeded slowly, for the pioneers had 
but a few rude tools to work with. A 
few years later a log house was erected 
on the place, and it still stands on the 
original site, but Mr. Curran did not make 
a permanent residence on his land until 
after his marriage. 

In 1857 he married, in Green Bay, 
Miss Mary Donahue, who was born, in 
1833, in County Kerry, Ireland, a daugh- 
ter of Timothy Donahue, who came to 
the United States when Mary was a child, 
anil the family resided in Massachusetts 
until a few years before her marriage, 
when they came to Wisconsin. Mr. and 
Mrs. Curran moved to the farm shortly 
after their marriage, and here the\- have 
ever since remained. He has spent his 
best years clearing, improving and culti- 
vating this land, and, with each succeed- 
ing season, the farm has become more and 
more productive, yielding a better income. 
Since his settlement here he has devoted 
himself to farming e.xclusively, and, by 
hard work and good management, has 
succeeded in carving a tine property from 
the sombre forest. Our subject lias won the 
esteem of all who have come in contact 
with him for his integrity and upright 



dealing, and he is well and favorably 
known among the citizens of Glenmore, 
where the entire famil}' are held in the 
highest respect. Politically he is a Dem- 
ocrat, but has never given any of his 
time to party affairs, preferring to attend 
strictly to business. In religious con- 
nection the family are members of St. 
francis Church, De Pere. 

Mr. and Mrs. Curran had ten children, 
all born on the farm, as follows: Mary 
(Mrs. Edward Keegan) and Ellen (Mrs. 
Robert Miers), both of Milwaukee; Cor- 
nelius, of Medford, Wis. ; Thomas and 
Catherine, at home; Daniel M., a machin- 
ist, of Milwaukee; Margaret A. and 
Timoth}-, at home; Patrick, deceased at 
the age of nineteen }ears; and Julia, de- 
ceased when a }ear and a half old. In 
March, 1865, our subject, enlisted at 
Green Bay, in Company F, Fiftieth Regi- 
ment Wis. \'. I. ; was sent to Madison, 
thence to St. Louis, and for a time was 
engaged in scouting and on guard duty 
through northern Missouri. He was next 
located at Fort Leavenworth and Fort 
Rice, and in May, 1866, was discharged 
at Madison, returning home immediatel)'. 



Wii.l.l.\M ROBERTENDEKHV. 
one of the wealthiest, as well as 
one of the most highly respected 
and prominent citizens of Preble 
township. Brown county, is a native of 
England, born January 30, 1841, in the 
town of Bolinbroke, Lincolnshire. 

His father, John Enderby, a native of 
the same county, was a laborer and small 
farmer, industrious and honest, but not 
overburdened with an overshare of this 
world's goods. He married Eliza SheriiT, 
and. after the birth of our subject, con- 
cluded to come to the United States, here 
to select a new home for the family, and 
at the same time endeavor to find his 
wife's brother, Robert Sheriff, wlm was 
supposed to be somewhere in Wisconsin, 
near Green Bay. Accordingly, leaving 
his wife and voung son in England, he 




-^./^.^^..uuAaJj^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPUICAL llECOHD. 



2S1 



took passage in Deceniber, 1852, for the 
United States, landing after a six-weeks' 
voyage at New York. On his way west- 
ward from there he was taken sick at 
Amsterdam, N. J., necessitating his con- 
finetnent to hospital some six or eight 
weeks, and on recovery proceeded on his 
journey, traveling b_\' rail and boat to 
Milwaukee, from which point, although 
still unwell and feeble, he walked to 
Green Bay, leaving, in Milwaukee, his 
trunk, which he never saw or heard of 
again, .\rrived in Green Bay, he en- 
quired of John Day as to the whereabouts 
of Robert Sheriff, and learned that he was 
conducting a farm in Freedom township, 
Outagamie county. Thither Mr. Kn- 
derby went, and, renting a farm, sent 
home to England for his wife and son, 
who sailed October 16, 1853, from Liver- 
pool on theship "Continental," onboard 
of which were over one thousand Irish 
emigrants (in eleven days 1,024 ''i^'<^ of 
cholera). In twenty-six days tlie wife 
and son landed in New York, and their 
passage to Buffalo being prepaid, started 
to continue their journey; but through 
some rascality or glaring mistake they 
were made to pay their fare over again, 
which, however, was ultimately repaid, as 
well as damages incurred, legal proceed- 
ings ha\'ing been commenced. On their 
arrival at Sheboygan, Wis . they found 
that, naxigation having closed for the sea- 
son, the boat they had come on would 
proceed no further, which was most per- 
plexing to Mrs. Enderby, as her money 
was completely exhausted, and she and 
her little boy were utter strangers in a 
strange land. In Sheboygan they went 
to a boarding-house, where the mother 
worked for her board, the son helping 
around the barn; and, as soon as sleighing 
set in, thewav-worn, weary travelers, leav- 
ing their trunks as security for transpor- 
tation to Green Bay, set out for their des- 
tination by sleigh, via Fond du Lac. ar- 
riving at Green Bay in January, 1854, 
where John Day assisted them to reach 
their future home in Freedom townshiji, 

16 



Outagamie county, a niece of which said 
John Dav, to use our subject's own wonls, 
"by some unknown mystery' became my 
wife. " 

On this farm they lived two years, and 
then Mr. Enderby pre-empted eighty acres 
of land, to which the family moved and 
thereon lived a year, their first habitation 
being a log shanty, and the nearest market 
town. Green Bay, distant some eighteen 
miles. In 1857 they removed to the 
farm of eighty acres in Preble township. 
Brown county, which Mr. Enderby had 
purchased, going in debt $1,800, retain- 
ing, however, the property in Outagamie 
countv. For one year, or until 1858, 
they made their home on this new farm, 
but, owing to the financial depression of 
that year, the place was lost to them, and 
for the next two years they had to rent it. 
In the fall of i860 Mr. Enderby purchased 
sixty acres, also in Preble township, the 
farm our subject now (jwns, at that time 
totally unimproved, with no building 
thereon of any kind; consei]uently for 
three years the family made their home 
on an adjoining forty-acre farm, then 
coming to their own place, where a dwell- 
ing and some outhouses had been put up, 
many other improvements also being 
made. Here the father died September 
5, 1870, the mother on May 4, 1874, aged 
fifty-six and sixty years respectively, and 
they sleep their last sleep in Green Bay 
cemetery. They were members of the 
Episcopal Church, and in politics Mr. 
Enderbv was a stanch Democrat. 

W. R. Enderby, the subject proper of 
this memoir, was a boy of about twelve 
summers when he accompanied his mother 
on the tedious journey from England to 
Wisconsin, and at the country winter 
schools of that period he received but a 
limited education. At the age of fifteen 
he began to work in the lumber camps, 
saving his earnings, which went toward 
paying for his father's land, thereby being 
of great service to his parents, and 1 with 
the exception of the time passeil in the 
army), he so continued until his marriage, 



284 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



employing himself one entire winter mak- 
ing rails to fence the farm with. 

On October 19, 1861, Mr. Enderby 
enlisted in Company H, Twelfth Wis. V. 
I., three-years' service, and was honor- 
ably discharged at Natchez, Miss., De- 
cember 31, 1863, when he veteranized, 
re-enlisting .same day in the same com- 
pany and regiment, his final discharge at 
Louisville, K)., under special order of 
the War Department, bearing date July 
16, 1865. He was the first man to enlist 
from Preble township, and the first 
veteran to re-enlist, a fact worthy of note. 
After his first enlistment the regiment 
rendezvoused at Madison, Wis. , and be- 
ing then sent to the front, participated in 
all the exposures and discomforts incident 
to the preliminary movements of the 
army in an inclement season, including 
long and wearisome marches, which oc- 
cupied their time until the spring of 1863, 
when at Coldwater, Miss., they experi- 
enced their first engagement with the 
Confederates. After this came the siege 
of Vicksburg, where the regiment dis- 
played great gallantry, taking thirt}- 
one thousand six hundred prisoners, one 
hundred and seventy-two canon, and about 
sixty thousand muskets; part of the regi- 
ment participated in the action at Jack- 
son. In August, same jear, the bri- 
gade to which the Twelfth was at- 
tached was ordered to Natchez, where it 
remained until it was re-organized, and a 
majority of the men had veteranized. It 
then took part in what is known as the 
Meridian expedition, the object of which 
was to cripple the resources of the enemy, 
and during this important affair it did a 
vast amount of useful work, entailing a 
great deal of arduous duty, a march of 
400 miles being, perhaps, not the least 
part of it. At Jackson, Miss., they 
smashed forty-four locomotives, burnt 
twelve hundred cars and destroyed a lot 
of railroad track. 

In the spring of 1863 our subject re- 
turned home on veteran furlough, and 
on rejoining his regiment it was assigned 



to the Army of the Tennessee, taking part 
in several of the actions preceding the 
Atlanta campaign, under Sherman. At 
Hunts\ille, Ala., Mr. Enderby was taken 
sick, and was first sent to the hospital at 
Huntsville, Ala., later to those at Nash- 
ville and Louisville. After recovery he 
set out to rejoin his regiment, which was 
still with Sherman's army, his route being 
via New York, Pocotahgo, S. C. and 
Wilmington, N. C. where he made con- 
nection with the command. On the day 
before Johnson's surrender, while on 
picket duty at Pocotaligo, he was struck 
in the throat by a spent rifle ball. The 
hardships endured on the Meridian march 
produced varicose veins in the right leg, 
while the march to Washington, after the 
close of hostilities, brought the same 
trouble to his left leg, by all of which it 
will be seen that as a brave and lojal sol- 
dier our subject suffered considerably. 

After his discharge from the army Mr. 
Enderbj' returned home to Preble town- 
ship, and, before once more settling down 
to the pursuits of peace, was married, 
September S, 1865, to Miss Eliza Aim 
Jeffrey, who was born June 8, 1845, in 
Scott township. Brown Co., Wis., a 
daughter of Thomas and Eliza (Day) 
Jeffrey, natives of Lincolnshire, England. 
To this union children, as follows, were 
born: Anna Eliza, now wife of Joshua 
Ritchie, of Green Bay; John T. , at home; 
May L., now Mrs. Frederick Huetters, 
of Creen Hay; William L. , married to- 
Miss Clara A. Sawjer, also in (ircen Bay; 
Carrie J., George R., Wilbert M., Albert 
H., and Duain M., all four at home; 
Melinda M., deceased at the age of two 
years; and Lottie A. and Loella A., both 
at home. After marriage our subject and 
his young wife made their home on the 
farm of her parents for one year, and then 
moved to Fort Howard, where they lived 
three years, he conducting a butcher busi- 
ness and farm. He is now the owner of 
seventy-nine acres of land, eight of which 
are covered with an orchard, the finest in 
Brown county, and he gives considerable^ 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOGIiAPlIlCAL UK CORD. 



2S5 



attention to fruit-growing, both large and 
small, as well as the cultivation of 
honey bees. 

Politically Mr. Enderby is a Kepub- 
lican, though the son of a stanch Dem- 
ocrat, whose vote, on the occasion of the 
first Presidential election after the war, 
the son nullified by voting for Grant. 
But no more filial son breathes, as proven 
by his many unselfish acts of generosit)- 
to his parents, whom he has aided in 
many ways, some of which have already 
been recounted in this sketch. From 
his pay as a soldier he saved nearly every 
cent, in all sending home $590 to assist 
inicancelling a six-hundred-dollar mort- 
gage held over the home farm, thereby 
purging the property of all liens. Not 
many years ago " Bill Enderby," as he is 
familiarly called, was struggling along 
"in the same old rut," making a bare 
living on his farm; but ha\'ing taken up 
fruit culture and made himself thoroughly 
acquainted with the business by reading 
and observation, he has attained an emi- 
nent success, and to-day not a more pros- 
perous farmer is to be found in all Preble 
township, a consummation he has reached 
solely b_\- industry, study, hard work, and 
untiring energy, supported by level- 
headed, sound judgment. At the present 
writing he is in very poor health. 



A P. SAWYER, who, for the past 
twentj' years, has been a well- 
known resident of Preble town- 
ship, Brown county, is a native of 
New York State, born November 2, 1847, 
in the town of Fulton, Oswego county, of 
hardy New England stock. 

Grandfather Thomas Sawyer was born 
in the town of Orford, Grafton Co., N. 
H., son of Jonathan Sawyer, and was 
reared to farming pursuits. He was mar- 
ried in New Hampshire to Miss Asenith 
Sargent, daughter of Timothy Sargent, 
who was a soldier in the Revolution and 
received a pension for his services. Thomas 
and Asenith Sawyer became the parents 



of five children — two sons and three 
daughters — of whcjm, Thomas, the father 
of our subject, was the second in order of 
birth. 

Th(jmas Sawyer was born juh" 6, 
1.S07, in Orford, (irafton Co., N. H., was 
reared a farmer bo_\-, and at the age of 
sixteen commenced to learn the trade of 
tanner and currier, in which he continued 
until he reached his majority. He re- 
mained in New Hampshire until the spring 
of 1834, when he removed to New York 
State, and for four months was employed 
as steersman and bowsman on the Erie 
canal. Then for some months he drove 
a stage between White Hall and Rutland, 
subsequently following the same vocation 
at Plattsburg, N. Y. From there he came 
to Detroit, Mich., and engaged as stage 
driver between Detroit and Dearbornville, 
als(5 between Ann Arbor and Lima, and 
for some time also acted as road agent 
from Ann Arbor to Kalamazoo. Return- 
ing to New York he worked in a livery 
stable, and also as driver from Troy to 
Sand Lake, Pittstown, Schenectady, 
Albany, Lebanon Springs, and various 
other places until 1836, when he came 
westward to Lake county, Ind. In Por- 
ter county, same State, he commenced 
farming, also carrying mail and conducting 
a tavern, and here, in February, 1840, he 
was married to Miss Amanda E. Cady, who 
was a native of Clinton county, N. Y. , 
born in 181 5, and had come to Indiana to 
live with her brother. After marriage 
Mr. Sawyer removed to Crown Point, 
Lake county, and there engaged in farm- 
ing, later embarking in the hotel business 
at that place, and conducting same un- 
til 1846, when he removed to Illinois, 
taking up his residence in Chicago. Here, 
for seven years, he was in the employ of 
Asahel Pierce, as agent, selling agricultural 
implements and buying stock, subsequently 
working one year in a wagon shop, and 
then for another year following teaming 
on his own account. He next removed 
to Northfield township, also in Cook 
county, and lived there for some time on 



286 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



rented land, later followinf; farniinji sev- 
eral years in McHenry county, 111. In 
the fall of 1869 he went to Sac City. Sac 
Co., Iowa, where his son, James .A., had 
pre\ ioiisly located, and there resided un- 
til January, 1893, when he came to Preble 
township. Brown Co. , Wis. , to pass his 
remaining years at the home of his son, 
A. P. He is a hearty, well-preserved 
man, and though, over eighty-se\en years 
old, still reads without the aid of glasses. 
His first \ote was cast for John Quincy 
Adams, and he has never missed but one 
Presidential election since then, and that 
was when Gen. Scott was candidate in 
1S52, remaining a stanch member of the 
Whig party and its successor, the Repub- 
lican party. Mrs. Amanda Sawyer died 
in Chicago in June, 1850, of cholera. 
She was the mother of three children — two 
sons, A. P., and James A. (of Sac City, 
Iowa), and a daughter, who died when 
ten months old. In Januarj', 1852, Mr. 
Sawyer wedded, for his second spouse, 
Mrs. Susan E. (Montgomery) Pratt, a 
widow, who was born in Oswego county, 
N. v., daughter of Capt. Archibald Mont- 
gomery, of the British navy. This wife 
passed from earth in December, 1868, in 
Woodstock, McHenry Qo.. 111., without 
issue. 

A. P. Sawyer, whose name introduces 
these lines, received his education in the 
common schools of Cook count)'. III., 
principally after reaching his fourteenth 
year, as previous to that time he cared 
little or nothing for books. On February 
19, 1864, when but a little over sixteen 
years of age, he enlisted, at Elgin, 111., 
in Company G, Fifty-second 111. V. I., 
and was sent witii his conunand to Pulaski, 
T6nn., where they drilled for six weeks. 
They were then sent out foraging, and 
while climbing into a wagon, our subject 
had his right foot crushed, for a few days 
being obliged to remain in the cf)nvalescent 
camp at Pulaski. .After this he was sent 
to Tunnel Hill, on railway patrol, being 
there for about two weeks, and then going 
to Prospect, Tenn., helping in the garri- 



son fort and guarding railway bridges. At 
this time our subject was ordered to 
Atlanta, where his regiment lay, and he 
was under fire every day during the siege of 
that city, which lasted about one hundred 
daj's, after which his regiment was ordered 
round to Jonesboro, which they captured, 
thereby causing Gen. Hood to evacuate 
Atlanta and the place to capitulate. After 
this our subject proceeded with Sherman 
on his march to the sea, taking an active 
part in all the engagements cii route. He 
was present at the surrender of Gen. John- 
ston, at Raleigh, N. C, and took part in 
the Grand Review at Washington, D. C 
from that city going by rail to Parkers- 
burg, W. Va. , thence down the Ohio river 
to Louisville. Ky., where he was nnistered 
out. On July 12, 1865, he recei\ed an 
honorable discharge at Camp Douglass, 
Chicago, then proceeding to McHenry 
county. 111., where his father was residing 
at that time, remained there a few months, 
and then went to Northheld township. 
Cook Co., III., where he followed farming. 
WHien but a boy of fifteen Mr. Sawyer 
had served a three-months' apprenticeship 
at Woodstock, 111., under George R. Bas- 
sett, and he followed his trade and paper- 
hanging for some years. In July. 1869, 
he went to Madison, Wis., to look for 
work, and here followed his trade for 
a while, his first work being for railroads, 
and as he was a good workman he readily 
found employment with the St. Paul Rail- 
way Company in the Prairie du Chien 
branch, painting bridges and depots. He 
also worked on the same road as fireman 
ten months, and then commenced the 
study of dentistry under Norman Ellis, of 
Madison; but this being distasteful to him 
he returned to his trade, engaging with 
Memhart & Robbins, painters, at Madi- 
s<in. For some time he was bar-tender 
in that city, but in 1871 removed to Osh- 
kosh. Wis., where he worked at his trade, 
also logging, and remained there until 
1873. in which }ear he came to Green 
Bay. In 1874 he rem()\ed to his present 
farm in Section 25, Preble ti)wnship. 



COMMKMOliA TIVK BIOGRAPUICAL liECOUD. 



zSj 



Brown comity, at that time a perfect wil- 
derness, and here he has ever since made 
his home, engaging to some extent in fruit 
farming, in which industry he is a pioneer 
in his section. He has not abandc^ned 
his trade, however, for during the season 
he continues to follow same in Green 
Bay, doing paper-hanging and general 
painting work, besides carriage painting. 
On July 14, 1872, Mr. Sawyer was 
married, in Oshkosh, to Miss Annie M. 
Maus, who was born in Preble township. 
Brown county, in 1849, and to this mar- 
riage came three children, namely: Annie 
C. (.\frs. W. L. Enderby), of Green l^ay, 
and James T. and Mary A.. li\iiig at 
home. The mother of these died in 
Preble township May I ^. 1879, a member 
of the Catholic Church, and her remains 
now rest in Bay Settlement cemetery. 
Mr. Sawyer married, on .\ugiist 19, 1883, 
for his second wife, Mrs. Mary E. (Vieu) 
Ballinger (widow of Albert Ballinger), who 
was born in I^awrence township. Brown 
county, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth 
Vieu, French Canadians, who came to 
Lawrence township in an early day. Mrs. 
Sawyer is a member of the Catholic 
Church. Politically our subject is a Re- 
publican, but gives little time to politics; 
socially he is a member of T. O. Howe 
Post, No. 124, G. A. R., of which he is 
chaplain 



JOHN COENEN, for over forty-five 
years an esteemed resident of Dc Pere 
township, Brown county, and vicin- 
ity, where he ranks among the pros- 
perous self-made agriculturists, is a native 
of Holland, born October 28, 1834. 

He is a son of Theodore Coencn, a 
farmer of that country, who had a family 
of nine children — seven sons and two 
daughters — of whom John was the third 
son and the fourth child in the order of 
birth. About 1848, seeing that his chil- 
dren could have better opportunities in 
the United States, Theodore Coenen sold 
his little property and sailed with his 



family from I-iottenlam in a \'essel bound 
for Philadelphia. riiey landed in that 
city after a \oyage of iort\ -ei^lit days, 
and then, their destination beini; in ISrown 
count}'. Wis., prcjceeded at mue by rail 
to Albany, N. Y., thence \ia the Erie 
canal to Buffalo, and fiom there by the 
old steamer " Michigan " to Green Bay, 
Wis., where they lamled early in [une, 
1848, The famil)' was one of ten who 
made their home in a house m Sliaiit\- 
town, where, one week alter their arri\al, 
Mr. Coenen secureil work. For a short 
time they lived in Ue Pere, then but a 
small village, and next moved across the 
river to a place alon;; the .\sliw anbenon 
pike, where they farnieii lor tliret' years. 
They then purchased forty acres ni De- 
Pere township (where our subject now 
lives, which at that time was government 
land and claimed by an individual], pay- 
ing the claimant one hundred and fifty 
dollars for his title and ten shillings an 
acre to the government. Twelve acres of 
this tract had been "lumbered over," but 
the remainder was yet in its primitive 
state, the only improvement thereon be- 
ing a small three-roomed log house, where 
they lived for a time. Work was iniinedi- 
ately begun on the farm, but moni'y was 
scarce, and, as the boys became old enough, 
they worked for neighboring farmers, their 
wages usually being fifty cents a day. Mr. 
Coenen died on this farm in 1 864, and 
was buried in Allouez townsbi]>; his wife 
survived him until October 23, 1885, 
when she passed away at the advanced 
age of eighty-six years, and was buried in 
the Catholic cemetery at De Pere. After 
the father's death the sons continued to 
live on the farm, working it together. 
The mother also had her resilience there, 
living with her son John, at whose home 
she died. 

John Coenen attended the schools of 
his native country, where he received all 
his education. When fourteen years old 
he came with his parents to the United 
States, and here he was soon put to work, 
assistiuL' on the farm. The land was new, 



jSS 



COMMEMOllATIVK h'lOOHAPUICAl liECORD. 



and during his boyhood he became thor- 
oughly familiar with all the details and 
hardships incident to pioneer farm life in 
the opening of a new country. On Au- 
gust 24, 1863, John Cocnen was married, 
in Little Chute, Wis., to Miss Gertrude 
Reynen, who is also a native of Holland, 
born September 25, 1840, daughter of 
John Reynen; she came with her father 
to the United States when she was ten 
years old, and, with the exception of a 
six-months' residence in Green Bay, made 
her home in Little Chute, Wis., until her 
marriage. Immediately after their mar- 
riage the young couple took up their home 
on the farm with his parents, and after 
the death of his father, and working for 
a while in partiier.shi]) with hi.s brothers, 
John |)aid off the other heirs and became 
the owner of the old homestead. The 
place then comprised forty acres, to which 
he has added from time to time, until he 
now own.s 200 acres in De Pere and Rock- 
land townships, all of which is the result 
of years of untiring industry and toil. He 
has been a hard worker from bo\hood, 
and from a start of nothing has accumu- 
lated a comfortable property, and placed 
himself in an enviable position among 
the well-to-do farmers of his township. 
He has never speculated, and his success 
shows what it is possible for a man to ac- 
complish by perseverance and honesty 
and a determination to win. His chil- 
dren have been of great assistance to 
him, the sons faithfully remaining on the 
home place and taking their share of the 
farm work. The farm is equipped with 
substantial outbuildings, all erected by 
Mr. Coenen, and in 1883 he built a com- 
fortable brick residence. Our subject has, 
in his days, seen the entire surrounding 
country transformed from the dense forest 
to beautiful, well-cultivated farms, and 
he himself has taken no small part in this 
important work. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Cocnen were born 
children as follows: Theodore, a farmer 
of \\'rightstown township; .^nton. assist- 
ing in the work on the home farm; Annie, 



Mrs. Henry Verhagen, of Freedom town- 
ship, Outagamie county; Martina, Mrs. 
Arnold Smith, also of Freedom township; 
John. William. Henry and Mar}-, all liv- 
ing at home; and Hattie and another 
child, who died in infancy. The entire 
family are members of St. Mary's Catho- 
lic Church, De Pere. In politics Mr. 
Coenen is a Democrat, but no active party 
worker. 



CHRISTIAN SCHWARZ. lumber 
merchant and proprietor of plan- 
ing mill. Green Bay, is a native 
of Germany, born in Baringau- 
Thuringen February 7, 1S34. Michael 
Schwarz, father of our subject, was a 
farmer (as was his father before him) and 
dealer in lumber in Germany, and was 
one of the most progressive and active 
men in his part of the country. He died 
at the age of seventy-seven years. His 
wife, Elizabeth (Hoercher), who was a 
native of the same part of Germany, is 
now living at the advanced age of eighty- 
four 3'ears ; she is the mother of three 
children — Christian, Eline and Oscar — of 
whom Eline is married and lives in her 
native land. 

At the age of eighteen years, in the 
spring of 1852, the subject of this sketch, 
along with several others from his neigh- 
borhood, set sail from Germany for the 
United States, the voyage to New York 
occupjing forty-nine days. From there 
he came by way of the Hudson river and 
railroad to Buffalo, N. Y. , where he 
passed the winter, chopping cord-wood, 
and the following spring he shipped as 
deck hand from Buffalo to Chicago, mak- 
ing several trips on the lakes as a sailor, 
eventually finding himself in Chicago. He 
finall\ship]ied on a steamer coming nr)rth- 
ward;but. on arriving at Mackinac Island, 
left the vessel, and from that point made 
his way to Green Bay, which he reached 
in May, 1853. He was first employed here 
in a brewer)' a short time, but. moving to 
Oconto, worked in a sawmill till winter 



COMMKMOUA TIVK BIOOHAPUWAL ItECORD. 



289 



time, when he engaged at lumbering in 
the woods, resuming sawmilling the fol- 
lowing spring. Returning to Green Bay 
in the fall of 1854, he commenced to 
learn the carpenter's trade, which he fol- 
lowed until 1S65, in that year, in part- 
nership with Theodore Keinniiti:, starting 
a planing-mill in Fort Howard, a \enture 
that proved a decided success, the concern 
continuing for about thirteen years, dur- 
ing which time, in 1866, John Voight was 
received as a partner. Mr. Kemmitz sold 
his interest in 1877, from which time our 
subject and Mr. Voight conducted the 
mill until 1887, when Mr. Schwarz em- 
barked in the lumber business, his late 
partner continuing the planing-mill. Mr. 
Voight and Mr. Kemmitz both came from 
Germany on the same vessel as Mr. 
Schwarz. In 1890 our subject, at the 
desire of several friends, erected a planing- 
mill in Green Bay, which has since been 
in successful operation, its owner, by his 
popularity as a good citizen and his close 
attention to business affairs, having earned 
for himself and his mill a wide and envi- 
able reputatit)n. 

On November 7, 1857, at Fort How- 
ard, Mr. Schwarz was married to Miss 
Caroline Freytag, daughter of Christof 
and Christiana (Schmideknecht) Freytag, 
natives of Herschdorf, Schwarzburg-Son- 
<iershausen and Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, 
Thueringen, Germany, respectively Mrs. 
Schwarz came from Germany across the 
ocean in the same vessel as her future 
husband. To this union were born four 
children: Lina, who died at the age of 
two years; Emma; Carrie, wife of Ernest 
Pecker, and Louisa, wife of Philip Lucas; 
there is also an adopted son, Herman, 
who was educated in tlie Northwestern 
University at Watertown, Wis., which is 
connected with the Lutheran Synod of 
Colleges in America (he is now a student 
of pharmacy in Milwaukee). Mr. and 
Mrs. Schwarz are active members of the 
German Lutheran Church; in politics he 
has been a Republican from the time he 
became citizenized, and he gives all his 



influence to whatever may tend to benefit 
the town or county. Mr. and Mrs. 
Schwarz are honored citizens of Fort 
Howard, respected for their personal 
worth, and held in the highest esteem by 
all classes for their good qualities of head 
and heart. 



FATHER JAMES GAUCHE, retir- 
ed, was born in Belgium, in 1825, 
in the village of Messancy, and re- 
ceived his literary education at 
Bastogne Seminary, and at Grand Semi- 
nary of Namur, at the latter educa- 
tional institution also studying theology. 
At the age of thirty years, on June 29, 
1855, he was ordained priest, and was a 
member of the Capuchin Order, near Fond 
du Lac, as priest, twelve years; served at 
Two Rivers six years; at Cooperstown 
three years; and at Kaukauna eighteen 
months. He was then at West De Pere 
nine and a half years, and at Chilton three 
years. For the past year and a half he 
has been retired, and now lives modestly 
at West De Pere in a neat and comfort- 
able home, honored alike by all denom- 
inations for his piety and benign de- 
portment. 



c 



\\'. LOMAS, attorney at law, 
Vovt Howard, was born in Wau- 
kesha county. Wis., in 1855, a 
son of |ohn and Emma (Jones) 
Lomas, natives of England, who settled 
in that county in 1848. There the father 
was engaged in farming until his death 
in 1887, his wife having preceded him to 
the grave some years previously. 

Our subject received his preparatory 
education in the schools of the county, 
and for five or six years thereafter was a 
school teacher. He attended the Law 
Department of the University of Wiscon- 
sin, at Madison, graduated in 1882, and 
was admitted to the bar the same year. 
The next year he was in practice with 
Sloan, Stevens & Morris, in the capital 



290 



COMMEMORA Tl VE lUOGIiAPHICAI. JiECURD. 



city, and in 1883 settled in I'ort Howard, 
where he formed a partnership with P. \'. 
Cothcll, now deceased, and since 1887 
Mr. Lomas has been alone. In his po- 
litical affinities Mr. Lomas is an ardent 
Prohibitionist. He was the candidate of 
that party for Attorney-General of the 
State in 1894; has served as cit)' attorney 
of Port Howard eijjht years; has a good 
practice, and has accumulated some prop- 
erty. He is a director of the McCartney 
National Bank of P"ort Howard. In 1885 
he was married in Crawford county, Wis., 
to Miss P'annie Gay, who has blessed his 
home with three bright little daughters: 
Cora, Emma, and Loraine. Mr. and Mrs. 
Lomas are members of the Presbyterian 
Church, in which Mr. Lomas is superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school; he is presi- 
dent of the Y. M. C. A., and was superin- 
tendent of the Fort Howard schools two 
years, 1891,-92. They are highly respect- 
ed as members of society and moral factors 
in the coininunity. 



R\i\. FATilICK JOHN \"ER- 
STEGEN, pastor of St. Marys 
Parish, De Pere, Brown county, 
w as born in the Province of North 
Brabant, Holland. April 9, 1840. He 
was educated in the classics in Holland, 
and in philosophy and theology in the 
Augustinean College, Belgium, finishing 
his studies at the Seminary of St. Francis, 
Milwaukee, Wis. . He was ordained a 
priest at Green Ba\', Wis., June 10. 
1870, bv Bishop Joseph Melcher, D. I)., 
and August 14, 1870, was placed in 
charge of the congregation at Freedom, 
where, through his energ)-, the new 
church edifice (St. Nicholas; was com- 
pleted and a new parochial school-house 
erected. Of this new church he was the 
faithful pastor until January, 1882, on the 
seventh day of which month he was ap- 
pointed to St. Mary's, or the Church of 
the Immaculate Conception, at De Pere 
— his present incumbency. Under his 
wise administration the church building 



has been greatly enlarged and improved, 
and he has also largely added to the 
church property; he has, besides, erected 
a substantial brick school edifice with a 
capacity for 246 scholars, and in 1 893 he 
erected a fine and roomy building for the 
accomodation of the Reverend Fathers 
connected with the congregation. Father 
Verstegen is still in the prime of life, is 
active and alert, and never tires of doing 
trood for his beloved flock. 



CH.VKLES R. DENIS. This gen- 
tleman, for so many years favor- 
ably known on and about the 
lakes, especially b)- vessel owners, 
is a Belgian by birth, born Februarj' 17, 
1 849, "a son of Leopold and Rosalie (Noel) 
Denis, of the same country, who were the 
parents of eleven children — six sons and 
five daughters — Charles R. being the sec- 
ond son. 

In 1855, our subject being then nearly 
seven years old, the family came to the 
United States, the trip across the ocean 
being made in the " Henry Reed " sailing 
ship, and, after landing in New York, pro- 
ceeded to Buffalo, N. Y. , where they 
passed their first winter; thence in the fol- 
lowing spring traveled by rail to Fond du 
Lac, Wis. , and from there by team to 
Green Bay. In Belgium the father had 
followed agricultural jnnsuits, and. being 
desirous of continuing the same vocation 
in the New World, bought 160 acres of 
totally uncleared timber-land in Brussells 
township, Door Co. . Wis. , near Red 
River. This, however, the family never 
cleared, nor even lived on, though in later 
years the father did some logging on it; 
but in Allouez township they lived for 
five years on Capt. Cotton's farm, where 
is now the cemetery of that township. 
Here he died January 22, 1892, his first 
wife having preceded him to the grave 
in 1866. He was a Democrat in politics, 
and for eighteen jears was assessor of his 
township. They were the parents of thir- 
teen children, \\z. : Joseph, a steam tug 





^ 




'/?y^^^^ 



COMMEMOUATIVK BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



291 



captain in Green Bay; Victoria, wife of 
Frank Garrett, of Green Bay; Charles K., 
subject of sketch; Louis fan engineer), 
who died in 1891 at Appleton; Alfonso, 
who dieii while cii rciiti- to America; Vic- 
tor, who died in Buffalo, N. Y. ; Leopold, 
an engineer, with residence in Green Bay; 
Julia, wife of X. Parnienticr, city clerk 
of Green Bay; Mary, \\ife of Alfonse 
Hugot, of Allouez; Rosalie, wife of Ivalph 
Soquet, a druggist; Charles A., of West 
De Pere; and two, whose names are not 
given, that died while cii route to America. 
Leopold Uenis, father of this family, for his 
second wife marrieii, in iST)/, Honore 
Hitas, also a native of Belgium, to which 
union were born five children, of whom the 
living are Victor, Frank. ]aines, and 
Honorius. 

Charles K. Uenis, the subject of these 
lines, received his education at the com- 
mon schools of the period in Wisconsin, 
and at the early age of fifteen commenced 
working on steamboats plying between 
Escanaba and Green Bay. Securing 
employment on the vessels of the North 
Western Steamboat Company, his first 
job was firing on the "George L. Dun- 
lap " for three years, later on the " Sarah 
Van Epps," and still later on the "Sagi- 
naw" and the " Escanaba, " all belonging 
to the North Western Company. After 
firing for six seasons, he, in 1870, was 
given the position of engineer on the high- 
pressure tug " Ida S." in Green Bay har- 
bor, at the end of two years was trans- 
ferred to the tug "Escanaba," after an- 
other year rejoining the " Ida S.," and at 
the close of two more years' service on 
her was made engineer on the " John 
Gregory," which was built in Green Bay. 
He assisted in putting the engines into 
this boat, and ran her on 1km maiden trip. 
(Prior to this he served as engineer of No. 
2 lire engine in Green Ba\). The "John 
Gregory" plied between Green Bay and 
Chicago, and from her Mr. Denis went to 
the "John H. Hackley," in the same 
capacity; but at the end of his second 
season as engineer on her, he and his 



brothers, Capt. Joseph and Paul Denis, 
bought the "Ida S. Botsford," which 
the\' rebuilt and named "The Denis 
Bros." Of her our subject was engineer 
one season, and the lollowing winter he 
put the engine into the " W. L. Brown." 
Selling out such uiterests as he had in 
boats, Mr. Denis concluded to leave the 
lakes, and in iS,S2 bought his present 
farm of se\enty-f()ur acres in De Pere 
township, moving thereon; but he can not 
forsake his old love, the lakes, for every 
summer he readilv finds employment on 
some steamboat or other as engineer. 
He has sailed the lakes, either as fireman 
or engineer, for nearly all the large vessel 
owners in his part of the State, and has 
in every iristance proved himself as com- 
petent as he is reliable and trustworthy, 
(lualifications in which he is second to 
none. In addition to what has already 
been here enumerated, he has put the 
engines into several boats, including the 
" Fainiie Hart." He has never been ship- 
wrecked, althougli he has experienced 
manv hairbreadth escapes, and he has 
often worked with wrecking parties, be- 
sides meeting with not a few jiioneer ad- 
ventures. On one occasion, while on his 
boat, which had run ashore, word reached 
him that his mother was dangerously ill. 
Without a moment's delay he left the 
boat, ami with the speed of an Indian 
made a dash through the woods for his 
home, either running or walking for t<.)rty- 
five miles to a certam point, which he 
reached in twenty-four hours. Here he 
was enabled to take boat for his destina- 
tion, which he reached in safety. In this 
homeward journey he passed one night in 
the woods amid the bowlings of hungry 
wolves, who would ha\e made short work 
of him had he not kept them at bay by 
lighting occasional fires, fortunately hav- 
ing some matches in his pocket. 

On .\ugust 20, 1872, Mr. Denis was 
married, in Green Bay, to Miss Eliza Lesses, 
who was born September 7, 1849, in Bel- 
gium, a daughter of August Lesses, who 
came with his family to the United States 



292 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPHWAL RECORD. 



in 1 87 1. The children of this union 
■were: Joseph, Annie, George, Willie (de- 
•ceased in infancy), Laura, Lizzie, W'illiain, 
Paul and Rosa. In politics our subject has 
:al\vays been a stanch Republican, and he 
:and his wife are prominent members of 
'St. Francis Catholic Church, respected 
and honored by all who know them. 



JACOB JACOBSEX, a well-known 
and prosperous citizen of Glenmore 
township, Brown county, was born 
June 30, 1855, in Norway. 
His father, also named Jacob, was a 
merchant and later a seafaring man, but 
he met with reverses, and in 1869 con- 
cluded to bring his family — which then 
comprised si.\ children — to the United 
States, he having visited this country 
two years previously, and purchased some 
land in Ashwaubenon township, Brown 
<:ounty. Wis. The family sailed from 
Skien on the " Rukan," and after a voyage 
■of eight weeks and three days landed in 
•Quebec, thence journeying by rail and 
water to Chicago, 111., where they lived 
four months. They then removed to the 
farm in Ashwaubenon township, where 
the father passed the remainder of his life, 
dying in 1876; he was a member of the 
Lutheran Church, and in political affili- 
ation a Republican. The mother is now 
living in .\llouez township. Brown county, 
with her son Peter, who is sexton of 
Woodlawn cemetery, near Green liay. A 
brief record of their children is a follows: 
Six were born in Norway — Jacob, who is 
mentioned further on; Christ, who died 
in this country at the age of twenty-one 
years; Louis, who lives in Fort Howard; 
Inge. Mrs. Louis Ghristopherson, of Ash- 
waubenon; Martin, a resident of Glen- 
more township; and Peter, who is sexton 
of Wotjdlawn cemetery, near Green Bay; 
and three were born in Wisconsin — Hans, 
and Andrew, both now living in Green 
Bay; and Neils, who died when six years 
old. 

Jacob Jacobsen received a good 



common-school education in his native 
country, and, when about fifteen years of 
age, came with his parents to the United 
States. He commenced to learn wood- 
carving in Chicago, but shortly afterward 
went on the lakes as cook. When 
his parents removed to Wisconsin he 
accompanied them, and, after working a 
few months on his father's farm, began to 
work for others. In the spring of 1870 
he entered the employ of M. Sellers, a 
merchant and horse dealer of Fort Howard. 
and afterward worked seven months with 
a surveying corps, laying out the northern 
extension of the Milwaukee & Northern 
railroad. He next worked as general 
utility man for Lawyer Neville, and later 
peddled ice for six years for Bennett & 
Conley, after which he removed to Glen- 
more township. On August 22, 1877, he 
was married, at Fort Howard, to Miss 
Augusta Siversen, who was born in Nor- 
way, in October, 1854, daughter of Siver 
Oleson, and in the fall of the same year 
the young couple removed to the town of 
De Pere, where, during the succeeding 
winter, he chopped wood for fifty cents a 
cord. The next spring he removed to the 
city of Green Bay, and during the sum- 
mer again worked for Bennett & Conley. 
Later he purchased sixty acres of land in 
Section 29, Glenmore township, going in 
debt for it, as he had but twenty-five dol- 
lars in money, and he and his wife took 
up their residence in a small log house 
which stood thereon. Only five acres of 
this tract were cleared, and he immedi- 
ately set to work to improve the rest; but 
he only remained there one year, when he 
was appointed sexton of the Woodlawn 
cemetery at Green Bay, and continued in 
that position five years. In the fall of 
1884 he came to his present farm, for 
which he had in the meantime traded, and 
here he has since resided, except during 
the summer of 1886, when he worked in 
Sheboygan for his former employer, Mr. 
Conley. This place originally contained 
eighty acres, to which he subsequently 
added eighty more, but later sold forty. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGHAPIIICAL RECORD. 



-93 



Mr. Jacobsen has carefully cultivated and 
improved his farm, has remodelled his 
residence and built a commodious barn, all 
of which tends to enhance the value of 
his property. At one time he owned al- 
together 760 acres, but he has disposed of 
the greater part of it. In connection 
with his farming interests he has conducted 
a store and cheese factory, and has met 
with unbounded success in all his ventures. 
Our subject has been indeed a self-made 
man; beginning life without pecuniar}' 
aid, he has risen by industry to the posi- 
tion he now occupies among the leading 
respected citizens of Glenmore township. 
Being steady-going and reliable he won 
the confidence of his employers, and he 
has won and retained the esteem of his 
fellowmen for his honesty and square 
dealing. 

Mr. and Mrs. Jacobsen have had eight 
children, namely: Emma, Jennie, Chris- 
tina, Carl, Olena, Cigur and Clara, all 
living, and Louisa, who died young. Mr. 
Jacobsen has always been a Republican 
in politics, and is one of the leaders of 
the party in his township, where he has 
been elected to various positions of honor 
and trust. Since 1885 he has been school 
clerk, and he served two terms as town- 
ship treasurer, discharging the duties of 
his office conscientiously and to the satis- 
faction of all concerned. Socially he has 
been a member of the Royal Arcanum, 
Green Bay Lodge, since 1882, and in 
religious connection he and his wife are 
members of the Lutheran Church at 
Glenmore, in which he has been trustee 
since his residence in the township. 



CASPER SCHADEN, a well-known 
member of the farming commu- 
nity of De Pere township. Brown 
county, was born April 2, 1842, 
in Prussia, son of Frank J. and Catherine 
(Cornelius) Schaden, the latter of whom 
died when Casper was an infant. The 
father was subsequently married again, 
this time to Gertrude Andre, by whom 



he had four children : Mary, Gertrude, 
Joseph and Anna Mary ; by his hrst wife 
he had two children, Catherine and Cas- 
per, and of the entire family, four children 
are yet living. Frank J. Schaden was a 
blacksmith, and a successful tradesman. 

In 1852, his second wife having also 
died, Frank J. Schaden concluded to 
bring his famil}- to America, and after an 
ocean voyage of forty-eight days, they 
landed in New York Cit\-, thence imme- 
diately coming westward to Milwaukee, 
Wis., where the}' visited friends. From 
Milwaukee they came direct to De Pere, 
Brown county, where Mr. Schaden had 
two brothers-in-law living, and during the 
first winter the famil}' were scattered, the 
father working hard to get a start. He 
purchased twent}' acres of new land, and 
erected a log house thereon, in which the 
family lived for some time, and, with the 
aid of his sons, he eventuall}' cleared the 
farm and converted it into a cultivated 
productive tract. He died September 23, 
1 886, at the home of his daughter, and 
was buried in Denmark, Brown county. 

Casper Schaden attended school in 
his native land until he came with his 
father to the United States, after which 
he was obliged to give up school, as his 
help was needed on the farm, \\'here he 
was thoroughly trained to agricultural 
pursuits. When he first came to De- 
Pere township there were no roads for 
wagons, and he had to carr}' flour 
on his shoulder from Green Bay. One 
night his sister and one of the younger 
boys went after the cows, but dark- 
ness coming on before she reached 
home with them, she lost her way and was 
compelled to remain in the woods all 
night. Our subject reniaine(f on the farm 
continuousl}' until i860, in the fall of 
which year he went to Pensaukee, Wis., 
and commenced to work in the lumber 
regions, where he experienced hardships 
and .privations which onl}' the strongest 
constitution could withstand. In the 
spring he would return to the farm and 
there remain durini; the summer, return- 



294 



COMMEMOliATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL liECORD. 



ing to the lumber regions in the winter. 
He worketi in Stiles, Oconto county, one 
winter, and was also emplo}ed by a man 
named Raymen, in Denmark, for the Two 
Rivers Company; for two winters lie was 
in the eiiiplo}- of Richie, from De Pere, 
and together with this he also dro\e team 
for sixteen winters. 

On January 29, 1867, Mr. Schadcn 
was married to Miss Catherine Kohren, 
and since then he has gi\en his attention 
e.xclusivelj'to farming. He first purchased 
twenty acres of land, which he paid for 
with the pine timber cut from the place, 
and by the united efforts of himself and 
wife the land was cleared and improved, 
and later added to. until they now own 
si.xty-tive acres of fertile, well-cultivated 
land. They have had twelve children, as 
f(jllows; (Jasper, born October 2 1 . 1869; 
Joseph, born January 2. 1871 (deceased); 
Kate, born March 18, 1872 (deceased); 
Peter, born January 25, 1873; Joseph, 
born May 24, 1874 (deceased); Kate, 
born February 28. 1876; Nick, born 
October 17. 1 877; Mary M.. born Decem- 
ber 12, 1879; Elizabeth, born .-\pril 8. 
1882; Gertrude, born March 10, 1884; 
.Ann A., born January 28. 1886; and John, 
born October 28. 1889. Mr. and Mrs. 
Schaden were originally members of the 
Catholic Church in Green Bay, but now 
belong to the church in New Denmark, in 
which latter they celebrated their silver 
wedding January 29, 1892, Rev. Father 
Garus officiating. Politically our subject 
is a Democrat, and has served his town- 
ship as path master two years, and as 
school director. He is an honest, upright 
citizen, and has the esteem and respect of 
all who know him. 



PHILLIP FALCK (deceased), who. 
m his lifetime, was one of the 
leading pioneers and merchants 
(if Morrison township. Brown 
count}', was born August 9, 1818, in the 
village of Kondersheim, Hesse-Darmstadt, 
Germany. 



His father, George Falck, a tailor by 
trade, was twice married in Germany, 
and b\' his hrst wife, whose maiden name 
was Hahn, he had three children — Phillip, 
Margaret, and Elizabeth. In 1837 he 
came to the United States with his family, 
and landed in New York, whence he went 
to Albany. N. Y. Here it was that Phil- 
lip began business for himself by peddling 
goods throughout the land from a pack on 
his back. He made money in the East, 
liut finally determined to come to Wis- 
consin, where homes were then cheap, 
and he virtually walked from New York 
to Milwaukee with his pack on his back 
(e.xcepting, of course, when he was obliged 
to cross streams or lakes on vessels), sell- 
ing goods on the way, and adding to his 
stock of cash. In the early part of 1843 
he reached his destination, and took up 
some land at Germantown. Washington 
county, at that time a wilderness. He 
made a small clearing, built a log cabin, 
and, with a comrade, Frank Snyder, kept 
bachelor's hall until his marriage, which 
took place in January, 1847, with Cath- 
erine Hangen, who was born October 27, 
1828. in Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, a 
daughter of Jacob and Catherine i Halser) 
Hangen. Of this family four sisters — 
Apollonia, Christina, Catherine, and Eliz- 
abeth — came from Germany in 1843, 
and settled in Germantown, Washington 
county. Mr. F"alck lived in Washington 
county until the fall of 1855, when he 
settled in Morrison township. Brown 
county, where he had previously bar- 
gained for 200 acres of land with Mr. 
Morrison, after whom the township 
was named. He cleared up twelve acres 
of his land, and for a year he and his 
family lived in a little log house, when a 
larger and more commodious dwelling was 
built. As the tilled land hardly produced 
enough for the support of the family. Mr. 
Falck entered into merchandising, and 
for some years he carried on the first store 
in Morrison township in a part of his 
dwelling house. His trade increased, and 
he built an addition to his home, later, 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGUAPIIICAL UECORD. 



295 



another addition, and still later, a de- 
tached store, where the business has ever 
since been carried on by his descendants. 
Mr. Falck lived until September 27, 1889, 
when, after a year's suffering of helpless- 
ness from paralysis, he passed away, and 
was buried in the Lutheran cemeter}'; he 
was a Lutheran in his religious views, and 
in politics was a Democrat. He had fil- 
ially provided a home for liis father and 
mother, who died in Morrison, the father 
at eighty-five and the mother at about 
the same age. 

The children born to Phillip and Cath- 
erine Falck are Jacob, a licjuor dealer of 
De Pere; Phillip, a sketch of whom fol- 
lows; Frank, a farmer of Seymour, Outa- 
gamie county; George, a hotel-keeper at 
Seymour, all born in Washington county; 
Peter, a hotel and saloon keeper at Bril- 
lion. Wis. ; Marks, a farmer in Morrison 
township; Catherine, now Mrs. August 
Seefeldt, of Morrison; John, a farmer of 
Morrison township; Daniel, also of Mor- 
rison, and Louis, a cheesemaker of the 
same place, these si.\ being all natives of 
Morrison township. Since tlie death of 
Mr. Falck, his widow, who is still a well- 
preserved lady for her time of life, has re- 
sided at the old home in Morrison, and 
has with her her venerable mother, now 
at the advanced age of ninety-four jears. 



PHILLIP F.ALCK, of Morrison 
township, Brown count j', was born 
in \\'ashington county. Wis., No- 
vember 10, 1850, and was but 
four years of age when brought by his 
parents to Brown ctjunty. He was 
reared to farming in Morrison township, 
and received a very fair education at the 
district school. When old enough he 
was placed in his father's store — the first 
established in Morrison — and after a short 
service was sent to Milwaukee; where he 
took a thorough course in the Spencerian 
Business College. In 1876, in partner- 
ship with his brother Frank, he purchased 
his father's store, and carried on the 



business under the firm name of Philliji 
Falck & Bro. , until the fall of 1889, when 
he became the sole proprietor. 

In April, 1875, Mr. Falck married, 
at Morrison, Miss Alvina Lemke, who 
was born January 28, 1853, in Germany, 
and came to the United States when 
about fourteen years of age. The union 
has been blessed with three children, 
namely: William C, Frank P., and 
L\-dia B. C, the sons both assisting in 
their father's store. For nearly twenty 
years Mr. Falck has carried on this busi- 
ness so early and successfully established 
in the wilderness by his father, Phillip 
Falck. Having been reared under the 
careful and watchful eye of his wise and 
prudent father, and having lieen apt and 
ready at all times to oblige his patrons 
and customers, Phillip P'alck has secured 
a long list of friends, whom he has ' ' grap- 
pled to his soul with hooks of steel," and 
no other proprietor of a country store in 
Brown county can boast of a larger pat- 
ronage. In politics Mr. Falck is a Demo- 
crat, and in November, 1893, was ap- 
pointed postmaster of Morrison. 



CHRIST HANSEN, one of the 
well-known business men and 
farmers of Preble township. 
Brown county, is a native of 
Denmark, born September 25, 1846, son 
of Hans Hansen, who was a brickmaker 
and wagon wright by occupation. 

Our subject received his education in 
the common schools of his nati\'c land, 
and when a mere youth commenced to 
assist his father in the brickyard, continu- 
ing thus until he reached the age of seven- 
teen, when he commenced to learn the 
brickmaker's trade. He served a three- 
\'ears' apprenticeship, during which period 
he recei\'ed only his board, his parents 
being obliged to clothe him; subsequentl}' 
he worked for a time as journeyman. 
Being a natural mechanic, he was also 
able to do blacksmith work, anil for two 
years conducted a shop of his own for all 



zg6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



kinds of repair work, at the end of which 
time he sold out. Mr. Hansen was mar- 
ried in Denmark to Miss Mary Yorgensen, 
a native of the same locality, and in that 
country one child, Hans, was born to 
them. In 1872, concluding to seek a 
home for himself and family in the 
United States, our subject sailed from 
Copenhagen on an Anchor Line steamer, 
and on April 8 landed in New York with 
a light purse but bright prospects. In 
Perth .Amboy, N. J., he worked a short 
time, making tire-brick, and then com- 
menced blacksmithing at that place, con- 
tinuing in the same for two j-ears; shortly 
after his arrival he had sent for his wife 
and child, who reached America in July, 
1872. From Perth .Aniboy, N. J., the 
family removed to Woodbridge, same 
State, and there remained six months, 
during which time Mr. Hansen conducted 
a saloon; but, being dissatisfied, he discon- 
tinued the business, and for one summer 
worked on a farm; then, during the fol- 
lowing winter, went back to his old home 
in Denmark, where he remained from 
December until March. Returning to 
New Jersey Mr. Hansen did not remain 
long, but came westward to Green Bay, 
Wis. , 'arriving April i, 1875, and here 
connnencing to follow his trade at a saw- 
mill, doing repair work, etc., for two 
years. Removing thence t<3 Humboldt 
township. Brown county, he purchased a 
piece of land, and here engaged in black- 
smithing for four and a half years, at the 
end of that time coming to Preble town- 
ship, where he has ever since resided. 
After settling here he followed farming 
and blacksmith work for many years, and 
for the last eight seasons has conducted a 
brickyard on his farm, in which time he 
has turned out ever one million five hun- 
dred thousand brick, all made by hand. 
His life has been one of constant toil, but 
he has succeeded in making for himself a 
comfortable home, and has won and re- 
tained the respect of all who know him 
for his honesty and square dealing. He 
is well known in his township, and has 



served as school clerk and treasurer with 
credit to himself and satisfaction to his 
constituency, being faithful and efficient 
in the discharge of all his duties. Until 
the office was abolished at Weisert he was 
postmaster there, having the office in the 
brick storeroom on his farm, where, since 
July, 1892, he has carried on a saloon 
business. In political connection he is a 
Republican. When he landed in the 
United States he had four dollars; but, not 
allowing himself to become discouraged, 
he set to work with a will, and has met 
with well-merited success. 

To Mr. Hansen's first marriage were 
born three children: Hans, who died in 
New Jersey; a daughter that died in in- 
fancy in Green Bay; and Christina, now 
living at home. The mother of these 
died in 1890, and was buried at Green 
Bay; in January, 1891, Mr. Hansen mar- 
ried Miss Caroline Neilson, who is a na- 
tive of New Denmark, Brown county, 
and to this union has come one child, 
Carl Christ. 



J 



and 



H. LEON.ARD, life insurance agent 
at No. 105 North Washington street, 
Green Bay, was born in Brooklyn, 
N. Y. , in 1843, a son of Stephen 
Mary (Howard) Leonard, natives of 
England. Stephen Leonard was a sea- 
captain, plying between Liverpool and 
New York, and early took up his residence 
in the latter city, where he- died in 1845, 
his widow surviving until 1859. 

J. H. Leonard was reared in that part 
of Brooklyn then known as Williamsburg, 
and at the age of si.xteen came to Wis- 
consin and first engaged in clerking in 
Manitowoc. In 1860-61 he attended 
school in Madison, Wis., and in April, 
1 861, enlisted in the Manitowoc County 
Guards, which company was later merged 
with Company A, Fifth Wisconsin Infan- 
try, enlisted for three years' service. This 
regiment was assigned to the Si.xth Army 
Corps, .\rmy of the Potomac, and partici- 
pated in the battles of Williamsburg, 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



-91 



Gainesville, White Oak Swamp. Malvern 
Hill. Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancel- 
lorsville, Gettysburg, Rappahannock Sta- 
tion; through Gen. Grant's campaign, in- 
cluding Spottsylvania, Petersburg ami Cold 
Harbor. He was wounded by a gunshot 
at Rappahannock Station, but happily 
soon recovered. From private he was 
promoted to sergeant, and for meritorious 
and gallant conduct was offered a com- 
mission as first lieutenant. He received 
his discharge July 2'/. 1864, and returned 
to Manitowoc, where he, for a while, was 
engaged in teaching, and afterward at 
Kewaunee. In July, 1S74, he came to 
Green Bay, and was employed as book- 
keeper by the L. M. Marshall Lumber 
Comjiany. In politics Mr. Leonard is a 
Republican, and for six and a half years, 
from January, 1878, to July, 1885, was 
city superintendent of schools; from 18S9 
to August, 1893, he was internal revenue 
collector, since when he has lieen engaged 
in his present business. The marriage of 
Mr. Leonard took place in 1867, in Mani- 
towoc county. Wis., to Miss Martha 
Gould, a native of Racine, and daughter 
of Edwin and Hester Ann (Barnes) Gould, 
natives, respectively, of New York and 
Massachusetts. Mr. Gould was a pioneer 
of Racine, was a tanner by vocation, and 
died in Green Bay; Mrs. Gould died in 
Racine. Mr. and Mrs. Leonard had born 
to them two children: Mattie Alice, wife 
of F. F. Jones, of Harvey, 111. (she is a 
graduate of the Green Bay high school, 
and Lawrence University, Appleton), and 
C. J., who died at the age of three years. 
Mr. Leonard is largely associated with 
secret societies, being a member of Wash- 
ington Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. M. ; of 
Warren Chapter No. 8; secretary of Pales- 
tine Commandery, No. 20; member of 
Pochequcttc Lodge, No. 26, K. of P. ; 
Navarino Lodge, No. 1384, K. of H. ; of 
T. O. Howe Post No. 124, G. A. R., of 
which he is post commander, and is past 
chancellor in the K. of P., a record which 
proves his great popularity, and the ex- 
tent of the affectionate hold he has upon 



his fellow-men. Mr. and Mrs. Leonard 
are members of the .M. L. Church at 
Green Bay, of which he is a steward and: 
trustee; he was also formerly superintend- 
ent of the Sunday-school, and is still a 
teacher. He has witnessed much of the 
substantial growth of Green Bay, and has 
always been, since his residence in the 
city, an eager promoter of its prosperity 
by all means within his power. 

HERBERT F. CAMM, of the in- 
surance and real-estate firm of 
Cainm & Erl)e, FcM't Howard, 
commenced business in 1891, cor- 
ner of Main and Broadway, the hrni 
doing a general insurance business, and 
handling city property. 

Mr. Camm was born in i 866, in Fort 
Howard. His father, Thomas M. Camm, 
was also born in Fort Howard, in 1828, 
in the government fort (old Fort Howard) 
at that place, in which his father, Orderly- 
Sergeant John Camm (grandfather of our 
sul>ject) was stationed as a member of 
the detachment from the United States 
army then garrisoning the fort, antl where 
he had been since 1826. The worthy 
Sergeant died in Michigan of cholera, 
during the Black Hawk war of 1832, 
when so many of the soldiers fell \ictims 
to the same disease. He was a native of 
England, and his wife, Martha (Campbell), 
was a descendant of the noted Clan 
Cainpcll I Duke of Argyle's clan) of 
Scotland. Their son, Thomas M., was 
reared in the neighborhood where he first 
saw the light, and was educated in the 
schools of Green Bay. He is one of the 
oldest pioneer merchants in the Green 
Bay region, beginning as a clerk and at 
length engaging in business for himself. 
In 1864 he was married, at P'ort Howard, 
to Miss Caroline Gray, who was born in 
Canada, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John 
Gray, the former of whom was a native 
of the North of Ireland, the latter <>f Penn- 
sylvania, being descended from the early 
Pennsylvania-Dutch settlers. Thomas M. 



298 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHWAL RECORD. 



Camm lias been in active business about 
forty years. Politically a Republican, he 
has been a member of the town board, 
member of the school board, superin- 
tendent of schools and postmaster at 
Fort Howard, where he and his wife still 
reside. Besides one son, Herbert F., 
they had two daughters: Edith M., who 
resides at home, and Ethel C, who died 
at the age of twelve years. 

Herbert F. Camm, like his father, was 
reared and educated in Fort Howard. 
When of proper age he began clerking in 
his father's store, lea%'ing there to take up 
the study of architecture, while studying 
which he was tendered a position in the 
McCartney National Bank, which he ac- 
cepted, filling same for three years, and 
then resigning to enter the line of busi- 
ness in which he is now engaged. He is 
in direct line from one of the oldest resi- 
dents of Fort Howard, and, in all re- 
spects, is " native here and to the manner 
born." Politically he is independent, 
voting for what he deems the best meas- 
ures. By profession he is an architect, 
and has done not a little in that line, as 
many handsome structures testify, but 
prefers the active life of business, hence 
his present connection. He is a member 
of the Y. M. C. A., having been one of 
the founders of the local branch of that 
sterling institution. 



CHESTER G. WILCOX, post- 
master at DePere, Brown county, 
and well known as a manufac- 
turer of harness, saddles, etc., 
and albeit a politician of mucli shrewd- 
ness and merit, was born May 29, 1848, 
in Milford, Oakland Co., Mich., the day 
on which the State of Wisconsin was ad- 
mitted to the Union. 

He is a son of Levi S. Wilco.x, whose 
biography will be found in the closing 
paragraphs of this sketch. Chester G. 
Wilcox received an excellent literary 
education at the Union Seminarv of Cam- 
den, N. Y. , and at Utica University. 



Utica, Mich., which was supplemented 
by a course of study in Brj^ant & Strat- 
ton's Commercial College, of Utica, from 
which he graduated in bookkeeping, and 
later taught a class in this art at the same 
college. While a student at Camden he 
began to learn the trade of harness mak- 
ing, and finished at Rome, N. Y. In 
1865, on June 17, he arrived at Milwau- 
kee, Wis., being at the time the happy 
possessor of $17 in cash; thence he went to 
Wheeler Prairie, Dane Co., ^^'is. , where 
he found employment on a farm. His 
next permanent place of residence was 
De Pere, where his uncle, E. I. \\'ilcox, 
was principal of the high school. Here 
he obtained a certificate as a school- 
teacher, but never utilized it, as he found 
a broader and more remunerative field in 
the harness business in Green Bay. which 
he followed three years, when he returned 
to New York on account of the illness of 
his father, and from there to the Utica 
Universit}', already alluded to. In 1870 
he again came to De Pere, and formed a 
partnership with John H. McDonald in 
the harness business, their store being at 
the corner of James street and Broad 
way. For seventeen \ears the firm did a 
prosperous business, and during that period 
every other business house in De Pere 
either failed, changed hantls or dissolved. 
In 1 87 1 Mr. Wilcox entered into the real- 
estate business on a small scale; but it has 
continued to increase ever since — in fact, 
from 1885 to 1894 it was estimated that 
his transactions in this line exceeded those 
of any other dealer in Brown county, and, 
in the hundreds of real-estate deals he has 
made, not a single deal or deed has been 
questioned, nor has he ever foreclosed a 
mortgage. He is now the owner of much 
valuable property in De Pere and the sur- 
roimding country, including residences, 
business houses aiul farms, and is also 
owner of the " Broadway House" at Fort 
Howard; but he nevertheless clings to the 
harness business in De Pere. 

In politics Mr. Wilcox is a Democrat. 
In 1873 he was elected alderman of De- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIVGUAPUICAL UECORD. 



Pere against William P. Call, and served 
three or four terms, resigning during his 
last term; was elected to the school board, 
was its president three terms, and is 
president at the present time; was elected 
to the county board in 1878, and, with 
the exception of one year, served continu- 
ously for fourteen years; in 1880 he was 
elected to the State Assembly, and served 
one term, being the youngest member of 
that Legislature. He has been chairman 
of the Brown County Central Democratic 
Committee, and delegate time and again 
to Democratic county and State Conven- 
tions. Along with A. E. Decker, of 
Fond du Lac, he was a State delegate to 
the National Convention of the Knights of 
Labor held at Richmond, Va., in 1886. 
At three different times he was appointed, 
by the circuit judges of as many districts, 
commissioner for the equalization of 
taxes, and revised the tax lists of Outa- 
gamie, Door and Oconto counties. On 
December 12, 1893, he was appointed 
postmaster of De Pere, and is now filling 
the office to the entire satisfaction of the 
public and the department, and with 
credit to himself. As a citizen Mr. Wil- 
cox has been more than ordinarily active 
and useful. He was one of the project- 
ors and organizers of the Brown County 
Agricultural & Mechanical Association, 
has been a member thirteen years, and 
for three years filled the chair as presi- 
dent; he has also been its treasurer and 
superintendent. In 1S71 he was one of 
the organizers of the first fire company in 
De Pere, drew up its first by-laws, and 
has been a member ever since. No mem- 
ber of the company ever beat him in 
"running with the machine." Indeed, 
Mr. W^ilcox excels as a runner, has been 
in many running matches of one hundred 
yards, and has made the distance in ten 
and one-quarter seconds, when he beat 
John Gray, ex-champion of Canada, in 
Oneida county, N. Y. In 1876 he was 
captain and catcher in the De Pere Base 
Ball Club, and won the championship 
•of Brown county. He has served as 

17 



president of the Business Men's Associa- 
tion of De Pere, and is now treasurer; 
is also the treasurer of the De Pere Elec- 
tric Light & Power Company, which he 
originated. He helped to organize the 
Artesian Water Supply Company, and is 
one of the largest stockholders therein; is 
vice-president of the State Agricultural 
Society, and superintendent of one of its 
seven departments; he also helped in se- 
curing the water-power for the paper-mill 
at De Pere, and has been quite prominent 
in forwarding numerous other enterprises 
of great benefit to the cit}'. He engineered 
the deal resulting in the purchase of i , 200 
acres of land for $120, 000, for the AUouez 
Land & Improvement Company, in 1893, 
and also secured the land at Little Rapids, 
abutting the dam, for Davis Bros., besides 
conducting many other important real- 
estate transactions, too numerous to be 
mentioned within the scope of this bio- 
graphical sketch. 

The marriage of Mr. Wilcox took place 
June 15, 1 87 1, with Miss Sarah J. Miller, 
daughter of Godfrey Miller, a wealthy 
farmer of Brown county, who died in No- 
vember, 1893, and whose widt)W, Caro- 
line (Stuart) Miller, now resides in De- 
Pere. To this union four children have 
been born, two of whom: Levi S. and 
Chester G. , aged twenty years and one 
year, respectivel}', are living. Frater- 
nall}-, Mr. Wilcox is a Freemason. His 
rectitude and abstemiousness are remark- 
able. He has never used tobacco in any 
form, has never tasted a drop of beer or 
liquor, except as medicine, has never 
played a game of cards or an}' other 
game of chance, has never been arrested, 
and has never had a law-suit for himself. 
He is not connected with any Church. 

Levi S. Wilcox, father of Chester G. 
Wilcox, was born December 3, 1818, in 
the town of Pompey. Onondaga Co., N. 
Y., and was a son of Chester Wilcox, a 
farmer and live-stock dealer, who married 
Lorelia Sperry.a native of Oneiiia count}'. 
New York. 

Le\i S. Wilcox was reared to farming 



3°- 



COMMEJJOHATIVE BWOIiAPUICAL RECORD. 



on the north siiie of Oneida Lake, N. Y., 
and at twenty-one years of age migrated 
to Ohio, tiien considered to be in tlie 
" Far West. " Here he worked a year 
and a half at coopering and farming, and 
then returned to New York State and 
worked four years for Carter Bros., 
fanners, tanners and merchants of Oswego 
county. On April 20, 1846, he married 
Isabella Lambie, who was born April 3, 
1825, in Scotland, and at the age of six 
years was brought to this country by her 
parents. John and Jane (Allen) Lambie. 
The father, John Lambie, was in failing 
health when he left Scotland, and came 
to America with the hope of recovery, but 
he gradually declined, and died March 
28, 1834, his remains being interred at 
Camden, Oneida Co., N. Y. His widow 
died at the home of her son-in-law, Levi 
S. Wilcox, April 22. 1869, and her re- 
mains now rest beside those of her hus- 
band. She was the mother of ten chil- 
dren, of whom two only survive — Mrs. 
Wilcox and Jeannette, the wife of John 
Carter, of Pleasant \'alley, Oakland Co., 
Mich. Soon after his marriage Mr. Wil- 
cox bought eighty acres of land in the 
town of Highland, Oakland Co., Mich., 
and on this land he lived five years, when 
he returned to Camden, N. Y., and for 
sometime worked for a furniture company 
as deliverer, etc., u.-^ing the identical team 
that hauled him and his family back from 
Michigan — .going via Canada. He then 
followed the livery and stage business for 
eight or ten years, and also dealt in 
horses, using New York City as a market. 
Later, in company with John Lambie, he 
built a gristmill, but, in a short time there- 
after, he disposed of this property and re- 
engaged in the li\ery business for three or 
four years, and then moved to Low\ ille, 
Lewis Co., N. Y. , and followed the livery 
business until the fall of 1881, when he 
came to Hrown county. Wis., and for a 
year resided in De Pere, undisturbed by 
business cares. About 1883 he purchased 
the farm in Brown county on which he 
now resides, and which he has converted 



into one of the prettiest homes on the 
Fox ri\er. The children born to Mr. 
and Mrs. L. S. Wilcox were named as 
follows: Chester G., whose sketch ap- 
pears above; Jane M., who was born in 
Michigan, and is now the widow of A. S. 
Fifield, of De Pere; John, born in Oneida 
county, N. Y., now a harness maker at 
Fort Howard, \\'is. ; Lilly, now Mrs. 
Dennis B. Foster, of Fairchild, Wis. ; 
\\'illiam, twin of Lilly, who died at the 
age of eight months. Mr. Wilcox is a 
Democrat in politics, ami in religion is 
Presbyterian. 



G 



ODFREY MILLER (deceased), 
was born October 8, 18 13, in 
Warren county. N. Y., and was 
married November 5, 1840. to 
Caroline Margaret Stewart, daughter of 
Robert D. Stewart. Mrs. Miller was 
born June 4, 1S17, and bore her husband 
three daughters, as follows: Emma Cot- 
ten, who was born June 25, 1S43, was 
married to Jerome Tyler, and is now a 
widow, residing at De Pere; Anna Rose- 
bery, born January 29, 1847, was mar- 
ried to George \\'oodward. of Kaukauna, 
in June. 1870; Sarah Jane, married to 
Chester G. Wilcox in June, 1S70. 

Godfrey Miller was a wheelwright by 
trade, and for seven years worked at his 
vocation in Easton, Penn., having charge 
of the shop most of the time. In 1837 
he came to De Pere, Brown Co., Wis., 
and in the summer of the same year built 
a sawmill in Fond du Lac, there being 
but two white families in the place at 
that time. He then returned to De Pere 
and continued to work at his trade until 
1839, when he bought a farm of eighty 
acres, one mile south of West De Pere. 
The only gristmill was then at "Cocoa- 
low," or Little Chute, and from De Pere 
a skiff-load of grist would be taken down 
one day, be ground, and returned the 
next. In 1842 he moved into his house 
on this farm, and there resided the re- 
mainder of his days. Under the direc- 



COMMEMORATIVE BfOORAPIIlCAL RECORD. 



303 



tioii cif Mr. Miller the first liam, a s]iar 
(lain, was built across the Fox river at Ue- 
Fere. Many sawmills in the neighbor- 
hood were also built under his direction. 
In politics Mr. Miller was a Kepublican. 
He was the first treasurer of Lawrence 
township, which he had heljied to organ- 
ize, and filled the office many years; he 
also .served on the school board with much 
efficiency. He was an active mend)er of 
the Fresbyterian Church — first at Green 
Bay; later, a member and trustee at De- 
Pere. His death took place suddenly on 
the night of November 2, 1893, his corpse 
l)eing found by his wife at seven o'clock 
the ne.Kt morning. Mr. Miller was one of 
the most respected of the early settlers of 
De Fere, lionorcd for his sterling quali- 
ties of both hea<l and heart. He was 
thoroughly versed in tlie topics of the day 
and the affairs of the world, being a 
studious reader. His witlow now resides 
at De Fere, aged seventy-si.\ years, and 
is still bright and active. 



WII.I.I.VM COOK, one of the most 
pi()sper<jus agriculturists and 
lumbermen of Suamico town- 
ship. Brown county, is a native 
of New York State, born in Cha/y town- 
ship, Clinton county, October 12, iS4i,a 
son of John and Anna Cook. 

John Cook, father of our subject, was 
born in the city of York, England, whence, 
at the age of fifteen years, he emigrated 
to this continent, for some five years mak- 
ing his home in Canada, then moving to 
New York State (probably St. Lawrence 
county), where he met and married Miss 
Ann Leger, a native of Canada, She is 
a daughter of Francis and Margaret 
(Lorette) Leger, French Canadians by 
birth, respectable farming peoiile, who 
mo\ed from Canada to New York State, 
later to Wisconsin, where they passed 
the remainder of their lives, dying at 
the home of our subject's mother, lie at 
the great age of one hundred and three 
years, she when seventy years old. 



They were the ])arents of ten chil- 
dren. ]ohn Cook was a day laborer until 
coming to the Unitc-d .States; then, in St. 
Lawrence county, N. Y. , lu' bought a 
farm, and conducted same until 1S56, 
when he came west to Wisconsin, and 
])urchased the ])ro|)erty still occupied by 
his widow, in Suamic(j t(jwnslii]), I^rown 
county, wlicTc he conducti-d a tavern. 
Mr. Cook died on the homestead, in the 
fall of 1890, at the ripe age of seventy- 
eight years, and, when he was no more, 
the communitv in whieli he had lived 
felt that there had (le|iarte(l from their 
midst a grand, good man. He and his 
faithfid wife accumulated several acres of 
wild land, wliiih, by honest toil and untir- 
ing energy, they converted into fi-rtile 
fields, and here she is yet living, in the 
old-time tavern that for over thirty-five 
years has been known as one of the best 
hostelrics in this section of the C(.)untry. 
William Cook, the subject projier of 
these lines, received a liberal education 
at the schools of his native township, and 
was reari'd to farming pursuits under the 
tuition of his fatlier. In 1S56 he came to 
Wisconsin with thi' rest of tiie family, 
and in Suamico townshij). Brown county. 
has since remained, actively engaged in 
agricultural and lumbering pursuits, nmv 
owning over 900 acres of i)riiiie lanuing 
land. His success in life may be said t<j 
have had its commencement, or at any 
rate considerable impetus, in this way. 
One day he set out to hunt ii]) the cows, 
and found them on land covered with 
])ine tind)er. He brought them home, 
and that same night proceeded to Chicago, 
where he bought two "forties" o[ land 
here, ]xiying for same the sum of two 
thousand dollars, Attoiney Robert Lin- 
coln, son of .Xbraham Lincoln, making out 
the deed. Two weeks afterward William 
Cook sold his puniiase for two thousand 
dollars per "forty," to .\. Weed, wiio, at 
that time, had a sawmill three miles from 
Flintville, on the Suamico river. William 
Cook is considerably interested in r<-.il 
estate, ow^ning, in the \illage of l''liiit\ ille. 



304 



COMMEMORATH'E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



several choice building lots, as well as some 
2,800 acres of timber land elsevvere; and in 
all respects is one of the leading, progres- 
sive and affluent citi;iens of Brown county. 
He is a representative self-made man, a 
typical American hustler, in spite of his 
impaired eyesight. In the first winter 
after his marriage he commenced lumber- 
ing, and his indefatigable, clever wife did 
all the cooking for the camp, three long 
winters, sometimes providing for as many 
as from twenty-five to thirty men, in ad- 
dition to which she kept the men's time 
and her husband's accounts. After they 
had succeeded in making sufficient clear- 
ing, which took two or three years, 
they commenced cultivating their present 
fertile farm, situated a few miles from 
their present home. At the present time 
he owns and operates a large sawmill 
ninet}' miles north of Green Bay on the 
Milwaukee & Northern railroad, and he 
expects to cut three million feet this 
winter. 

On November 27, 1865, Mr. Cook 
was married to Mrs. Eliza Douglas («<r 
Millington), widow of G. Stephen Doug- 
las, an Englishman by birth, to whom 
she was married May 3, 1856, and who 
died, during the Civil war, at Antietam, 
Md., September 16, 1862. Mrs. Eliza 
Cook is a very refined and highh accom- 
plishetl lady, and for some time was a 
successful school teacher, first in the 
academy where she was receiving instruc- 
tion, afterward teaching in the town of 
Vienna, Oneida Co., N. Y. , in the same 
schoolhouse she used to attend when a 
child: and, still later, a school in the 
village of Cleveland, Oswego county, the 
last of her teaching in New York State. 
In Flintville, Wis., she taught four years, 
during which time she also tended the 
little store that will be spoken of farther 
on. To Mr. and Mrs. Cook came two 
children — William E. and Jay — both 
born in the house where the family are 
yet residing, the former August 15, 1872, 
the later October 3, 1875. Of these, 
William E. was educated at the district 



schools and Green Bay Business College, 
after which he kept books two years for 
Cook & Boulet, merchants and lumber- 
men. Jay was married in the fall of 
1894 to Miss Myrtle A. Huntington, who 
was but seventeen jears old on the 24th 
of last September, and whom he had 
known from childhood. The entire family 
are identified with the Congregational 
Church, in which Mrs. Cook is an active 
worker; in his political proclivities our 
subject has always been a Democrat. 

Mrs. Eliza Cook is a native of New 
York State, born in Oneida county, to 
Thomas R. and Betsy (Hall) Millington, 
the father also a native of Oneida county, 
N. Y. (he has been blind for the past 
fifty years of his life, and at the age of 
ninety is yet living at the home of Mr. 
and Mrs. Cook), the mother born in 
Rochester, Mass., and died in New York 
State, at the age of thirty-two; they had 
one son and two daughters. The first of 
the Millington family to come to this 
country from Wales (where, by the way, 
the name was spelled Myllington) was 
Peter, in 1740, accompanied by his wife 
(who had with her a two-year-old son, 
named Peter), and his brother Isaac. 
Peter was an officer in the French and 
Indian war, stationed at Fort Wang, 
where is now the city of Albany, N. Y. ; 
Isaac was killed by the Indians. Their 
father, David Millington, died in Wales 
in 1745, leaving for his heirs in America 
an estate that is now wortli half a million 
dollars, besides a considerable sum of 
money in the bank. His son Peter mar- 
ried an English lady named Anna Roberts, 
and by her had seven children — three 
sons, Peter. H. Gates and Asa, and four 
daughters, Polly, Hester, Betsy and Millie. 
His home was at Bennington, Vt., and he 
owned a farm on the banks of the Hoosac 
river. He served in the Revolutionary 
war, in the Green Mountain Rangers, and, 
though he participated in many battles, 
was never wounded; was taken prisoner 
twice, however, but on each occasion 
effected his escape, the second time 



COMMEMORATIVE ISIOGRAPinCAL EECORD. 



305 



through the bravery and cleverness of a 
Miss Hannah Wright, who will again be 
referred to. After the war he sold his 
farm in Vermont, and moving to New 
York State, located in Springhekl town- 
ship, Otsego county, near the head of 
Lake Otsego, later making his home in 
Vienna township, on the banks (jf Lake 
Oneida, where he died in 1809, leaving 
his widow well provided for. 

H. Gates Millington, second son oi 
Peter and Anna (Roberts) Millington, was 
Mrs. Eliza Cook's grandfather. He was 
born June 20, 1777, and died ALiy 26, 
1849; married Miss Mary Roberts, who 
was born February 25, 17S2. married at 
the age of seventeen, and dieil February 
14, 1871 ; she was a daughter of Samuel 
and Hannah (Wright) Roberts (the mother 
being the heroine who in her girlhood 
was the means of Peter Millington's es- 
caping from Burgoyne's soldiers, as al- 
ready referred to). Samuel Roberts and 
several brothers served in the war of the 
Revolution, all escaping wounds or cap- 
ture; he being a brother to Mrs. Peter 
Millington, it shows that Mrs. Eliza 
Cook's grandfather and grandmother were 
first cousins. Samuel Roberts was killed 
by a falling tree while he was clearing a 
site at Crown Point, N. Y., near the 
Vermont border line. H. Gates Milling- 
ton had three sons and one daughter, 
their names and dates of birth being as 
follows: Thomas Ransom, November 4, 
1804; Moremus, September 10, 1806; 
Samuel, April 16, 1808, and Julia Ann, 
March 3, 1812. 

Thomas R. Millington, the eldest of 
these, was Mrs. Eliza Cook's father. ' He 
was married March 2, 1828, at the home 
of the bride in Hastings township, Os- 
wego county, N. Y., to Miss Betsy Hall, 
who was born October 9, i 804, daughter 
of Jonathan and Abigail Hall, the former 
a native of Vermont, born of English an- 
cestry who came from England in the 
"Mayflower" in 1620 (two brothers, 
were Jonathan and William Hall). They 
were married October 24, 1784, and had 



nine children — fi\e sons: Heman, Hosea, 
Hopestill, Ji)siah, and |()hn ; and fi;>ur 
daughters : Irene, Bets\-, Abigail, and 
Harriet. The father died in tln' tnwii of 
Hastings, Oswego county, X. Y., at the 
age of seventy-two years ; m the war for 
Independence he servetl as a wagon-mas- 
ter. Mrs. Eliza Cook's grandmother, 
Abigail (Bisbee) Hall, was born October 

21, I7<'i7, in Massachusetts, the eldest 
child of Hopestill and Abigail (Churchill) 
Bisbee, the latter of whom was in some 
way related to Lord Churchill, of Lon- 
don, England. Mrs. Jonathan Hall's 
father was the first to erect a furnace in 
Massachusetts tnr the making of pew- 
ter and Britannia metal dishes, etc. ; it 
was built in North Rochester, but was 
long ago con\erted into a saw and grist 
mill, and the farm on which it stood has 
never gone out of the Bisbee family, hav- 
ing been handed down from father to son. 

After marriage Mr. and Mrs. Thomas 
R. Millington commenced housekeeping 
in a neat, comfortable log house on the 
shore of Lake Oneida, Oneida county, N. 
Y. , and here were born one son and 
two daughters, their names and dates of 
birth being as follows : Marcus, Octo- 
ber 25, 1829; Eliza (Mrs. William Cook), 
November 6, 1834; and Betsy J., July 

22. 1836. On February 19, 1838, the 
mother died, of consumption, leaving the 
three little children to the care of the 
bereaved father, whose affliction was in- 
tensified by his being nearly blind, the 
result of an attack of measles he suffered 
soon after marriage, on which account he 
had subsequently to enter the Eye Infirm- 
ary at Rochester. She was a faithful 
wife, the kindest of mothers, and a true 
friend to all ; in her housekeeping affairs 
she was ever neat, tidy and industrious, 
while no woman could be more clever 
with the needle ; and her call from earth 
was mourned not only by the husband, 
children and other relatives, but also by a 
wide circle of sorrowing friends. The 
children, after the death of their mother, 
were taken to the home of their grand- 



3o6 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPUICAL RECORD. 



parents, with whom they Hved five years, 
enjoying every comfort and attention, the 
grandfather especially, who was a devout 
Christian man, being exceedingly kind to 
them. But, alas I the pleasant, peaceful 
home was destined to be broken up in an 
unexpected and dire manner, the cosy 
house and all its contents being burned to 
the ground in a bright afternoon in the 
fall of 1843, while all the inmates were 
temporarily absent. After this Mr. Mil- 
lington again took charge of his daughter 
Eliza, and went to housekeeping, renting 
part of a house occupied by a Quaker 
familj', who were very kind to her, one 
and all taking an unselfish interest in her 
welfare. After a time she went to live 
with a married uncle (her mother's eldest 
brother) in Onondaga Valley, and she 
then went to district school and acad- 
emy several terms, intending to qual- 
ify for the profession of school teacher, 
which vocation she commenced at the age 
of seventeen, continuing in same with 
eminent success until her marriage with 
G. S. Douglas, as already recorded. 

He was a native of the city of York, 
England, born May 9, 1830, of Scotch 
descent on his father's side. In the 
fall of 1856 her father set out for 
Wisconsin, bought land, then returned 
to New York State, sold his property 
and once more, in the fall of 1861, 
came to Wisconsin, his daughter, Mrs. 
Douglas (at that time), and her little 
daughter accompanying him, Mr. Douglas 
having gone to the war, and, having saved 
some money, bought land in Oconto 
county, near the Brown county line, 
which he held several years and then sold. 
On November 17, 1858, a little girl was 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Douglas, but was 
carried off by scarlet fever in 1 864, a most 
interesting, lovable child, gone to mingle 
with the angelic throng. In 1862, at this 
place, which afterward came to be known 
as Flintville, in Suamico township, 
Thomas R. Millington and his daughter, 
Mrs. Eliza Douglas, opened out a general 
store, buying their stock of groceries in 



Fort Howard, and their dry goods in Green 
Bay, from which time, up to her marriage 
with Mr. Cook, she assisted in her father's 
store in F"lintville, also teaching school, 
as above stated. 

When Mrs. Cook came to this part of 
Wisconsin, she traveled by water from 
Buffalo to Green Bay, to the place now 
called Flintville, where she has always 
resided since coming west, and she found 
things in a very primitive condition. 
There was no railroad, the nearest post- 
office (Fort Howard) was twelve miles dis- 
tant, and the only span of horses in the 
township was owned by John Cook, her 
present father-in-law, so that ox-teams 
may be said to have been the only mode 
of transportation. The first Sunday- 
school in Flintville was organized in 1863 
b)' a Mr. Lepard, of which school Mrs. 
Douglas was made first superintendent. 
Her father is well known and greatly 
esteemed for his industry and thorough 
business habits, and as one who has made 
his way in the world by laudable ambi- 
tion. In his pcjlitical preferences he was 
a Democrat till 1856, when he changed 
his views, becoming a stanch Republican, 
and has since remained a solid member 
of that party. 



JOHN GRATZA was born February 3, 
1856, in Upper Silesia, Germany, 
son of John and Caroline (Kuczera) 
Gratza, the former of whom was a 
successful farmer. They were the par- 
ents of thirteen children: Frank, Johanna, 
Geneva, Mary, John. Frank and Joseph, 
and six who died in infancy. The mother 
of this family died in Germany, February 
17, 1872, and in 1878 the father came to 
America, settling in Clover Bottom, Mo., 
where ho passed the remainder of his life, 
dying March 3, 1886. At the time of his 
decease he was the owner of 600 acres of 
land. 

John Gratza received all his education 
in Germany, and then in 1 877 entered 
the priesthood. Three months later he 



COMMEMOEATIVE BWGUAFUIVAL RECORD. 



307 



came to America, sailing:; from Bremen to 
New York, and thence journej-inf^" directly 
to Alton, III., where he remained until 
July, 1893, at which time he entered 
upon the duties of his charg^e in New Den- 
mark, Brown count}'. This congregation 
has been organized about ten years, and 
now includes i 20 families — one hundred 
Polish, and twenty German. In his polit- 
ical preferences Father Gratza is a Demo- 
crat, and takes much interest in the suc- 
cess of the party. 



ESEIUS BEISSEL, a thoroughly 
representative respected old set- 
tler of New Denmark township, 
Brown county, is a native of the 
State of Pennsylvania, born August 27, 
1824, in North Sunbury, Northumberland 
county, son of Jacob and Mary (Adams) 
Beissel, the former of whom was a farmer 
by occupation, in which he was very suc- 
cessful. There were ten children in his 
famil}', of whom Rachel died when nine 
years old; Hosanna, Mrs. Snavelly, died 
at Watson, 111., in February, 1894; Eseius 
is the subject of these lines; Levi lives in 
Wenona, 111. ; John is deceased; Priscilla 
died at Tonica, III. ; Aaron lives in Kansas; 
Jacob went to Missouri; two died in in- 
fancy. In 183S the father of this family 
sold his farm of 190 acres in Pennsyl- 
vania, and removed with his family to the 
then new State of Illinois, purchasing 360 
acres of wild land in Roberts township, 
Marshall Co., 111., on which place he 
passed the remainder of his busy life. 

Our subject was reared to farm life by 
his father, and in 1S38 came with the rest 
of the family to Illinois. Here he was mar- 
ried, January 7, 1 85 3, to Miss Margaret 
Kahren, who was born January 17, 1835, 
in the village of Marsdorf, Rhein Province, 
Prussia, the eldest of ten children born 
to J. Peter and Margaret fChimmer) 
Kahren, as follows: Margaret; Jacob, who 
was drowned in the East river, when thirty- 
three years old; Catherine and Joseph, 
who died in infancy; Joseph, who died at 



the age of thirty-three in Oshkosh, Wis. ; 
Elizabeth and Catherine, deceased; Anna; 
Michael, deceased; and Catherine, now 
Mrs. Sharky, of Green Bay, Wis. In 1852 
this family sailed from Germany, and, 
after a voyage of thirty-three days, landed 
in New York, thence coming directly to 
Milwaukee, Wis., where they lived si.\ 
months, and then removed to Illinois. 
At the time of his marriage Mr. Beissel 
purchased eighty acres of land in Evans 
township, Marshall Co., 111., where he 
and his young wife commenced their mar- 
ried life; but some time later, owingtoher 
illness, he sold the place and worked out 
by the month, being thus engaged two 
years. Then, going to Wenona, 111., he 
bought a house and lot, and they resided 
there until 1862, when they came to New 
Denmark township. Brown Co., Wis., 
where he purchased si.xty acres of land 
still in its primitive condition, and here 
made a permanent home; at the time of 
his settlement the land was still wild, but 
with years of earnest, unremitting toil he 
has succeeded in converting it into a well- 
improved property. For sixteen years 
after coming to the county he was en- 
gaged in teaming between Green Ba}' and 
Pine Grove. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Beissel were born 
ten children, their names and dates of 
birth being as follows; Mar}', February 
14, 1854; Amelia, January 14, 1857; 
Charles, September 15, 1859; Louis, 
March 30, 1862; Joseph, January 28, 
1865; Barbara, August 4, 1867; John, 
January 21, 1870; Catherine, September 
13, 1872; Jacob, April 25, 1875; and 
Henry, January 7, 1878. Those deceased 
are Mar}', who died October 2, 1885; 
Barbara, who died September 25, 1868; 
the rest all live at home, except Amelia, 
Mrs. Sampson, of Fort Howard, and 
Charles, now in Coleman, Wis. The 
family are all adherents of Holy Trinity 
Catholic Church, New Denmark, and in 
his political preferences Mr. Beissel is a 
Republican, though not a strict partisan. 
He is well known and highly respected in 



3oS 



COMMKMOnAriVK BIOGRAl'niCAL RECORD. 



the community, with whose interests he 
has been identified so many years, and 
has served his township as justice of the 
peace six years and school treasurer nine 
years, provinj; a most reliable, faithful 
official. 



JAMES HOBBINS, the oldest living 
settler in Rockland township. Brown 
count}-, is a native of the Emerald 
Isle, born in 1816, in County Tip- 
perary, son of Thomas Hobbins, a farmer. 
The latter had a family of ten children — 
seven sons and three daughters — of whom 
James is the eldest son. 

James Hobbins was reared to farming 
pursuits, which he followed in his native 
country until 1 846, when he decided to 
immigrate to America. He had married 
Miss Bridget Schooley, who bore him one 
son, John, in Ireland, and in May, 1846, 
the family took passage for New York 
on a Black Star liner, landing after a 
voyage of seventeen days. They pro- 
ceeded at once to Philadelphia, where 
they remained a short time, Mr. Hobbins 
working in a stone quarry, also as over- 
seer for a farmer, and then removed to 
Oneida county, N. Y. Here the family 
resided about four years, Mr. Hobbins en- 
gaging in farm labor, and here two more 
children were added to the family: 
Thomas, who died in De Pere, Wis., 
where he was a justice of the peace; and 
Patrick, who also died in De Pere, Wis., 
of which city he was marshal for seven 
years. In May, 1850, attracted by the 
cheap homes offered to settlers in Wis- 
consin at that time, they came westward, 
taking passage at Buffalo on the "A. D. 
Patchen," and landing in Milwaukee, 
thence coming to Green Bay, and losing 
no time after their arrival in looking up 
a good location. In Holland township. 
Brown county, Mr. Hobbins purchased 
160 acres of new land; but, being some- 
what dissatisfied with that part of the 
country, he invested, in the same year, 
in eighty acres of land lying in Section i 5, 



Rockland township, and here he has 
ever since made his home. There were 
but three families in the township at 
that time, no roads of any kind were 
laid out, and, in order to reach his 
home, Mr. Hobbins had to cut a path 
through the forest. He felled the first 
tree ever cut down by a white man on the 
place, and built the first dwelling, a log 
cabin, about twenty rods from the site of 
the present family residence. Game was 
still plentiful, and deer were frequently 
seen in the clearing. Mr. Hobbins ex- 
perienced all the hardships and inconve- 
niences incident to backwoods life and 
the clearing and improving of a farm in a 
new country. Even after the trees were 
felled the stumps and roots remained, and 
having no modern appliances for remov- 
ing them, he could not use a plow suc- 
cessfully, and was obliged to do the best 
he could with a grub-hoe. Money was 
very scarce, so, in order to obtain enough 
for their needs, our subject worked, dur- 
ing the winter season for several years, in 
the lumber camps of Brown county. But, 
in spite of the dangers and privations, he 
remained on the farm, laboring early and 
late to hew himself a comfortable home 
from the dense forest, and he has lived to 
see his place transformed from a wilder- 
ness to a beautiful productive tract of 
land, the result of long 3ears of unrelent- 
ing toil. As will be seen, he has resided 
here continuously forty-four years, during 
which period he has watched the progress 
and development of his section, taking no 
small part in the work himself. He is 
now the oldest living settler of Rockland 
township, where he is well known and 
highly esteemed by a wide circle of friends 
and acquaintances. He has served his 
township in various positions of honor and 
trust, ha\ing held the important office of 
chairman several jears, was school di- 
rector eighteen years, and has also been 
assessor. In political affiliation he is a 
stanch Democrat. In religious faith he 
is a Catholic, and was among the first to 
take active steps in the formation of St. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGMAPHICAL liECORD. 



309 



Francis Church at De Pere, of which he 
is now the oldest hving member, and 
which at first was the place of worship 
for all nationalities. Mrs. Hobbins passed 
from earth February i i, 1886, at the age 
of seventy-three years, and was laid to 
rest in De Pere cemetery; since her de- 
cease our subject has lived a compara- 
tively retired life, making his home with 
his eldest son, John (the only surviving 
member of his family), who miw conducts 
the farm. 

John Hobbins was born in April, 1845, 
in County Tipperarj', Ireland, whence, 
when a year old, he was brought by his 
parents to the United States, and was five 
years of age when the family settled in 
Rocklantl tt)wnship. Here he was reared 
to manhood on the pioneer farm, receiv- 
ing a thorough training to agricultural 
pursuits, and, at the same time, obtaining 
such an education as the early district 
schools afforded. In July, 1867, he was 
united in marriage with Miss Bridget 
Ryan, who was l)orn in County Tipperary, 
Ireland, in 1848. She is a daughter of 
Patrick Ryan, who died in Ireland, leav- 
ing a widow and seven children — four sons 
and three daughters — and in 1853 this 
family immigrated to the United States, 
locating first in New York State, and sub- 
sequently coming to Wisconsin. This 
union has been blessed with the following- 
named children: James, Thomas, Alice, 
Nora, Marj-, Ellen, Patrick, and Flossie, 
all living at home. Mr. Hobbins, like 
his father, is a stanch member of the 
Democratic party, and has served as 
school clerk for thirteen years. In relig- 
ious connection he and his wife are mem- 
bers of St. Francis Church, De Pere. 



DR. WILLIAM BEAUPRK, the 
well-known oculist and aurist, 
whose skill in his profession has 
gained for him a wide and envi- 
able reputation, is a native of Canada, 
born in what is now the Province of Que- 
bec (Canada Bas) in 1830. 



As his name indicates, the Doctor is 
of P'rench descent, his grandfather, who 
was a military man, having been a native 
of "La Belle F'rance," whence in very 
early times he emigrated to Canada, and 
in the lower province (now Quebec) made 
a settlement. There his son, H. N., 
father of subject, was born and educated, 
in early manhood taking up the mercan- 
tile business, which was his life work. He 
married Mile. Argauge Bargeron, also a 
native of Canada East, and children as 
follows were born to this union: Mary, 
who married Edward Pelicier, of Canada, 
and died in i 864 ; Angeline, who became 
the wife of P'rank Pelicier, and died in 
1878 ; Maxime, a merchant, living in St. 
.Michel's, Canada ; Joseph, a professor, 
who was well known in Green Bay, W'is. , 
died in 1891 in Montreal, Canada ; Philip, 
married, living in St. Cloud, Minn. , where 
he is a judge of the Probate Court ; Eliza- 
beth, wife of John Gecr, of Ford River, 
Mich. ; Dr. Reauseau, a physician of Ford 
River, Mich. ; Catherine, who died in 
Canada, unmarried ; and William. The 
father died of cholera, in 1832, in Quebec, 
the mother passing away in St. Michel, 
same province, in 1853. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
and educated at his native place till the 
age of fifteen (1845J, at which time he 
came to Wisconsin, landing in the then 
village of Green Bay on November i . 
Here for four years he served as clerk in 
the store of John l'. Lessey, after which 
he sailed the lakes from the port of Green 
Bay until the breaking out of the Civil 
war, when his nnlitar\' ardor, inherited 
from his grandfather, kindled into activity 
by the youthful desire to "seek the bub- 
ble reputation, e'en at the cannon's 
mouth." In 1861 he assisted in raising 
Company G ("French Mountaineers, " a 
mounted company). Seventeenth Wiscon- 
sin Infantry, which was attached to the 
army of Tennessee. His connnand par- 
ticipated in Sherman's march to the sea 
and in the Carolina campaign. On March 
I I, 1862, he was commissioned first lieu- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



tenant, and August 31 following was pro- 
moted to the captaincy of the same com- 
pany. On June 6, 1864, he was wounded 
by a grapeshot at Marietta. Ga., but de- 
clined hospital service. At Pocotaligo, 
W. Va. , he was honorably discharged, 
January 19. 1865, and returned to his 
home in Green Ba\'. In 1867 he com- 
menced reading medicine under the pre- 
ceptorship of Ur. H. A. Woodbridge, 
studying until 1871, and making a spe- 
cialty of the eye and ear. Immediately 
conmiencing the practice of his profession, 
he traveled a circuit, visiting, among 
other places, in Wisconsin and Michigan, 
Menomonee, Escanaba, Marquette, Han- 
cock, Red Jacket, Lake Linden, Wausau, 
Grand Rapids, Merrill, Antigo, Ironwood, 
finally, after an absence of four years, 
locating in Green Bay, where he has 
since been in the continuous practice of 
his profession, his office being established 
on Cherry street, between Washington 
and Adams. 

Dr. Beauprc has been three times 
married, each time in Green Bay, on first 
occasion to Miss Jane Matilda Beaudoin, 
a native of France, daughter of Francis 
Beaudoin, of the same nativity, who emi- 
grated to the United States, taking up 
his residence in St. Ignace, Mich. ; in 
1840 moving to Green Bay, and making 
his final home in Shantytown, where he 
died. This wife was called from earth in 
1851, the mother of two daughters: Jane, 
wife of S. B. Cornish, of Antigo, Wis., 
and Emily, wife of H. H. Raiche, of 
Menominee, Mich. In 1854 the Doctor 
married Miss I. Raiche, who was born in 
Green Bay, a daughter of Theodore 
Raiche, a native of Canada, whence, in 
1840, he came to Green Bay, dying there 
in 1886. By this union there were two 
sons: William A., who died in St. Louis, 
Mo., in 1888, and James, now a resident 
of Drummond, Wis. The mother of these 
was called from earth July 2, 1862, and 
for his third wife, our subject, in 1866, 
wedded Miss Olive Trudell, born in Green 
Bay, a daughter of Theodore Trudell, of 



Canadian birth, coming, in 1845, to Green 
Bay, where he was engaged in the grocery 
business: he now resides in South Bend, 
Wash. By his last marriage the Doctor 
had si.\ children, all girls, a brief record 
of whom is as follows: Mary married 
Frank Duchateau, and died October 11, 
1892; Lydia Ann, born January 26, 1869, 
died September 22, 1891, wife of S. W. 
Lieblien; Rose Delenia, born January 24, 
1871, died May 24, 1873; Lucy Martha, 
born May 26, 1873, is the wife of Theo- 
dore Remington, of Menominee, Mich. ; 
Eva Lottie, born November 17, 1875, 
resides in Menominee; Minnie Matilda, 
born April 27, 1878, died July 2, 1879. 

Dr. Beaupre, in his political associa- 
tions, was a Democrat till 1886, when he 
changed his views and his colors, becom- 
ing as zealous a Republican as he had 
been a Democrat. He is a member of 
the Catholic Church, and a highly re- 
spected, useful citizen of Green Bay, 
which, since his first arrival in the place, 
fifty years ago, he has seen transformed 
from a village of a few houses to a fine 
city with a grand future yet before it, and 
toward whose prosperity he has con- 
tributed a troodlv share. 



CORNELIUS LEARY, prominent 
among the prosperous agricultur- 
ists and early pioneers of Glen- 
more township. Brown county, is 
a native of County Kerry, Ireland, born 
in 1 824, a son of James and Margaret 
(Catler) Leary, who had eight children — 
four sons and four daughters. 

When Cornelius was nine years of 
age the family came to America, sailing 
in the month of August from Cork on the 
"Thomas Hanford," which arrived, after 
a voyage of seven weeks, at St. John, New 
Brunswick, where they lived five years. 
They then moved to Boston, Mass., later 
to Springfield, and resided in various parts 
of the State until the spring of 1850, 
when the father concluded to try his for- 
tune in Wisconsin. In the month of 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPUICAL RECORD. 



April they traveled by rail to Buffalo, and 
one week later embarked on a vessel 
bound for Milwaukee, thence continuing 
their journey by stage and boat to Green 
Bay, via Fond du Lac, Menasha, etc. 
In Glenmore township. Brown county, 
Mr. Leary purchased one-half of Section 
22, and shortly afterward a quarter of 
Section 15. At that time but three 
other families — the Pattons, Ryans and 
Caseys — lived in the township; no roads 
had been laid out, and Cornelius and his 
brother John cut a road from their farm 
to De Pere. Mr. Leary built the first 
house in Section 22, a cabin of logs 
covered with boards, which stood a short 
distance from the present residence. Wild 
animals were numerous, and no clearing 
whatever had been done, the trees being 
so thick that a space had to be made for 
the dwelling. Mrs. Leary died shortly 
after the location in Glenmore, and Mr. 
Leary passed away on his farm in 1880. 

Cornelius Leary received but a limited 
education, and in early boyhood com- 
menced to work in the cotton mills in 
New England. He was in the very prime 
of life when he came with his parents to 
Wisconsin, and. being the eldest son, 
found plenty of work ready for him on the 
land which his father had undertaken to 
clear. About 1854 he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Julia Brennan, a native 
of County Kerry, Ireland, daughter of 
Frank Brennan. This union was blessed 
by children as follows: Margaret, living 
at home with her parents; James, who 
died when five years old; Julia (Mrs. 
James Dougherty), of Escanaba, Mich. ; 
Catherine, deceased at the age of twenty- 
three years; John, who died when twenty- 
four years old; Morris, deceased when 
one year old; Alice, of Escanaba, Mich.; 
Annie, living at home; Hattie, Mrs. John 
Clune, of Escanaba, Mich. ; and Theresa, 
at home. 

Mr. Leary has been a successful 
farmer, and now owns 160 acres of good 
land, all of which he has seen trans- 
formed from a wilderness to a highly cul- 



tivated farm, a work in which he has 
taken no small part. He is well known 
and highly respected throughout his sec- 
tion, for his industry and straightforward, 
honest methods have placed him in an 
enviable position among his fellow citi- 
zens. Though now past three-score and 
ten, he is well-preserved and hearty, and 
still continues to direct the affairs of his 
farm, though he docs little of the active 
work. In his party affiliations he is a 
Democrat, and has served as roadmaster; 
but he has given little attention to poli- 
tics, preferring to devote his time exclu- 
sively to his private affairs. In religious 
faith he is a member of St. Mary's Catho- 
lic Church, at Glenmore. 



ALBERT WILLIAMS, a promi- 
nent and influential citizen of Fort 
Howard, is a native of Belgium, 
and is a son of John B. and 
Rosalie (Vandeborne) Williams, natives 
of the same country, where they lived 
and died. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in his native land, where he learned the 
trade of a bricklayer and worked at same 
until his removal, in 1871, to the United 
States. In that year he located at Fort 
Howard, subsequently purchasing forty 
acres of land in Wrightstown. After two 
years he settled permanently at Fort 
Howard, where he has since been engaged 
in farming and market gardening, at 
which occupations he has been very suc- 
cessful. His present veneered brick resi- 
dence was erected in 1873. Mr. Will- 
iams, who is an independent reasoner in 
political matters, has been the recipient 
of certain official favors at the hands of 
his constituents, and for a number of 
years has served them as supervisor from 
the Second ward of the city. He is 
recognized as a valuable, upright citizen, 
and commands the respect of all. In 
1864, while yet a resident of Belgium, he 
married Miss Rosa Vandeborne, and to 
these worthy parents have been born six 



3': 



COMMEMORA TIVK JUOUIiAl'lIICAL liECORD. 



children: William, foreman of the Mil- 
waukee & Northern shops; Bernard; 
Lewis; Felix; Mary, wife of Albert 
Brunette, of the town of Howard; Nettie, 
wife of Jack Osterman, of Green Bay. 
Mr. and Mrs. \\'illianis are inetnbers of 
St. W'illibrord's Church, Green Bay. 
They came to Fort Howard at a time 
when it lacked very much of being the 
flourishing city it is at present, and have 
witnessed its steady development. 



JOHN SH.\UGHNESSY, one of the 
well-to-do and highly-respected old 
citizens of Glenmore township, 
I3rown count)', was born in 1824 
in County Limerick, Ireland. His parents, 
George and Hannah (Murj)h}'j Shaugh- 
nessy, were farming people, who worked 
industriously to support their large family, 
which consisted of fourteen children — 
eight sons and si.\ daughters. 

John Shaughnessy attended the com- 
mon schools until fifteen years of age, and 
then assisted his father on the farm until 
he reached his majority. At this time, 
receiving money from his parents to pay 
his way to America, he bid his early home 
and friends farewell, and took passage at 
Cork on the "Louisiana," bound for 
yuebec, where he landed in the month of 
August, after a voyage of si.x weeks and 
three days. He first found employment 
with farmers, harvesting, and afterward 
came to Milwaukee, Wis., taking the 
water route, via Oswego, N. Y. Mr. 
Shaughnessy purchased a horse and 
wagon, and commenced the draying busi- 
ness in Milwaukee, continued in that un- 
til 1S50, in the meantime saving some 
money. Several railroads were then in 
course of construction in New York State, 
and he went to Buffalo, where he obtained 
employment as a laborer on the New York 
& Eric railway. 

On May 29, 1.S50, Mr. Shaughnessy 
was married in Buffalo to Miss Catherine 
Flaherty, who was born June 24, 1828, 



in Count}' Kerry, Ireland. [These facts 
have been taken from an authentic record 
in the possession of Mrs. Shaughnessy]. 
She is a daughter of Thomas and Mary 
(Lynch) Flaherty, farming people of Ire- 
land, and she came to the United States 
when twenty years old, with friends, sail- 
ing from Cork on the " Lady Elgin," and 
landing in Ouebec, after a voyage of five 
weeks and five days. She subsequently 
came to Milwaukee, where she met Mr. 
Shaughnessy. After their marriage they 
kept boarders for about two years, and 
then returned to Milwaukee, Wis., where 
he again took up draying for two years. 
In 1854 he came to Brown county, and 
purchased eighty acres of wild land in 
Section 21, Glenmore township, for eighty 
dollars, and when they moved to their 
new home there were still no roads to it, 
and their nearest neighbor was three 
miles distant. The forest was so dense 
that a site had to be cleared for their 
cabin, which was the first house in Sec- 
tion 21, and, as he himself says, his hogs 
to-day have a better house than the one 
he first lived in. W'ild animals were 
numerous, deer were frequently seen near 
the house, and bears and wolves played 
havoc with the stock of the early settlers. 
With an axe and a grub-hoe (the latter 
made by "Old Newton," the blacksmith 
of De Pere, who made many tools for the 
pioneer farmers), the work of clearing was 
begun and persevered in until a comfort- 
able property had been taken from the 
woods. When they had butter or eggs 
to sell they carried them to Green Bay, 
sixteen miles distant, making the entire 
journey on foot. On April 14,1865, they 
removed to Section 32, Glenmore town- 
ship, where he had purchased a tract of 
forty acres, and here lived in a shanty 
until the completion of their log cabin, in 
the erection of which the neighbors for 
miles around assisted. Here Mr. Shaugh- 
nessy has since continued to reside, and 
was actively engaged in agriculture until 
1 89 1, when he disposed of his property 
and retired. The farm at one time con- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPUICAL HE CORD. 



'? T ^ 



tained i6o acres, eighty of which he gave 
to his sons. 

Mr. and Mrs. Shaughnessy ha\'e had 
nine children, of whom three sons and 
two daiigliters died 30ung: George, born 
in New York, is a farmer of Glenmore 
towiishi]>; Thomas, born in Milwaukee, 
is a butcher of Escanaba, Wis. ; William, 
born in Glenmore, is a resident of L)c- 
Pere township; John, born in Glenmore, 
lives in Milwaukee. Mr. Shaughnessy has 
alwa_\s been a stanch Democrat in poli- 
tics, and held the office of roadmaster, 
but has never been an aspirant for office. 
In religious connection he and his family 
are members of St. John's Church, in 
Morrison township. Mr. and Mrs. 
Shaughnessy are among the few old 
pioneers left in Glenmore township, who 
have seen the country converted from a 
forest wild into smiling, productive farms. 
They are well known and much respected 
in their section. [Since the above was 
written, we have been notified of the 
death of Mr. John Shaughnessy, which 
occurred October 3, 1894. — Ed. 



ANDREW SIMONS, a thrifty, well- 
to-ilo farmer of Huinlioldt town- 
ship, Brown count}-, is a native 
of same, born April 5, 1850, on 
the farm where he yet resides, which was 
then included in Scott township. 

His parents Christoph and Anna M. 
(Muller) Simons, early pioneers of this 
section, were natives of Prussia, Germany, 
and the father was a carpenter by trade. 
They were married in their native coun- 
try, and three children were there born 
to them : Catherine, and Charles and 
Seraphim (twins), with whom, in iS43,they 
came to the United States. From the 
port of landing they pushed westward at 
once to their destination, Duck Creek, 
Brown Co., Wis., during which journey 
the twins, Charles and Seraphim, died of 
small-pox. After their arrival at Duck 
Creek the father was taken sick with the 
ague, then so prevalent, and as soon as 



possible moved to Preble township, where 
he took up forty acres of government 
land, on which they lived three years. 
Owing to the dampness of that locality 
Mrs. Simons suffered greatly from rheu- 
matism, and accordingly they removed to 
Humboldt townshi}), where they took up 
another forty acres of land and thi>reon 
made a permanent home. Mr. Simons 
died on this farm November 5, 1S71, and 
here his widow, now aged eighty years, 
still makes her home, hving with her son, 
Andrew. 

Andrew Simons was born on his pres- 
ent farm, and here received a thorough 
knowledge of farming, commencing work 
early in life, faithfully remaining at home 
and assisting his parents. After the death 
of his father the place came into his pos- 
session, and by hard labor and good man- 
agement he has improved and added to it, 
now owning ninety acres of highly culti- 
vated land. On November 26, 1878, he 
was united in marriage with Miss Hattie 
Heim, daughter of Lawrence and Hattie 
Heim, which union has been blessed with 
nine children, viz.; Andrew W. , Law- 
rence C, Louis P., Agnes A., Mary N., 
Killian H., Joseph (deceased), Harriet B., 
and Lena K. (deceased). During his 
youth Mr. Simons had rather limited edu- 
cational opportunities, and, appreciating 
the value of a good literary training, he is 
endeavoring to give his children all the 
advantages possible in that line. In re- 
ligious connection the family are members 
of the Catholic Church. 



DK. ALBERT HAYDEN ELLS- 
WORTH comes of one of the old 
New England families which was 
founded at a very early day in the 
history of this country by three brothers 
who settled in Connecticut. They were 
farming people, but many of their de- 
scendants were well-educated men, be- 
coming prominent in professional circles 
throughout the State. 

The Doctor was born July 14, 1823, 



3'4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in Windsor, Hartford Co., Conn., and 
acquired his education in the public 
schools of his native town. He aho took 
the high-school course, and afterward at- 
tended school in Suffield, Conn. , for one 
year, and also in Ellington, Conn. He 
then engaged in teaching school, being 
thus employed for one year in the State 
of his nativity, and for one year in Mon- 
mouth, N. J., after which he took up the 
study of dentistry under Dr. Sherwood, a 
prominent dentist and highly-respected 
citizen of Cincinnati, Ohio. He applied 
himself assiduously in his new field of la- 
bor, and, after a year of thorough and sys- 
tematic study, located in Milwaukee, Wis. , 
in November, 1848. He was one of the 
first dentists of that city, and met with 
most flattering success, doing a large and 
lucrative business, which kept constantly 
increasing until failing health caused him 
to retire. He was doing an excellent 
business, having probably the best prac- 
tice in the State, and to-day, in years of 
continuous labor, he is the oldest prac- 
ticing dentist in Wisconsin. 

Dr. Ellsworth was a prominent mem- 
ber of the Plymouth Congregational 
Church of Milwaukee, and took a very 
active part in its work and c\erything 
pertaining to its growth and upbuilding. 
He was also an honored member of the 
I. O. O. F., belonging to Menomonee 
Lodge. In social circles he and his fam- 
ily occupied an enviable position, and he 
is well remembered by the pioneers and 
early settlers of Milwaukee. 

In July, 1852. Dr. Ellsworth came to 
Green Bay to spend his few remaining 
months, as he supposed, for his life was 
despaired of by his physicians, and he 
thought that his days were numbered; 
but the vigorous and bracing atmosphere 
soon brought new life and strength to him, 
and he is to-day one of the hale and 
hearty old gentlemen of Green Bay, pos- 
sessed of the vigor of many a younger 
man, his three-score-and-ten years rest- 
ing lightly upon him. As soon as his 
health permitted he began the practice of 



his profession in Green Bay, and his skill 
and ability soon again won recognition in 
a large and lucrative patronage. He has 
ever been a thorough student along the 
line of his profession, and as a result has 
been very successful. As his financial re- 
sources increased the Doctor made sev- 
eral judicious investments, which have 
proved to him quite profitable, and gained 
him a comfortable competence. 

Since coming to Green Bay Dr. Ells- 
worth has been identified with the Pres- 
byterian Church. In his political views 
he is a Democrat, but has never sought 
or desired official preferment, giving his 
entire time and attention to business and 
other interests. He is a warm friend of 
the cause of education, and, when the of- 
fice of city superintendent of schools was 
created, he was elected to that position, 
which he has filled fourteen years. His 
unselfish devotion and his untiring labors 
have been productive of much good in the 
educational field, and the present gener- 
ation and the young people of the future 
will have cause to hold him in grateful 
remembrance for his earnest labors. 



CHARLES J. LUCIA, a prosper- 
ous fanner of Suamico township, 
Brow n county, was born July i 5, 
1836, in Clinton county, N. Y.. of 
French descent on the paternal siiie. 
His parents, Alexander and Phebe (Bessie) 
Lucia, natives of New York, had a family 
of two sons and four daughters, of whom 
the sons and two of the daughters are 
still living. The family were all reared 
on the farm, and the parents both lived 
to advanced ages, the father dying when 
eighty years old, and the mother when 
seventy-five. 

Charles J. Lucia left the home place 
when fourteen years old and worked out 
by the month until 1854, went he came 
west, and located first in Suamico town- 
ship. Brown county, laboring in the 
woods by the month. He also worked 
in a sawmill in the same townshiji, then 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



3' 5 



for a year or more was employed in 
Oconto, in draying, sawing, and as wood- 
man, after which he returned to Suamico. 
On April i, 1858, he married Miss Caro- 
hne Cook, who \\as born February 28, 
1839, in Chnton county, N. Y., a 
daughter of John and Ann Cook, and to 
this union have been born six children, 
as follows: trving J., born May i, 1859, 
married in August, 1883, to Miss Cora 
I>arker, and they have one son and one 
daughter; he is now a merchant of Bes- 
semer, Mich. William H., born Septem- 
ber 12, i860, was married June 28, 1882, 
to Sarali Allen, who has borne him two 
sons; he is now a merchant at Hurley. 
Ella j., born January 19, 1S67, was mar- 
ried July 29, 1890, to Lawrence Head, 
of Ashland, and has two sons. AnnaE., 
Dorn January 4, 1869, was married Jul_\' 
29, 1 89 1, to Ed. A. Dunham, a farmer 
of Minnesota. Charles G., born Octo- 
ber I, 1876, and George O., born March 
12. 1882. 

After his marriage Mr. Eucia w as em- 
ployed in logging, etc., then bought 
seventy-seven and a half acres, of which 
fifteen were cleared, and settled on his 
place in 1865; to this land he has aiitied 
until he now owns about two hundred 
acres, all purchased from his own earn- 
ings, which were at the first $10 per 
month. He is a Republican in his poli- 
tical proclivities, but in local affairs votes 
for the best man, regardless of party. 
The family are all attendants of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. 



L.M^S JENSEN, prominent among 
the agricultural citizens of New- 
Denmark township, Brown county, 
was born August 12, 1843, in Den- 
mark, son of Jens Hemmengson and Anna 
(Nelson) Jensen, thrifty farming people 
of that country. They had a family of 
seven children: Lars, Anna (deceased), 
Peter, Hemmeng, Anna, Margaret and 
Nels. 

(_)ur subject remained at home with 



his parents until he reached the age of 
fourteen jears, receiving in the coninion 
schools a somewhat limited education. 
The ne.xt two years he worked on a farm, 
and then conuuenced to learn carpentry, 
ser\'ing an apprenticeshi]) (jf three years 
at the trade, which he siibseiiuenll\- fol- 
lowed si.x years. In his eaiiy manhood 
he served two }ears ni the arui\-. On 
June 28, 1868, he was united in marriage 
with Miss Ellen M. Gerhardson, daughter 
of Gerhard Nelson ami Anna M. (Jensen) 
Gerhardson, who were the parents of 
seven children, \i/.. : Karen, Ellen, .Stine, 
Margaretta, two that died in infancy un- 
named, and Wilhelmina. Shortly after 
marriage Mr. and Mrs. [ensen came to 
the United States, crossing to New York 
in sixteen days, where they landed with a 
capital of ninety-nine dollars, with which 
to commence life in the Western World. 
Journeying by rail to Green Bay, Wis., 
via Chicago, they came thence to their 
present place in New Denmark township, 
Mr. [ensen jnu'chasing thirty-four acres in 
the midst of the forest, from which they 
have made a comfortable home. For 
about a year the\' lived with an uncle of 
our subject, who followed his trade dur- 
ing that time, and then set about the 
erection of a log house on his lancl. But, 
while engaged in hewing the timbers, a 
falling log struck his limb and fractured 
the bone, making it necessary for him to 
stop Work for si'veral weeks, and the 
money he had saved to }iay on the land 
went to the doctor. After his recovery 
he completed the house, and made his 
home therein for twelve years, during 
which time he was busily engaged in clear- 
ing and improving his land, from time to 
time making other purchases, his farm 
now containing 104 acres of highly-im- 
proved land. He is trul\- a silf-made 
man, his present firosperity being due 
solely to his own unceasing labor, and he 
has won the res])ect of all who know him 
by his square, hoiu'St methods in all his 
dealings with his fellow men. Politically 
he is a Democrat, and has held various 



3i6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



local offices of trust, serving his town- 
sliip faitlifully as supervisor ami school 
treasurer. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Jensen have been 
born twelve children, as follows: Gerhard 
H., James C. , Nels C, Tourwal A., 
Charles Edwin, Lawrence N., Anna C, 
Tolle'tte M., and four that died in infancy; 
of these, Gerhard H. and Nels C, at- 
tend the Normal School at Oshkosh; 
James is a miner in Montana; Tourwal 
lives in Green Bay; and the remaining 
four live at home with their parents. 



21, 



PETER JOSEPH BECKER, a 
prosperous farmer of Green Bay 
township. Brown county, is a 
German b\' birth, born November 
1829, in the Kingdom of Prussia. 
He is a son of Bartholomew and Maria 
Eva (Schneider)Becker, well-to-do farm- 
ing people, who had four children, as fol- 
lows: Peter Joseph, whose name opens 
this sketch; Mary, Mrs. Burkhart, of 
Green Bay; Barbara, who married, and 
died at the age of twentj-eight years, 
leaving a husband and two children — • 
Eva and Mary — to mourn her early 
death; and E\a, wife of Ur. Rhode, of 
Green Bay. 

In 1843 Bartholomew Becker sold his 
property in Germany and came with his 
family to America, arriving in New York 
after a voyage of forty-nine days, and 
immediately pushing westward to Akron, 
Ohio, where he found emplo\ment on 
the canal for about a year. Part of this 
time the family lived in a blacksmith 
shop, but later purchasing an old log 
house (for which they paid twelve 
dollarsj made that their home, an i 
they also cleared a small piece of 
land near Akron. After a residence of 
six and a half years in Ohio, they came to 
Wisconsin, where for three years they 
lived on a rented farm near Milwaukee. 
Here the father died in 1852, and in the 
spring of 1S53 the widowed mother came 
witli her family to Green Bay township. 



Brown county, the journe)', which occu- 
pied seven days, being made in a wagon 
drawn by o.xen. In Green Bay township 
the)- purchased eighty acres of timber 
land, all in its primitive state, but which 
has since been cleared and improved by 
our subject. Mrs. Becker died here in 
1888, aged eightj-three \'ears. 

Peter J. Becker received an ordinary 
common-school training in Germany, and 
was reared to farming, in which vocation 
he has been engaged the greater part of 
his life. On June 9, 1861, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Rosaline Aussloss, daughter 
of Xavier and Johanna (Labus) Aussloss, 
and to this union have been born nine 
children, namely: Peter. Henry. Eva, 
Anton, Mary. Catherine. Joseph. .Anna, 
and John. Since his settlement in Green 
Bay township in 1853, Mr. Becker has 
made his home continuously on his pres- 
ent farm, except from 1870 to 1873, dur- 
ing which period he lived in the city of 
Green Bay. He has added forty acres to 
the original purchase, having at present 
120 acres of fine land, highly improved 
and cultivated, where he successfully con- 
ducts a general farming business. Our 
subject takes a liveh' interest in the wel- 
fare of his township, of which he was the 
first chairman, and he also served two 
\'ears as assessor, discharging the duties 
of his office faithfully and satisfactorily. 
In political affiliation he is a Democrat, 
and in religious faith he and his familj' 
are members of the German Catholic 
Church at New Eranken. 



W 1 1.1. JAM HASSETT WOOL- 
I'OKl), general yardmaster for 
the Chicago, Minneapolis & St. 
Paul railroad, at Green Bay, 
enjoys the enviable distinction of having 
a record second to none as an efficient 
railroad official, careful, faithful and 
trustworthy. 

He is a native of Ohio, born in Day- 
ton, June 18, 1S53. of English ancestry, 
his grandfather ha\ing been a prosperous 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOOltAPIIICAL UECOIW. 



319 



fanner in England. William \\'(jolford, 
father of our subject, was one of a family 
of six children born on the farm, and the 
first few years of his life were divided be- 
tween attending the parish school and 
helping his father in his agricultural pur- 
suits. When old enough, he learned a 
trade, and in after years turned his 
attention to railroad contracting, becom- 
ing successful. But, while still young, 
seeing a wider field in America for a man 
of his broad caliber, he emigrated, and 
after landing on the shores of the New 
World at once proceedeil westward to 
Ohio, where, for a time, he assisted on the 
construction of a railroad and the build- 
ing ot a bridge over the Sus(]uehanna 
river. His ne.xt venture was in Illinois, 
where he had contracts on the North- 
western railn.iad, then in course of con- 
struction, and he proved to be one of the 
most successful operators in his line of 
business. Possessed of a great amount of 
natural abilit}', he was a good business 
manager and a close calculator on plans 
and specifications. He also conducted a 
farm in Illinois. Now, at the age of sev- 
enty-eight years, hale and hearty, he is 
living retired with his faithful wife, at 
Rockford, Wright Co., Minn., in the full 
enjoyment of the esteem of all who know 
him. In religious faith he is a member 
of the Methodist Church. His \\ife, 
Eunice ("Smithj, is a native of Point 
Albino, and is the mother of ten children, 
seven of whom — three sons and four 
daughters — lived to maturity. 

William B. Woolford, the subject 
proper of these lines, received his educa- 
tion at the schools of Palatine, 111., and 
at the age of sixteen commenced to assist 
his father on the farm. A year after- 
ward, howe\er, he took to railroading, 
entering the service of the Chicago & 
Northwestern Railroad Company as brake- 
man, at which he continued four years, 
when he was promoted to conductor. 
In the latter capacity he served un- 
til 1S88 a period of fourteen years, 
and then resigned in order to accept the 

18 



position of trainmaster for the Wisconsin 
Central railroad. In 1890 he was aj)- 
pointed to his present incumbency, and 
remoN'ed to Green Bay. 

On July 6, 1872, Mr. Woolford was 
united in marriage in Janesville, Wis., 
with Miss Alice McCaffrey, daughter of 
James and Mary (Burns) McCaffrey, na- 
tives of County Fermanagh, Ireland, of 
Scotch descent. Fi\e children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Woolford, named 
as follows: Mary A., Eunice B., William 
B., Isabella A. and Henry E. Our sub- 
ject has been a prominent member of the 
F. l\: a. M. since uniting with the 
fraternity in Milwaukee; he is associatetl 
with Wisconsin Blue Lodge No. 13, 
Chapter No. 7, Commandery No. i, and 
the Consistory, having attained the thir- 
ty-second degree. Mrs. Woolford is a 
member of the Catholic Church. 



GS. LAWRENCE, a pioneer 
farmer of Pittsfield township. 
Brown county, was born in Jeffer- 
son county, N. Y. , August 4, 
1837, a son of Charles and Lucy (Wals- 
worth) Lawrence, and grandson of Elijah 
Walsworth. There were seven children 
in the family of Charles Lawrence, viz. : 
Charles, who died at the age of twenty- 
four; Harriet, wife of Oliver Crumb, of 
Marshalltown, Iowa; Alpheus, a carpen- 
ter, of Milwaukee, Wis., now in the 
Soldiers Home; Alvin, who died at the 
age of twenty; G. S., our subject; John, 
who died at the age of thirteen; and Mor- 
timer, of Marshalltown, Iowa. The father 
of this family died in 1841, of heart 
disease, and was buried at Clayton, 
New York. 

At the age of twelve G. S. Lawrence 
was given to Eber Stevens; but, before he 
had been with him a year, his mother had 
moved to Chicago, and had there mar- 
ried Peltier Barter, a sailor and ship car- 
penter, and our subject was brought to 
his mother and stepfather. Soon after 
his marriage Mr. Barter bought forty 



320 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



acres of land at Beaver Island and went 
to farming: but had lived there only five 
years when he was drowned. Left a 
widow the second time, the mother sold 
the farm a year later, and moved to Green 
Bay, living with Mrs. Oliver Crumb two 
years, and thence going to Oconto, where 
she made her home with her son, Al- 
pheus, about three years. She then re- 
turned with her son to Chicago, and died 
there in i S6o. After his mother's death, 
our subject returned to Oconto, and 
worked in sawmills, etc. , about two years, 
when he came to Pittsfield and purchased 
fortv acres of timber land, on which he 
had to clear a space large enough to per- 
mit the eretion of a log cabin about 1 2 x 1 8 
feet in dimensions, in which he lived alone 
for about a year. On January 27, 1863, 
he married Miss Mary Jane Tripp, daugh- 
ter of Robert and Sarah (^ Ledger) Tripp, 
who had a family of nine children, viz. : 
Alvira, Sarah .-Vnn, Mary Jane, Willard 
B.. .-Vnna. Emeline. James \V.. Ellen .\. 
and Harriet M.. of whom seven are still 
living. The father, who was a carpenter, 
came from New York to Wisconsin in 
1855. first taking up a piece of land in 
Suamico township, where he remained 
one year; was then taken sick, sold out 
and bought forty acres in Pittsfield: on this 
he lived six years, sold again, went to 
Fond du Lac county, remained there a 
year, then came back to Pittsfield and 
bought another piece of land, on which 
he resided fifteen years, and finally moved 
to Stephenson. ^Iich., where he and his 
family still reside. 

After his marriage Mr. Lawrence set 
himself steadily to work at clearing up 
his land, enduring every hardship of pio- 
neer life, but adding to its comforts ever\' 
year, until, at the end of five years, he be- 
came the proud possessor of a team. He 
had had, however, a small pony, and when 
he was in need of provisions he would 
fell a pine tree, shave it into shingles, and 
set off for Green Bay to make his pur- 
chases with the proceeds, the round trip 
requiring two days, as the roads were 



bad. When he had cleared sufficient 
ground, potatoes and corn were the first 
crop planted among the stumps, and the 
first wheat was sown by Francis Ledger, 
Mrs. Lawrence's grandfather, who was 
ninety-nine years old at this time. Mr. 
Lawrence prospered with his toil, until 
to-day he owns 120 acres of well-im- 
proved land. To Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence 
have been born three children: James 
Mortimer, born January 31, 1864: Charles 
Lee, born February 14. 1866; and Emine- 
line, born October 7. 1880: Annie, an 
adopted daughter, born January i, 1873, 
has lived with them all her life. Mr. and 
Mrs. Lawrence are Seventh-Day Advent- 
ists: politically he is a Republican, which 
fact, however, is only made manifest by 
his punctual atendance at the polls. [Since 
the above was written Mr. I^awrence 
passed from earth, and a notice of his 
death, given at the time, is as follows: 
" n. S. Lawrence, of the town of Pitts- 
licld, died shortly after midnight. Decem- 
ber 10, 1894. Through his death Brown 
county loses a man of sterling character, 
much perseverance and loyalty to his 
friends and country. He was one of the 
few remaining pioneers, and will be missed 
by a large circle of friends."' 



Ri:\'. WILLIAM ROWBOTHAM. 
of West De Pere, Brown county, 
is a native of the city of Sheffield, 
England, and was born November 
10, 1 8 19, a son of Amos and Lucy 
(Hutchinson) Rowbotham. The former 
was a cutler by trade, and when the son 
William was nine months old, moved t» 
the village of Horncastle, Lincolnshire, 
where he followed his trade, also keeping 
a store for the sale of cutlery, and here 
both he and his wife passed the remainder 
of their lives. 

At the age of twelve our subject was 
apprenticed for six years to a tailor in 
Horncastle. and. after serving his appren- 
ticeship, worked for some years as a jour- 
nevman; then, for two years, was engaged 



UOMMEMOllATTVE BIOGRAPIUCAL RECORD. 



321 



on his own account as a merchant tailor 
at Wrangle, in the same county. On 
April 15, 1 84 1, he married, at Boston, 
Lincolnshire, Mary Aisthorpe, and in 
T844 came t'o America, his family then 
consisting of his wife and two children — 
Amos and Naomi. Landing at New 
York City, he there worked at his trade 
nine months, and then, in July, 1845, 
moved to Milwaukee, Wis., where, after 
working as a journeyman for a while, he 
establishetl a merchant tailor's store op- 
posite the present site of the ' ' Plankinton 
House,'' in which business he continued 
ten years. In the fall of 1855 he moved 
to Green Bay, whore for ten years he 
conducted a clothing house, and then, for 
nine years — 1865 to 1874 — was overseer 
of the I>rown County Poor House; ne.xt 
he occupied the adjoining farm for sev- 
eral years. 

Mr. Ivowhiitluun began his ministerial 
labors when but eighteen years of age, 
having been then licensed as a local 
preacher in the Wesleyan Methodist 
Church at Horncastle, England, where 
he was in constant service until his coming 
to .America; he was ordained a deacon 
at Kenosha, Wis. (then Southport), in 
1848, by Bishop Morris, and as an 
elder by Bishop Wiley, at the Division 
Street M. E. Chinch, Eond du Lac, 
October i, i88j. He had served the M. 
E. Church at Sturgeon Bay during the 
year 18S0, and in the years 1882 and 
1883 served at West Pensaukee ; then 
three years at Seymour, four years at 
Amherst, and was retired in 1890. The 
first wife of Rev. Rowbotham died at 
Amherst April 28, 1888, having borne 
him three children after arriving in Amer- 
ica, viz. : Lucy Jane, Mary Sojihia, and 
Martha Elizabeth. I lis second marriage 
took place December 31, 1889, to Mrs. 
Martha Phelps, widow of Henry Phel]is, 
of De Pore, and since 1890 Mr. and Mrs. 
Rowbotham have resided in West De- 
Pere, highly honored and beloved by all 
all who know them. [Since the aliovc 
was written we have received information 



of the death of Rev. l-iowbotham late in 
the fall of 1894. — Eu.] 

Henry Phelps, the deceased husband 
of the present Mrs. Ivowbotham, was a 
native of Jefferson county, N. Y. On 
January 1, 1844, he married Martha S. 
Wright (now Mrs. Rowbotham) at the 
town of Henderst)n, in his native county. 
This lady was born February 15, 1824, in 
Herkimer county, N. Y. , a daughter of 
Eli and Nancy (Kellogg) Wright, but was 
reared by an uncle, Peter N. Cushman, 
from the age of four years to fifteen, and 
first came to Waukesha, Wis., in 1838, 
where Mr. Cushman ended his days. 
When Mr. Cushman settled in W.aukesha 
there were only three buildings in the 
place, but he purchased 600 acres one 
mile south of the village, and li\ed to see 
the village become a populous town. 
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Phelps 
located in iMiKvaukee, where Mr. Phelps 
worked at his trade of ship-carpenter, and 
later at Janesville, but permanently set- 
tled in De Pere in 1855, where, for about 
fourteen years he lived on his farm of 
ninety-six acres, but still followed his 
trade of carpenter and joiner until his 
death, which occurred in De Pere Octo- 
ber II, 1888. He left no children. Mrs. 
Rowbotham has been a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church since 1850, 
but in youth had been reared within the 
pale of the Congregational denomina- 
tion. 



Dl'T^ATLEY, who is one of the most 
obliging liverymen in Green Bay, 
was born in County Sligo, Ireland, 
in 1836, a son of Patrick and 
Catherine (Fliim) FlatU'y, both of whom 
died in Irelaiul, leaving fi\e cliildren: 
Mary, D. (our subject), Amia, I'^llen and 
Sarah. Of these Mary was the first to 
come to America, and about tlu' year 
1849 was followed by our siibjeit, who 
landed in Quebec, being tluii thirteen 
years of age. 

After some e.\]>cricnce as a coachman 



3" 



' O.HMhWOIiATlVi: niUGliAPUICAL liECORD. 



he reached Green Hay in 1S55, iiuil for 
six years was oniplnyoii at linnberiiii; for 
J. Ingalls; was next an assistant engineer 
for a year at Fort Howard; then clerked 
for two years for a half-brother, and was 
next street superintendent for two years 
under Mayor Klaus of Green Bay. In 
1869 he went into partnership in the liv- 
ery business with Don Harrison, on Pine 
street. Green Bay, but bought out his 
partner's interest a year later. He met 
with much success, and about the year 
1 884 built his present connnodious barns, 
where fourteen horses are stabled, for the 
acconnnodation of his prosperous trade. 
In 1862 Mr. Flatley was married to 
Miss Anna Kedmon, daughter of Edward 
Redmon, and to this union were born five 
children: Edward, Catherine, E. W., 
George, and Idah (now Mrs. HemnitzV 
Mrs. Elatley was called to her last resting 
place July 4, 1884, dying in the Roman 
Catholic faith. Mr. Elatley is a devout 
Catholic, and is a member of the Order 
of Catholic Knights of Wisconsin. He 
is fair ami square in all his business trans- 
actions, and has won for himself a repu- 
tation of which any man might well fi. 1 
proud. 



ANnKl"\V .\. 1-.1SEXM.\N, a pros- 
perous young citi/en of Bellevue 
township, Brown county, is a son 
of John and .Xpollonia ^Barth) 
Eisenman, early settlers of that county. 
They had ten children who grew to ma- 
turity — fiHir sons and six ilaughters — of 
whom Andrew A. , the second son. was 
born in Eaton township. Brown county, 
November 1 1, 1S67. 

He received a good common-school 
training in the district schools of the home 
neighborhooil, and inteiuled to finish iiis 
education in a college, but he was obliged 
to abandon study on accomit of failing 
eyesight. He was reared to farming pur- 
suits, and, his father dying March i, iS8j, 
he remained on the liome farm until his 
marriage, assisting his widowed mother. 



except for one winter, which he spent in 
the lumber regions of northern W'iscon- 
sin. For three years he and his brother 
John also operated a steam threshing 
machine. Mr. Eisenman was married. 
October 18, 188S, in Green Bay, to Miss 
Annie Peterson, who was born in New 
Denmark township. Brown county, daugh- 
ter of Erasmus Peterson, who came to 
the United States from Denmark. For 
a short time the young couple lived on 
the Eisenman homestead, and then for a 
year made their home in Pine Grove, 
where he had purchased a saloon busi- 
ness. He then purchased his present 
place in Lot 16, Bellevue township, and 
here they have resided since May i, 1891, 
Mr. Eisenman conducting a saloon busi- 
ness. In his political preferences he is a 
Republican, and now serves as treasurer 
of School District No. 2. In religious 
connection he and his wife are members 
of the Lutheran Church at Pine Grove. 
They have one child, Henrietta, born No- 
vember 18, 1892. 



JOHN C. EISENMAN. a prosperous 
farmer of De Pere township. Brown 
county, where he is well known and 
highly respected as an honest, up- 
right citizen, is a member of one of the early 
pioneer families of the section. He was 
born September 11. 1855. in Eaton 
township. Brown county, eldest in the 
family of John and Apollonia (Barth) 
Eisenman. 

Our subject received his education in 
the common district schools of the period, 
proving an apt scholar; but work being 
plentiful on tlie farm, and he being the 
eldest son, there was but little time to give 
to his literary training. The home farm 
was not yet cleared, and he spent many 
days in the woods, faithfully assisting in 
the arduous task of transforming the forest- 
covered land to a fertile farm, and re- 
ceiving a thorough training to pioneer farm 
life. On October 23, 1S79, he was mar- 
ried in Green Bav to Miss Caroline Schoen, 



COMMKMOUA TIVI-: 1! K K i I; Aril ICA I, HEfintl). 



323 



who was born in Miiiiibnldt tnwnshi|), 
Brown rounty, daiif^lilcr n| iMcdcnck 
Schoon, a native dl (iL-rniany, and an 
early settler of I lunilmldt townslnp. Alter 
his niarria^'c Mr. Kiscninan canie to the 
farm he yet owns and resides n|ion. in 
Section 25, I)e Pere, imt li\c acres of 
which were at that time clearc-d, the re- 
mainder heiiifj still in its i)rimiti\'e state, 
and contained no ini]irove'meiits of any- 
kind, and hc' bnilt the first house on the 
place. l^>ut he set to work coiiraf;;eously, 
and by incliistry and jierseverinf,' toil has 
cultivated and developed the farm, until at 
present hc has a jiroductive fertile tract, 
com])risinf( ninety brtjad acres. In arl- 
dition to f^eneral agriculture, he has, fm- 
the past ei>.;hteen years, been en;,'af.,'e(l in 
threshin.L;', in the |>uisuit n| which occu- 
pation he has become unusually well ac- 
quainted thr()u;.;l)out the county. Mr. ICisen- 
nian has been a life-lonf,' residcuit of his sec- 
tion of the county, and has always done 
everything;' in his powei' to eiicoiu'aj^e and 
promote the a<lvancement and improve- 
ment of same', and, beinj; nnudi esti'emed 
for his sterlinj.; worth, he wields consider- 
able' itdluence for f^ood. in |iolitics he 
was formerly a Republican, but of late 
years he has identilied himself with no 
party, preferrinf; to vote accordinj.,' to the 
fitness of the candidate and the dictates 
of his own conscience; he is not an aspir- 
ant to office; but has served his town- 
ship as path master and clerk of the 
school board. 

Mr. and Mrs. ICisemnan have had born 
to tlx'in children as follows: I.ouis, 
Arthur, ICdward, John, jr., Fred, Georf^'i', 
and Charles, all li\in^. Tlu' family are 
all members of the Lutheran Church at 
Pine Grove. 



Ri:V. MATTHEW 1',()nc;i:ks, 
rector of the Church of the Holy 
Martyrs of Gorcum, in Preble 
township, Hrown county, is a na- 
tive of Holland, born December 27, 1S32, 
at Arnhem, in the Province of Gclderland. 



His classical studies and his philo- 
so|)hical courses were (onipleted under the 
Jesuit I''athers at the seminary in Ciden- 
buri;, and he stiidii'd theology at the 
seminary of the Archdiocese of llticcht. 
In May, iS6i, he .aeeoinpanied IJishoj) 
Kistemakir to the West Indus, and was 
ordained to the ])riesllioo(l |uMe _'5, s.amt: 
}'ear, at St. |ose|)h's Church, Cinaccja, 
by the above-uameil bisho|i. lie was 
a])])ointed the bishop's secretary, also had 
charj.(e of the Sisters of Charity, and at- 
tc'uded the lepers foi' one year. Afler- 
waid he labored earnestly as a missionary 
in SIX different islands belonj.;inf( to the 
Nelherlaiuls until 1^X5, when, on acctjunt 
of failinj.; health, he was compidled to 
leave the tropics for a cooK-r and more 
couf^eiiial cHmate. Accordin).,dv he came 
to Americ ,1, ostensii)ly to \'isit his sister, 
Mrs. A. I., de P'rance, Oconto, Wis., ar- 
riviiif,' there June 5. On September I, 
same ye;ir, owinj; to the ill liialth of I\(,'v. 
I'"allu'r Brown, our siibjeit was a|)pointed 
assistant to the laltei- at St. Patrick's 
Chinch, Port Howard, I>rown Co., Wis., 
and in December followin^'^ tlu" deatli of 
blather l.rown, he received the a]ipoint- 
ment of rectfjr of the same church. In 
October, i<S86, lie was removed to Green 
Hay, Wis., to lake chart,'e of St. Willi- 
brord's ChiU(di, with which con^rre);ation 
he continued three years and three 
months — (luring which time he procured 
;» free school for 200 children- and on 
February 6, 1.S90, hc' assume<l his present 
charge. 

He had much experience during his 
twenty-four years of missionary lifi', and 
found some time for literary work as well. 
He published a work on the education of 
children (entitled "Virtue and Duty of 
Parents"), in the West Indies language 
f " Pajiiamcntoe"). He was the first in 
the Diocese of Green Hay to establish the 
free-school system, and he is known as 
an able speaker. 

During the thirty-three years of his 
priesthood P'ather Hongers has, by his 
tireless industry, zeal and devotion to his 



324 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



work, won the love and respect of all 
with whom he has come in contact, and 
he still receives a pension from the Hol- 
land Government, in recognition of the 
good work done by hini in tlie cause of 
the Church. 



AHREND S. BUCKMANN (de- 
ceased), who. during his lifetime, 
ranked with the most prosperous 
and influential farmers of New 
Denmark township, Brown county, was a 
native of Oldenburg, Germany, born Oc- 
tober 5, 1816. 

Mr. Buckniann was married in Ger- 
many, October 17, 1843, to Miss Henri- 
etta Bartels, who was born there July 22, 
18 13, daughter of Uiedrich and Matie 
(Maiborn) Bartels, the former of whom 
was a saloonkeeper, and whose family 
consisted of five children, namely: Jo- 
hanna, Matic, Herman, Henrietta (who 
remained at home until her marriage), and 
Margaret. Mr. Buckmann carried on a 
saloon, and was also engaged in farming, 
on rented land, continuing thus until 
i860, when he came to America with his 
wife and family of four children, all of 
whom were born in Germany, their names 
and dates of birth being as follows: 
Catherine, June 28, 1844; Diedrich, De- 
cember 13, 1846; Metta, March 2, 1853; 
H. F. , March 24, 1855; (one son Henry, 
born November 10, 1850, died in Ger- 
many when one year old). They em- 
barked at Bremen and landed at Balti- 
more, Md., thence coming direct to New 
Denmark township, Brown Co., Wis., 
where Mr. Buckmann purchased eighty 
acres of partly improved land, whereon 
stood a log house, in which the family 
lived for eleven years, when it was re- 
placed by the beautiful frame dwelling in 
which they now reside. Mr. Buckmann 
was one of the most industrious of men, 
and, by giving his undivided attention to 
his business interests, increased the area 
of his farm to 240 acres, all of which he 
improved and brought to a high state of 



cultivation. He also took great interest 
in the welfare and advancement of his 
township, and filled several positions of 
trust, serving as supervisor (five years), 
pathmaster, and for twenty-seven con- 
secutive years as school-treasurer, winning 
for himself an enviable position among 
his fellowmen for his integrity and ster- 
ling worth. On October 17, 1893, he and 
his wife celebrated the golden anniversary 
of their wedding, and three weeks later, 
on November 6, he passed from earth, 
aged seventy-seven years; his remains 
now rest in New Denmark cemetery. 
Since his decease his widow has continued 
to reside on the farm, making her home 
with her son H. F., who now owns the 
place and successfully carries on the agri- 
cultural work. 

H. F. BUCKMANN was five years 
old when he came with his parents to 
America, and received his education in 
the common district schools of New Den- 
mark township. On May 25, 1881, he 
was united in marriage with Miss Adeline 
Lange, daughter of Herman and Anna 
(Meyer) Lange, and they immediately 
took up their residence with his parents 
on the farm. I^ike his father before him, 
Mr. Buckmann is a stanch member of the 
Democratic party. 



Ct)RNELIUS DOUGHERTY. 
Prominent among the early set- 
tlers and leading progressive citi- 
zens of Brown county is found 
this gentleman, who is a native of the 
Emerald Isle, born about 1825 near the 
town of Killarney, County Kerry, son of 
James Dougherty, who was a weaver by 
occupation. The mother of our subject, 
who was a Sullivan, died when he was 
eighteen months old, leaving a family of 
five children — four sons and one daughter 
— of whom Cornelius is the youngest. 

Our subject was reared by the older 
members of the family, and, during his 
youth, received a common-school edu- 
cation. In April, 1847, having received 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPUICAL liECOIlD. 



3-5 



money from his brother Daniel, who had 
immigrated the year previous, he con- 
cluded to come to America, and, bidding 
the home of his boyhood farewell, he 
proceeded from Cork to Liverpool, from 
which port he set sail April 15, and, on 
May 15, arrived in Boston, where he was 
obliged to remain in quarantine five days. 
A few days later his brother sent him 
money to come to Chicopee, Mass., and 
here he obtained employment as clerk for 
a large merchant, John Haley, with whom 
he remained two years. He then went 
to Brookfield, Mass., where he learned 
the trade of shoemaker, but, tiring of 
that, removed to Holyoke, and later to 
Springfield. In the latter city he was 
united in marriage, in 1854, with Miss 
Ellen Wrin, also a native of County 
Kerry, Ireland, and, shortly afterward, 
they set out for Wisconsin, coming to 
Green Bay on the "Old Michigan." On 
their arrival in that city they had but 
twenty-five cents, so they walked from 
Green Bay to De Pere, and thence to Glen- 
more township, Brown county, where she 
remained at the home of his brother 
Daniel. Mr. Dougherty found work on 
the Kaukauna canal, then in course of 
construction, and, being strong and active, 
he made a good workman. 

Mr. Dougherty finally managed to save 
thirty dollars from his hard-earned wages, 
which he invested in forty acres of 
land in Section 22, Glenmore town- 
ship, locating thereon about 1856, and 
here he has ever since resided. The 
land was entirely new, the trees being 
so thick they had to clear a space for 
a cabin, and he was the first one to 
do any clearing on the tract. Having 
but few implements, the work at first 
progressed slowly, but he persevered, 
and soon the place began to assume a 
cultivated appearance. For a long time, 
however, the wolves played sad havoc with 
his stock, and he well remembers one 
night when these animals attacked a large 
steer, the only one he had. The noise 
drew him to the scene, and he succeeded 



in frightening the wolves away, but the 
animal died. However, the wild beasts 
were gradually driven out, and, with the 
influ.x of civilization, the forests gradually 
gave way to beautiful, well-kept farms. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Dougherty were born 
children as follows: James, now a resi- 
dent of Ortonville, Minn. ; John, a 
farmer, who is postmaster at Glenmore; 
Mary, Mrs. Michael J. Clark, of Wau- 
saukee, Wis.; Catherine, wife of Robert 
Wilson, a barber, of Crystal Falls, Mich. ; 
Josephine, Mrs. Mathias Matzke, of Glen- 
more; and three children that died young. 
The mother of these passed from earth 
in May, 1867, and was buried in the 
Catholic cemetery at De Pere. In Feb- 
ruary, 1868, Mr. Dougherty wedded, for 
his second spouse, Mrs. Julia Murphy 
(widow of Daniel Murphy), lu'c Donohue, 
who was also a native of Count}- Kerry, 
Ireland, where Mr. Dougherty knew her 
before his emigration. 

Since his settlement in Glenmore town- 
ship our subject has continued to follow 
agriculture, and at one time had 120 
acres under cultivation. He has given 
each of his sons eighty acres, having 
bought eighty acres more in Section 7, 
Glenmore township, which he had deeded 
to his son James. All his property has 
been accumulated by years of toil and 
persevering industry, and too much credit 
can not be given to these old settlers for 
the part they have taken in the develop- 
ment of the countrs'. In his dealings 
with his fellow men he has been straight- 
forward and honest, and he is respected 
by all who know him for his integrity and 
upright bearing. Though now nearly 
seventy years of age, he is still active and 
well-preserved, and few men in the vicin- 
ity are better or more favorably known 
than "Con Dougherty, " as he is famil- 
iarly called. He is foremost in every 
movement of benefit and interest to his 
community, and has been selected to fill 
numerous offices of trust, serving for 
thirty-two years as chairman of Glen- 
more township, was township superin- 



326 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



tendent of schools, and for years a justice 
of the peace. PoHtically he has always 
been a Democrat and a leader of the 
party in his section. In religious con- 
nection he and his wife are members of 
St. Mary's Church, (ileniiiorc, in which 
he served as trustee five or si.x years, and 
also as treasurer. 

On October 4, i S64, Mr. Dougherty 
enlisted at Green Ha\', Wis., in the 
Twenty-second Wis. V. I., and served as 
clerk for Col. Chapman at Camp Randall. 
He was honorably discharged May 18, 
1865, and returned at once to Glenmore. 



J (MIX l]ROIi:REN, one of the repre- 
sentative well-to-do farmer citizens 
and mechanics of Holland township, 
Brown county, deserves, because of 
the lessons presented in his busy life, more 
than a passing notice in the pages of this 
volume. He is a native of Holland, born 
March 16, 1828, youngest in the family 
of eight children — four sons and four 
daughters — born to Peter Broeren, who 
was by occupation a farmer and maker of 
straw thatching. 

Our subject was reared on his father's 
farm, receiving in his boyhood a meager 
education at the schools of the neighbor- 
hood of his home. He also learned the 
trades of wooden shoe and thatch making, 
which, in company with his brother 
Mathias, he followed after the death of 
their father, and in this way was enabled 
to make a few dollars over and above what 
he required for living expenses, for he was 
always industrious and frugal. In 1856, 
then twenty-eight years old, being de- 
sirous of bettering fiimself, and casting 
longing eyes in the direction of the West- 
ern World, whither many of his country- 
men had already betaken themselves, he 
decided to emigrate and try his fortune 
under new skies, where homes are cheaper 
and wages higher. At Rotterdam he 
boarded the American ship "South Caro- 
lina," bound for New York, which port 
she reached after a somewhat lengthy 



passage of fifty-seven days, during w hich 
he suffered much from sea-sickness. From 
New York he came directly to Chicago, 
and in some part of Illinois he found work, 
cutting grass on tfie prairie. While so 
engaged he attended church regularly each 
Sunday, the nearest Catholic one being 
seven miles distant. In the fall of the 
same year he came to Green Bay by boat 
from Chicago, and being a natural me- 
chanic, and having with him his tools used 
in making wooden shoes, he found some 
carpenter work to do until winter, receiv- 
ing in wages about ten dollars per month. 
One day, meeting some farmers from 
Calumet county, he was induced by them 
to return with them to their part of the 
State, in order that he might there 
make wooden shoes for the country peo- 
ple; and at this sort of employment he 
was engaged all winter. The following 
spring (1857) he again came to Green 
Bay, where, for the three following years, 
he worked at carpentry. In the fall of 
i860, trade in his line being dull, and 
having saved a few dollars, he thought it 
would be a good opportunity to revisit his 
native land; so, in company with three 
other Hollanders, he set out on the journey 
via New York, where the party took 
steamer for Southampton, landing there 
in thirteen days from time of sailing. 
From that port they proceeded by rail to 
London, thence down the Thames and 
across the North Sea to Rotterdam, Hol- 
land, and from there our subject soon 
reached his old home and friends. In the 
following spring he returned to the United 
States by steamer, via Rotterdam and 
New York, thence by rail to Chicago and 
Appleton, at which latter point (the rail- 
road terminating there at that time) he 
took boat down the Fox river to Green 
Bay, where, after a few weeks rest, he re- 
commenced carpentry work with his old 
employer. Soon after coming to Green 
Bay Mr. Broeren built himself a small 
boat — sixteen feet in length, with a wheel 
paddle. in the rear — the craft, which was 
propelletl by a crank turned by hand, being 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGHAPIIICAL RECORD. 



329 



quite a curiosity at the time and attracting 
much attention. He passed many pleas- 
ant hours with it on the waters of Green 
Bay, and a perfect model of the boat — 
wheel-paddle and all — now surmounts 
his barn. 

On February 17, 1862, Mr. Broeren 
was united in marria.i;"e, at Little Chute, 
Wis., with Mrs. Hannah Goerkes, {in'c 
Siemons), widow of John Goerkes, who 
was drowned in the canal lock at Kau- 
kauna, where he was lock-keeper at the 
time. She is a native of Prussia, born 
September 16, 1.S34, a daughter of Rine- 
hart Siemens, a Hollander, who came to 
the United States in 1848, and was one of 
those who first settled Holland township, 
Brown county, in that year. After mar- 
riage Mr. Broeren continued to work in 
Appleton at carpentry and pattern-making 
until the spring of 1S65, when, in com- 
pany with Cornelius Gerrits, having pur- 
chased of Hoel S. \\'right, of Wrights- 
town, a farm of fort}' acres, with a water- 
power sawmill thereon, he moved thither 
with his family. Soon afterward he 
bought out his partner's interest, and in 
about two years converted the water- 
power of the sawmill into steam-power. 
To these forty acres he subsequently added 
forty more, and in Woodville township, 
Calmuet county, he also purchased land, 
now owning in all 140 acres. When he 
first came to his farm it was completely 
covered with timber and underbrush, but, 
by indefatigable industry, heroic work, 
and tireless energy, he has made the 
quondam howling wilderness to blossom 
as the rose. In connection with agricul- 
ture, he has continued to conduct the 
sawmill, to which he has added a plan- 
ing-mill. 

Mr. Broeren, in his political prefer- 
ences, is a stanch Democrat, and served 
his township as supervisor one year; he 
and his wife are members of St. Francis 
Catholic Church, and are held in the highest 
esteem in the community. Their chil- 
dren, eight in number, were: Peter, in 
California; George, a farmer in Holland 



township, Brown county; Francis W., 
who died December 10, 1869; Anna M., 
organist of St. Francis Church; Cecilia 
B., at home; Theodore, in Portland, Ore. ; 
and Wilhelmina and William, both at 
home. By her first husband Mrs. Broe- 
ren had three children — Henry, John and 
Mary — of whom the last named married 
Martin Vandezagt, and died leaving no 
children. Henry went to the Pacific coast 
in 1882, soon afterward making a trip to 
Australia; Init, not liking the country, he 
returned after a short stay, after which 
time his home was, for the most part, in 
Tulare county, Cal., until 1893. when he 
removed to Alaska, and is now engaged 
in mining along the Yukon river. John 
went to the Pacific coast four years later 
than Henry, and in the spring of i 894 also 
went to Alaska, where he is now engaged 
in mining with his brother. After Henry's 
arrival in that country it was six months 
before he reached the mines, being de- 
tained on account of the snov\'. The 
brothers are both practical mechanics, 
with the ability to turn their hands to 
almost any kind of work, a fact which 
accounts in a great measure for their suc- 
cess in all their undertakings. 

Gifted, as he is, with more than aver- 
age natural ability and intellect, yet de- 
nied in his boyhood and youth aught but 
the most limited school advantages, there 
is to be found in the career of Mr. Broeren 
a potent lesson to the youth of this or any 
other land, who, commencing life as he 
did, an uneducated, penniless lad, is 
striving to hew out for himself an honest 
competence and honored name. Mr. 
Broeren is never idle; whether in the field 
among his crops, in his mills listening to the 
hum of the machinery, or by his domestic 
fireside in the bosom of his family, his 
hand and mind are ever employed — his 
hand in labor, his mind in perusing Eng- 
lish literature or the current events of the 
day; and now his homestead is spoken of 
by the newspapers of Outagamie and 
Brown counties as the "model farm of 
Holland township." 



33° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



THOMAS DUFFY, one of the pros- 
perous farmers • and representa- 
tive citizens of Holland township, 
Brown county, is a native of Berk- 
shire county, Mass., born July 28, 1852, 
son of James and Margaret (Martinj Duffy. 
James Duffy was born in County Mon- 
aghan, Ireland, where he learned the 
trade of weaver, and when a young man 
came to the United States, first locating 
in Massachusetts. He was married in 
that State, for his second wife, to Miss 
Margaret Martin, a native of County Gal- 
way, Ireland, and they remained there 
until 1858, Mr. Duffy working in the 
paper mills. Mr. Duffy had several chil- 
dren by his first marriage, and in 1858, 
with his entire family, which then con- 
sisted of ten children, he came to Wis- 
consin, land being cheap in that then new 
country. They located in Brown county, 
purchasing forty acres in Section 27, Hol- 
land township, the tract having no im- 
provements whatever except a small log 
house, in which the family made their 
home. The task of clearing was a great 
one, for, having no improved machinery — 
an a.xe and a hoe being almost the only 
implements used — it took many years of 
toil to make the land tillable. He passed 
through all the vicissitudes of pioneer life, 
and lived to see his farm converted from 
the woods into a fertile tract. In later 
years he purchased another forty acres. 
Mr. and Mrs. Duffy spent the remainder 
of their days on the farm where they first 
located, he passing away in July, 1887, 
and his wife following him to the grave 
in September, same year; their remains 
now rest in Holland cemetery. They 
were devout members of the Catholic 
Church, and were everywhere respected. 
In politics Mr. Duffy was a stanch mem- 
ber of the Democratic party, and served 
creditably in several positions of trust; 
in 1863-64, and again in 1S74, he served 
as township treasurer, and he also held 
offices in his school district. 

Thomas Duffy was the third son of 
James and Margaret (Martin) DufTy. 



When six years old he came with his par- 
ents to Wisconsin, and. having ne\er at- 
tended school up to that time, he received 
all his educational training in the district 
schools of Holland township, his first 
teachers being Martin Finnerty and 
Michael Vandenberg. But in those early 
days the schools were far from thorough, 
and the education acquired, even when 
attending regularly, was somewhat limited. 
But work at home was the first con- 
sideration, and he received a thorough 
training to agriculture under his father 
on the home farm, which he now resides 
upon. On November 23, 1880, he was 
united in marriage, in East Holland, to 
Miss Ellen Clancey, who was born in 
Holland township, February 17, i860, a 
daughter of William Clancey, who came 
from County Limerick, Ireland. The 
young couple took up their residence on 
the homestead which he now owns, as 
well as eighty acres across the road, and 
here he has always resided, excepting for 
a few months when he lived in Kaukauna. 
To this union children have been born as 
follows: John, August 17, 1 881; Maggie 
Ellen, June 16, 1883; Mamie A., Septem- 
ber 6, 1884; James, October 8, 1886; 
Willie, June 19, 1889; Jennie Elizabeth, 
July 22, 1891; and Florence L. , July 
19, 1893. 

Mr. Duffy is a progressive, go-ahead 
farmer, and has, to a great degree, been 
the architect of his own fortune, for, being 
one of a large family, he had to do for 
himself. He is very jiopular in his locality, 
where he has many friends and is well 
known. In political connection he is a 
Democrat, and one of the local leaders 
of the party, being stanch in the support 
of its principles. He has served as treas- 
urer of his township for a longer term 
than any other one man, having held the 
office continuously since 1881, with the 
exception of a year, discharging the duties 
of his position in a highly satisfactory 
manner. In religious connection he and 
his family are members of St. Francis 
Church, of Holland. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHICAL RECORD. 



33' 



JOSEPH LEITERMANN, a success- 
ful farmer of Gleninore township, 
Brown county, was born February 
28, 1847, in Bohemia. Austria, son 
of Peter Leitermann, a farmer. The latter 
had nine children — four sons and five 
daughters — Joseph being the eighth in the 
order of birth and the third son. 

When si.\ years old our subject com- 
menced to attend school, continuing until 
he reached the age of twelve or thirteen 
years. He then began the trade of 
wagon-maker, following that about eight 
years, or until the spring of 1867, when 
he concluded to emigrate and seek his 
fortune in America. His father gave 
him money to pay the expenses of the 
journey, and, sailing from Bremen he 
landed in New York after a voyage of 
nineteen days, immediately after arrival 
proceeding to Manitowoc, Wis. Having 
found work near that city as a farmhand, 
he resided there a year and a half, when 
he came to Brown county, and purchased 
forty acres in Section 25, Glenmore town- 
ship, going in debt for same. The only 
improvement on this place was a log 
shanty, which stood five or six rods 
southeast of his present residence, and 
the land was entirely new. In Novem- 
ber, 1869, Mr. Leitermann was married, 
in Glenmore, to Miss Mary Hebel, also a 
native of Austria, who was born May 10, 
1844, daughter of Mathias Hebel, and 
the young couple at once commenced 
housekeeping in the log house above 
mentioned, where they made their home 
until the erection of their present com- 
fertable dwelling. Here their children 
were all born, as follows: Barbara, born 
December 20, 1870, now Mrs. Xavier 
Rank, of Ivewaunee county. Wis. ; Peter 
J., born April 6, 1873; Joseph, born 
April 7, 1874; Mary, l)orn July 19, 1875; 
John, born October 8, 1876; Annie, born 
February 4, 1879; Louis, born June 4, 
1884, all residing at home; and one that 
died in infancy unnamed. 

It required many years of stern toil 
to clear and improve the farm, and Mr. 



Leitermann not only did that, but from 
time to time added to his original pur- 
chase, and now has a fine farm of 120 
acres, thoroughly equipped with substan- 
tial outbuildings. His family have as- 
sisted him greatly with the general farm 
work, and he has also been a hard worker, 
by good management and systematic meth- 
ods making a success of his life work. In 
connection with general farming he is also 
engaged in stock-raising to some extent. 
He has been a Democrat in politics, but 
not an active party man, preferring to 
give all his time to his farm. In religion 
he and his family are members of St. 
Mary's Catholic Church, at Gleninore, 
and they are highly respected throughout 
their community. 



M 



ATHEW RIPP, an industrious 
young farmer of Green Bay 
township. Brown county, is a 
son of Peter and Christina (Van- 
hattenj Ripp. Christina Vanhatten was 
born February 14, 1844, in Germany, 
and in 1S53 came to America with her 
parents, Peter and Elizabeth Vanhatten, 
whose family at this time consisted of four 
children: Christina, Elizabeth, Catherine 
and Mary. One child, Margaret, was 
born in America. The family landed in 
New York after a remarkably pleasant 
voyage of twenty-three days, and imme- 
diately after arrival proceeded to a place 
about thirty miles distant from Rochester, 
N. Y., where they purchased sixty-one 
acres of wild land, which they cultivated, 
and made their home there for thirteen 
years. They then migrated westward to 
Wisconsin, and took up their residence 
about thirty miles from Milwaukee, re- 
maining there seven years, or until 1873, 
when they came to Brown county, settling 
on a farm in Green Bay township, where 
the parents passed the remainder of their 
lives. 

In 1862 Christina Vanhatten was 
united in marriage with Peter Ripp, and 
their union was blessed with six children. 



332 



COIdMEMORATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



viz. : Elizabeth, Katie, Mathevv (who 
married Miss Blundy), Mary (Mrs. Blundy), 
Anna, and Margaret (deceased). Mr. and 
Mrs. Ripp came to Green Bay township 
with the Vanhatten family in 1873, and 
here he died about six weeks later. Mrs. 
Ripp purchased a tract of eighty acres in 
Green Bay township, which her son 
Mathew has cleared and cultivated, and 
on which they make their home; in ad- 
dition to this place he owns and cultivates 
a piece of land in Humboldt township. 
Since his father's death he has been the 
principal support of his widowed mother, 
proving a faithful and devoted son in every 
respect. 



s 



YLVEST1:K B01:HM, now living 
retired in the township of Belle- 
\ue, l^rown county, with whose 
agricultural interests he has been 
actively identified for nearly forty years, 
is a native of Bavaria, Germany, born De- 
cember 30, 1828. His father, George 
Boehm, a hard-working, thrift\' farmer in 
the Fatherland, had a family of eight 
children — four sons and four daughters — 
of whom our subject is the seventh in the 
order of birth. 

Sylvester Boehm attended the schools 
of his native place, receiving a liberal 
common-school education. When seven- 
teen years old he commenced to learn the 
stone-mason's trade, at which he served 
an apprenticeship of three years, and then 
embarked in the business for himself, his 
earnings being all turned over to his par- 
ents. In the spring of 1853 he proceeded 
to Liverpool, from which port he sailed 
for America, landing in Philadelphia after 
a voyage of fifty days. Going at once to 
New York he obtained employment as a 
mechanic (his wages being fifty cents per 
day), continuing thus but a short time, 
however, for he went to Detroit, Mich., 
where he worked at his trade. In 1857 
he was married in New Baltimore, Mich., 
to Miss Theresa Wygal, who was born 
September 8, 1830, in Prussia, daughter 



of Joseph Wygal, whocameto the United 
States in 1854, and located near Detroit. 
Shortly after his marriage Mr. Boehm 
came to Green Bay, Wis. , and for one 
summer followed his trade; then, in 1859, 
purchased forty acres of heavily wooded 
land in Bellevue township, going into 
debt for same, and on this tract, in a 
log cabin 12 .\ 12, he and his wife took up 
their residence. He has since devoted 
his attention exclusively to agriculture, in 
which he has met with most encouraging 
success, the just reward of industry and 
thrift. On that farm he remained until 
1892, in which year he came to his pres- 
ent home, a pleasant farm of twenty-eight 
acres, where he now lives a partly re- 
tired life. He has been a self-made man, 
for, when he landed in the United States, 
he had a capital of only five dollars with 
which to commence life in the New World, 
and from this small beginning he has ac- 
cumulated a comfortable property. He 
and his wife are known as good, kind- 
hearted neighbors, and their hospitality is 
almost proverbial. They had seven chil- 
dren: Louis, now a resident of Florida; 
Catherine, Mrs. Frank Rinehart, of Duck 
Creek, Wis. ; Margarette, Mrs. Ferdinand 
Ellinger, of BellevTic township; Caroline, 
Mrs. Frank Nachtwey, of Bellevue town- 
ship; and three children — one son and two 
daughters — that died j'oung. Mr. Boehm 
is an adherent of the principles of the 
Democratic party, but in voting he usually 
selects the best man, regardless of politics. 
He and his wife are members of the 
Catholic Church. 



HUGH FINNEGAN, an influential 
farmer-citizen of Holland town- 
ship. Brown county, is a worthy 
representative of one of its early 
pioneer families. 

Patrick Finnegan, his father, was born 
in 1 8 19 in County Sligo, Ireland, where 
he married Margaret Graham, and in 
their native country one child was born — 
Andrew. Mr. F'innegan was a tenant 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



.5.-) 3 



farmer, and, though a hard-working' man, 
he could barely make a comfortable liv- 
ing. In the spring of 1848 he concluded 
to immigrate to the United States, where 
the workingman had a chance to better 
himself, and, gathering together what 
capital he could — a few dollars realized 
from the sale of his effects and a small 
sum he had saved — he left his home, and 
proceeded with his little family, via Dub- 
lin, to Liverpool. Here they took pas- 
sage on a sailing vessel bound for New 
York City, where they landed after a 
weary voyage occupying several weeks. 
Their first home in the New World was 
made at Schenectady, N. Y., where Mr. 
Finnegan found employment as laborer 
on the canal, and there they resided a 
few years, or until about 1851, when, at- 
tracted no doubt by the cheap homes of- 
fered to early settlers, he decicled to set- 
tle in the then new State of Wisconsin. 
The\' took passage at Buffalo on the ' ' Old 
Michigan," then plying on the lakes be- 
tween that city and Green Bay, and, after 
arriving at the latter city, came up the 
Fox river to Kaukauna, where they re- 
mained several years, Mr. Finnegan work- 
ing as a laborer on the canal. He then 
purchased 160 acres of new land in Sec- 
tion 22, Holland township. Brown county, 
totally unimproved, and he built the first 
house thereon — a small log structure, 
which stood a short distance east of the 
present family residence. Not a stick 
had been cut from the land, and, although 
he set about the clearing of the farm at 
once, it yielded no supjiort for himself and 
his family for several years, and he con- 
timied to work in Kaukauna during the 
summer time. Ha\'ing but a limited sup- 
ply of farming implements, and no im- 
proved machinery, the work of improving 
and cultivating progressed slowly; but he 
persevered, keeping ever before him the 
prospect of one day having a comfortable 
property which he could call his own. 
\\'ith constant care and industry his quar- 
ter-section of land finally was converted 
into a smiling, productive farm, to which, 



in later years, he added an adjoining forty 
acres, the whole making a fine tract. The 
log cabin was in time supplanted by a 
substantial farm residence, in which he 
passed the remainder of his life, dying in 
No\ember, 1878, and he was laid to rest 
in Holland township. His first wife passed 
from earth in 1S58, and was Iniried in 
Holland township, and Mr. Finnegan 
subsequently married Miss Ellen McBride, 
a native of Ireland, who survives him. 
The children born in the United States to 
his first marriage were: Bridget, n(3W 
Mrs. Joseph Redline, of Green Bay; Mi- 
chael, a resident of Ingalls, Mich. ; Hugh, 
a sketch of whorri follows, and Thomas, 
of Menomonee, Wis. Andrew, the eldest 
of this family, who was born in Ireland, 
also resides in Menomonee. To the sec- 
ond marriage came children as follows: 
Mary, Mrs. Peter Golden, of Wrights- 
town; and Maggie, Mrs. John Cox, of 
Holland township. 

In politics Mr. Finnegan was a strong 
supporter of the principles of the Demo- 
cratic party, but he never aspired to office, 
preferring to give all his attention to his 
farm. In religious faith he was a mem- 
ber of St. Francis Church, De Pere. One 
of the earliest settlers in Holland town- 
ship, he lived to see his farm and the sur- 
rounding country converted from a dense 
forest to a productive tract of land, 
changes which those pioneers effected by 
many years of stern toil. He was a self- 
made man, for, though in comfortable cir- 
cumstances at the time of his death, he 
began life with nothing l^ut a willing 
heart and hands, and won success by in- 
dustry and good business management, 
and his honesty and fair dealing won him 
the respect of all who knew him. 

Hugh Finnegan, son of this old 
pioneer, was born July 13, 1855, in Hol- 
land township, on the farm where he yet 
makes his home. He received such an 
education as could be obtained at the 
common district schools of his time, his 
attendance being somewhat irregular, for 
he was reared to farm life, and, as the 



334 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



home place was still in its primitive con- 
dition, there was plenty of work at home 
to occupy his time. From the time of 
his mother's death, up to the age of thir- 
teen, he was reared by his grandmother 
Finnegan, who then lived in Holland 
township, after which he made his home 
with his father. On November 9, 1887, 
he was married in Holland township, to 
Miss Ellen Finerty, who was born there 
Januar)' 13, 1859, daughter of Thomas 
and Catherine (Keaton) Finerty. After 
their marriage the young couple immedi- 
ately came to the home farm, where they 
have ever since resided, and which Mr. 
Finnegan now owns; it comprises 200 
acres of prime land, all in Holland town- 
ship. This union has been blessed with 
three children, viz.: Carrie M., born 
September 17, 1889; Thomas A., born 
April I. 1 891; and Robert P., born De- 
cember 15, 1893. Mr. Finnegan has 
been very successful in his farming opera- 
tions, and to-day ranks among the most 
prosperous citizens in his township. He 
takes an interest in every movement which 
tends to promote the welfare of his local- 
ity, and is foremost in the rank of pro- 
gressive farmers Politically he is a 
Democrat, but, though stanch in his sup- 
port of the party, gives no time to politics, 
being fully occupied with his business af- 
fairs. In religious connection the family 
are members of St. Francis Catholic 
Church, De Pere. 



P1:TER CALLAHAN, a well- 
known farmer citizen of Glen- 
more township. Brown county, 
was born in November, 1837, in 
County Monaghan, Ireland, son of James 
Callahan. When Peter was but a boy 
his parents immigrated to Canada with 
their family of eight children — four sons 
and four daughters — and here he was 
reared. His mother died when he was 
about fifteen years old, and, this event 
breaking up the home, he then com- 
menced sailing on the lakes, a business in 



which he continued, "off and on, " for 
some years. His father conducted a 
livery stable and hack line, and during 
the winter season Peter assisted him. 

In 1S63 our subject came to Brown 
county. Wis., sailing from Buffalo to 
Green Bay, and here obtained work as 
wheelsman and fireman on the "Arrow" 
and the " \'an Epps. " He remained on 
the " Arrow " until she gave out, and in- 
tended to continue his work on the 
' ' Dunlap, '■ to which vessel the machinery 
from the "Arrow" was being transferred; 
but, in the fall of 1863, he enlisted at 
Green Bay, in Company H, Thirty-fifth 
Wis. V. I., and went to Camp Sv ash- 
burn, Milwaukee. The command was 
sent to Louisiana, and they engaged in 
various skirmishes, but their first regular 
engagement was at Spanish Fort. Then 
followed the engagements at Fort Blakely, 
whence they were sent to Mobile, and 
later to Brownsville, Texas, protecting 
the frontier from the encroachments of 
the Mexicans during the disturbances in 
that country. Mr. Callahan was dis- 
charged in Brownsville, Texas, in March, 
1866, and returned to Madison, Wis., 
thence to De Pere, where he made his 
home for about a year; while in the 
service he had suffered from exposure, 
and returned with his health seriously 
impaired. During his residence in De- 
Pere he worked in the stave mills, and 
in 1867 he came to Glenmore township, 
where he was employed in the sawmill of 
Bowen, Thompson & Hulburt, who were 
getting out lumber. In 1868 he removed 
to his present farm, in the N. W. J, 
Section 14, Glenmore township, which, 
at that time, was an eighty-acre tract of 
new land (with the timber thereon re- 
served by others), and here he built the 
first house, and made all the improve- 
ments on the place. The work of clear- 
ing this farm involved a great deal of 
hard work, but, by continued industry, 
he has reduced it to a fertile condition. 
In 1892 he built a store on the northwest 
corner of his farm, where he now con- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOCUAI'IIICAL RECORD. 



335 



ducts a saloon, in addition to carrying on 
his agricultural work. In politics he is a 
Democrat, and always supports the prin- 
ciples of that party in State and National 
elections, but in local affairs he votes in- 
variably for the best man. He is a close 
reader, and keeps himself well informed on 
general topics and the issues of his party. 
In the fall of 1863 Mr. Callahan was 
married, in Green Bay, to Miss Johanna 
Dwyer, a native of County Tipperary, 
Ireland, daughter of John Dwyer, and to 
this union were born two children: Mary 
E., now Mrs. Warner, of Montana, and 
James E., of Michigan. Mr. and Mrs. 
Callahan are members of St. Mary's 
Catholic Church, of Glenmore. 



LAMBERT WELLENS. Many of 
the thrifty, industrious, well-to-do 
citizens of Brown county can 
boast of Holland birth, and promi- 
nent among these ranks the subject of 
these lines, who is a resident of Bellevue 
township. He was born December 6, 
1836, in the village of Schaijk, near the 
city of Grave, Holland, son of John H. 
Wellens, a farmer, and the youngest of 
eight children — all sons — four of whom 
grew to maturity. 

Lambert Wellens received a good 
common-school education in the schools 
of his neighborhood, was reared a farmer 
boy, and remained at home until he 
reached the age of twenty, at which time 
he decided to seek his fortune in America. 
His father had died, and having the 
money received from the estate to pay his 
e.xpenses, he set sail from Antwerp, land- 
ing in New York after an ocean voyage 
of twenty-one days. It was his original 
intention to go to De Pere, Wis. , but 
being influenced by an acquaintance he 
went instead to Grant coimty, that State, 
where he arrived with but five dollars, and 
immediately hired out as a farm hand, con- 
tinuing to follow agricultural pursuits for 
two years, during five months of which time 
he worked with his two brothers, Seeman 



and Albert, who had come to the United 
States a few months after him. In the 
spring of 1859 these three brothers were 
seized with the "western fever," and 
taking a team of o.xen to haul provisions, 
they set out across the plains for Pike's 
Peak, the journey occupying si.x weeks. 
But not being satisfied with the prospects 
there, they remained only ten days, and 
then pushed on farther westward to Cali- 
fornia with the same team, taking five 
months and ten days to make the trip. 
They prospected in Shasta county, Cal., 
remaining there four and a half years, and 
then went to Idaho Territory, where they 
sojourned four years, prospecting and 
mining the greater part of the time, and 
making about $5,000 apiece. In the fall 
of 1867 they returned by stage to Sacra- 
mento, Cal., thence by water to San 
Francisco, and from there, via the Nicar- 
agua canal route, to New York, where 
they took passage for Liverpool, and in 
October, 1867, arrived at their old home 
in Holland. 

In January, 1868, our subject was 
married at his old home in Holland, to 
Miss Barbara Johnson, who was born 
October 35, 1840, in the same neighbor- 
hood, daughter of John Johnson, a farmer, 
and to this union have been born six chil- 
dren, viz. : John, Mary. William, Albert, 
Theodore and Nettie, all li\ingbut Theo- 
dore, who died on the present farm in 
Wisconsin in March, 1888. After return- 
ing to his native land, Mr. ^^'ellens took 
up farming, and at the same time con- 
ducted a grocery and a mercantile busi- 
ness, continuing in this until 1883, when 
he again concluded to come to America. 
In the spring of that year he and his 
family sailed from Rotterdam on the 
"P. Caland, " arriving in New York after 
a voyage of eighteen days, and, their des- 
tination being De Pere, Wis. , they im- 
mediately proceeded thither. In Bellevue 
township. Brown county, Mr. Wellens 
purchased eighty-four acres of partly im- 
proved land, where he has ever since made 
his home, devoting his attention pricipally 



336 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



to the cultivation and improvement of his 
farm. The place has undergone many 
chani^es since he has had charge, and it 
is now one of the best improved farms in 
the township; he has also added sixty 
acres adjoining, and is engaged extensivel}' 
in general agriculture, his remarkable suc- 
cess in this hne being directly due to his 
good business management and shrewd 
financiering, for which he is well known. 
He is a representative self-made man, 
active and intelligent, having accumulated 
a goodly share of this world's goods by 
hard work and perseverance. He has 
traveled considerably, more than the 
average farmer, having crossed this coun- 
try from New York to San Francisco, 
visited Central America, and, in 1 893, took 
a six-weeks' pleasure trip to his native 
country; he has crossed the Atlantic four 
times. Politically he is a Democrat, but 
he gives little attention to party affairs, 
preferring to devote his time to his busi- 
ness interests. The family are all mem- 
bers of the Catholic Church at I)c Pere. 



JOSEPH E. DUAIME, a representa- 
tive thorough-going agriculturist, of 
Lawrence township. Brown county, 
was born May 16, 1841, in St. 
Francis, Canada, and is of French descent. 
Our subject received the greater part 
of his education from his mother, who 
was a French scholar, and had been a 
school teacher. His father, I^runo Du- 
aime, was a ship carpenter, and among 
other boats built the "Fanny Fisk." On 
July 15, 1850, the family came to Green 
Bay, Wis. , and, the parents being in only 
moderate circumstances, Joseph com- 
menced to work at an early age, for when 
fifteen years old we find him in the lum- 
ber camps of northern Michigan, where 
he earned from twelve to fifteen dollars 
per month. At the breaking out of the 
Civil war he was working on a farm near 
Fond du Lac, Wis., and he enlisted at 
once in the Union army, but his father 
succeeded in obtaining his release. Later, 



however, he went to Brown county, and 
in the spring of i 864 again enlisted, this 
time in Company C, Twelfth Wis. V. L, 
with which he went south to Cairo, 111., 
soon afterward joining Sherman at Big 
Shant}', Ga. Their first regular engage- 
ment was at Kenesaw Mountain, thence 
following the campaign to the coast. On 
July 28, 1864, near Israel's Chapel, to 
the right of Atlanta, Mr. Duaime was 
wounded, receiving a ball in the neck, 
and was sent to Marietta Hospital, where 
he remained thirty days. He then came 
home on furlough, and. Green Ba)' sur- 
geons failing to extract the ball, he went 
to Harvey's Hospital, at Madison, Wis., 
where it was removed by Dr. Culverson. 
In March, 1865, he went by rail to New 
York, and thence liv boat to Morehead 
City, N. C, where he joined his com- 
mand about two weeks before Lee's sur- 
render. He was present at the Grand 
Review in Washington, D. C. ; was mus- 
tered out July 15, 1865, at Louisville, 
Ky., received an honorable discharge at 
Madison, \\'is. , and immediately returned 
to Brown county. 

On September 11, 1865, Mr. Duaime 
was married to Miss Mar)' Boyea, who 
was born April 5, 1844, in New York, 
daughter of August Boyea, who came to 
De Pere in 1855. At this time our sub- 
ject had saved some two hundred and lifty 
dollars, and with this money he purchased 
a lot in Green Bay, on which he built a 
house, and lived there t\Vo years. He 
obtained employment in the lumber mills 
of Marshall, Speer & Co., at Sturgeon 
Bay, and his former experience in this 
line, coupled with natural ability as a 
mechanic, which he possessed to a marked 
degree, made him so competent a work- 
man that for eight years he was foreman 
and filer for this firm. Being thrifty and 
econt)mical, as well as a steady worker, 
he saved a considerable sum, and in a few 
years was able to purchase a farm in 
Lawrence township, for which he paid 
two thousand dollars cash. Here he made 
his home for ten or twelve years, follow- 




1k 



(2^^.&^u^ 



C>C--7^^^-lJ2^' 



COMMEMORATIVK II 100 HA I'll IC A L RECORD. 



339 



ing farming, and in the sprinj^ of 1882 
purchased the tract of ninety acres, where 
he now hves, and removed tliereon. 
Since then he has improved the tract in 
man\' ways, erecting new buildings, re- 
}iairing old ones, and systematically cul- 
tivating the land, to which he has also 
added forty-seven and one-half acres, 
now owning a fertile, productive farm of 
1 2i7\ acres. Though not a lifelong farmer, 
Mr. Duainu' has proven himself the c(]ual 
of any in his township, and has made a 
complete success of his vocation. He and 
his wife have had five children born to 
them, namely: Joseph E. (who is a 
teacher, and a correspondent for the De- 
Pere Democrat \, ]osephine (a dressmaker), 
William (a carpenter;, Emma (a teacher), 
and Sophie (also engaged in teaching). 
In his pohtical preferences Mr. Duaime 
was formerly a Republican, but since 
1884 he has supported the jirinciples of 
the Democratic party, though in voting he 
usually considers the fitness of candi- 
dates, especially in township and county 
elections. He has been elected to vari- 
ous offices of trust; served with credit as 
chairman, and, for ten or twelve years, 
as supervisor of the township f)oard. He 
was repeatedly elected to the office of 
clerk of the school l)oard, by which the 
school profited l\v liis untiring efforts to 
make it a pleasant and progressive place. 
After the northwestern fire of 1871, he 
was chosen commander of a small army 
of twenty men got together to bury tln' 
dead in W'illianisonville, Door county. 
The horror of the time is indescribable. 
As a sailor he has filled the place of cap- 
tain on a sailing vessel. In religious con- 
nections he is a mcinbcr of the Roman 
Catholic Church. 



AXTOK VAN DYKE, a respected 
well-to-do farmer of Rockland 
township, Iirown countv, vvas 
born No\ember 30, 1853, in Hol- 
land, son of John Van Dyke, a farmer. 

19 



The latter died when Anton was twelve 
years old, and, his mother having passed 
from earth si.x years before, (jur subject 
lived with his older brothers imtil he was 
twent\-t\\(i \ears of age, principally en- 
gaged in farm work. He had received 
his education in the coiiimon schools of 
his birthplace, which he attended up to 
the age of eleven years. 

In the spring of i 88 1 , liaving managed 
to save a small sum from his hard-earned 
wages, Mr. \'an Dyke left his nati\e 
country, and, going to Liverpool, took pas- 
sage on a vessel bound for New York, 
arriving in that city July 4. He imme- 
diately came westward, via Chicago and 
Milwaukee, to De Pere, Wis., where he 
had a cousin, Martin Van Dyke, and 
shortly afterward commenced to work for 
John Coenen, with whom he remained 
some time. He then came to Rockland 
township to work for Martin Hubers, one 
(.)f the early settlers of this locality, who, 
coming to Wisconsin from Holland a poor 
l)oy, had settled on the farm our subject 
now owns, and by industry and thrift rose 
to an enviable position among the farmers 
of his township, where he was highly 
respected. He had but one child, Mary 
Hubers, born November 28, 1861, on the 
farm where she yet resides, and on De- 
cemlier 28, 1882, she and Anton Van- 
Dyke were united in marriage. To this 
union have come children as follows: 
Mary, .Annie, George and Marline, living, 
and |ohn, who died in infancy. Since 
his marriage Mr. Van Dvke has always 
remained on the farm, which he now 
owns. It comprises fifty-seven acres of 
prime farming land, to the cultivation of 
which he gives his exchisive attention. 
He is a hard worker and a self-made 
man in the strictest sense of the word, 
and by his honesty and fairness he has 
won for himself the respect of all who 
know him. Pohtically he is a Democrat, 
but not active in party affairs, and in 
religious connection he and his wife are 
members of St. Mary's Catholic Church, 
De Pere. 



34° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



THOMAS McLEAN. The " North 
of Ireland!" ^^'hat a wonderful 
race of men has been sent to all 
parts of the civilized world from 
the region to the northward of a line 
drawn through the bays of Dublin and 
Gaiway, and more esjieciall}' from the 
district embraced in the Province of Ulster. 
How familiar are the names Donegal, 
Londonderry, Antrim, Down, Tyrone, 
Armagh, Fermanagh, Monaghan and 
Cavan, counties comprising the province 
named. The sturdy, Scotch-Irish ele- 
ment, which has peopled numerous locali- 
ties in the United States, has proved the 
loyalty of its blood through many a con- 
flict where the right was assailed, and al- 
most without exception has arrayed itself 
on the side which readers of its history 
might be led to expect. The Scotch-Irish 
are a proud race, and they have earned 
the privilege. 

Thomas McLean was born November 
20, 1 8 16, in the Parish of Finway, town 
of Darragh, County Antrim, Ireland, and 
when not jet twelve and a half years of 
age, sailed with the family of his father. 
Hector McLean, for America, the party 
consisting of the father, mother and four 
children — Nail, Mary, Thomas and Alex- 
ander. They started April 14, 1829, 
from Belfast, the trip being made on the 
ship " Helen," of .Xberdeen, bound for 
Quebec. John, Eli;;abeth and Ann, the 
other children, had crossed the previous 
fall. The elder McLean was a poor man, 
and was obliged to start in the humblest 
manner. He settled upon and cleared a 
farm in York township, twenty miles from 
the city of Toronto, Canada, he and his 
wife residing there until 1842, when they 
joined their son Thomas, at Milwaukee, 
Wis. Here the mother died at the age of 
sixty-eight, the father's death occurring 
subsequently at the home of the same 
son in Stockbridge, Calumet Co., Wis., 
when he was aged seventy-two. 

Thomas McLean, a worthy son of a 
worthy sire, was enabled to have but six 
month's schooling, but it maybe imagined 



he made the most of his opportunities 
during that time. He continued to re- 
side with his parents until 1841, when he 
removed to Milwaukee, Wis., then a vil- 
lage of but 900 people. With money he 
had succeeded in saving from his earnings 
in America he purchased a farm four miles 
northwest of the place, partly cleared, 
together with some village property'. The 
fourth brick house in Milwaukee was 
erected by Mr. McLean, at the corner of 
Fifth and Chestnut streets. On May 25, 
1843, in the then insignificant "Cream 
City," Mr. McLean was united in mar- 
ried with Catharine Flood, who was born 
May 9, 1822, in the Parish of Killellen, 
Pickettstown, County Meath, Ireland, 
daughter of Patrick and Bridget (O'Reilej-) 
Flood. Mrs. McLean sailed from Liver- 
pool for the United States in 1834, on 
the "Chesapeake, " the voyage occujijing 
about four weeks, and landed at New 
York, proceeding thence to her destina- 
tion, the citj' of Rochester, N. Y. At a 
later date she removed with a married sis- 
ter to Wisconsin. 

For ten years Mr. McLean ant! his 
family resided in their brick dwelling in 
Milwaukee, removing thence to Calumet 
county and locating on a farm in the 
village of Stockbridge. Twenty years 
later, in 1873. they removed to Brown 
county and located on a farm of 12 J 
acres near Green Bay, which has since 
been their home, the present homestead 
consisting of twenty-five acres adjoining 
the corporation of Green Bay; a fine 
brick residence was erected the year ol 
their removal. The children of this 
couple are: Catharine, now Mrs. Pat. 
McCool, of Chilton, Wis. ; Patrick, a 
farmer of Allouez townshiji; jane, who 
married Hugh Dougherty, and died at 
Green Bay; Harriet, now Mrs. Daniel 
Lynch, of Cakes, S. Dak. ; Mary, de- 
ceased in infancy; Eliza, who became 
Mrs. Frank Robinson, and died at Chil- 
ton; Josephine, now Mrs. James Dough- 
erty, of Oakes, S. Dak. ; Mary, now Mrs. 
Joseph O'Callihan, of Sagola, Mich.;. 



COliTMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



341 



and John, residing at iionie. Mr. Mc- 
Lean, during his residence in Milwaukee, 
was engaged in merchandising on Chest- 
nut street. He has ais(.) at different 
periods followed the occupation of 
a wagon-maker, a brickmason and a 
farmer, and for a time conducted a mill 
at Stockbridge, Wis. He has ever been 
a citizen of undisputed public spirit, and 
has contributed liberally of his time and 
means toward the furtherance of various 
enterprises. He has been able to assist 
his children to some e.xtent, and the 
needy have always found in him a friend 
and heljter. That his genercjsity may 
have been at times taken advantage of 
by unscrupulous people is possible, as few 
men of his ilisposition will live to old age 
without in some instances incurring e.\- 
pensive experiences along such lines, but 
he has everywhere \v<Tn the respect of his 
fellow-citizens, and in his old age is able 
to look back upon a life well spent. Politi- 
cally he is a Democrat, and in 1864 was 
elected by his party to the State Legis- 
lature, as representative from Calumet 
county. In religious faith he and his 
wife are earnest and consistent Catholics, 
and the Church has more than once felt 
its obligations to him for substantial 
favors extended. He was a member of 
the committee that built St, John's 
Cathedral in Milwaukee, and is the sole 
survivor of that conmiittee. At one time 
he was the owner of i. 100 acres of land 
in Calumet county, and was interested in 
various industries. He built a church at 
Stockl)ridge and donated it to the Catho- 
lics, presented the priest with a sleigh, 
and boarded him for nearly a year. His 
zeal in behalf of his church has always 
been marked, and no enterprise tending 
to its benefit ever lacked his support. 

When a half century of wedded life had 
been rounded out, the children at home, 
in May, 1893, planned a golden wedding 
for their parents. Notwithstanding the fact 
that the latter were both sick when the 
eventful day arrived and the festivities 
were interrupted in consequence, the oc- 



casion was not withdut its pleasures. 
With the best wishes of all who know 
them, they approach the sunset tin:e in 
the calm enjoyment of the fruits of a cor- 
rect and happy life, and their people \\(ill 
at the end rise up and call them l)lessed. 



P.VTRICK BAILEY, a leading rep- 
resentative self-made farmer of 
Glenniore township, Brown coun- 
ty, was born about 1821 in Coun- 
ty Kerry, Ireland, son of John and Nellie 
(Bresnehen) Bailey, who had three sons, 
of whom Patrick is the only one living. 
The mother died when he was three 
years old, and about a year later the 
father remarried. 

Patrick Bailey had fair educatinnal 
advantages in his youth, and was reared 
from boyhood to farming, remaining at 
home until he reached the age of nine- 
teen years. Wages were low in Ireland, 
so when Patrick determined to come to 
America his father supplied him with 
means to pay his way, and in the spring 
of 1S43 he sailed from his native town, 
Blennerville, on the "Joan," landing in 
Quebec after a voyage of six weeks. 
Here he was given employment helping 
to unload the vessel and then to reload 
her with lumber, and, after this, went to 
Montreal, where he worked for some 
time on the Lachine canal. He next 
went to New York City, thence after a 
few days to Boston, Mass., and thence to 
Lowell, where he found employment as a 
laborer between Lowell and Andover for 
a few weeks, working on improvements 
along the Merrimac river. His next move 
was to Fitchburg, same State, where he 
worked on the Fitchburg & Massachusetts 
railroad, and he subsecpiently worked in 
various places in Massachusetts, in almost 
every part of the State; thence went to 
Keene, N. H. , working there as laborer 
on a railroad, and later engaged in the same 
line of work at Brattleboro, Vt., after 
whicli he again came to Massachusetts, 
and worked in South Hadlev. 



342 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



On January ^. i , Mi Bailey was 
married, in Cabotville, Mass., to Bridget 
Moran, who was born about 1830 in 
South Boston, daughter of Jolin and Kate 
(Donohuej Moran, both natives of Ire- 
land. In the summer of 1848 our subject 
went to Buffalo, N. Y. , and there worked 
on city improvements for a while; thence 
removed to Springfield, Ohio, where he 
was emplo\ed on a railroad to Cincin- 
nati, then in course of construction, and 
subsequently lived for a time in Sidney, 
Ohio. The ague being prevalent here, 
another move was made, this time to 
Chiliicothe. Ohio, where Mr. Bailey also 
worked on railroads, and he next worked 
on the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern 
railroad, near Marietta. Ohio, and parth' 
bargained for a farm in Washington coun- 
ty, but hearing of the cheap land offered 
to settlers in the then new State of Wis- 
consin, he concluded to abandon railroad 
work and commence farming on his own 
account. Three children had been born 
to them in Ohio — John, in Sidney; Ellen, 
in Chiliicothe; and Mary A., in Wash- 
ington county; and, with his wife and 
family, Mr. Bailey came to Wisconsin in 
the summer of 1854, journeying via Co- 
lumbus to Cleveland, where they took 
the b(5at f<3r Green Bay, landing in that 
city in July. Leaving the family in Green 
Bay, Mr. Bailey went to Kaukauna, where 
he obtained employment on the canal 
then building, and shortly afterward pur- 
chased eighty acres, at $2.50 per acre, in 
Section 7, Glenmore township. Brown 
county, which tract was totally unim- 
proved, and the family Ii\ ed with a neigh- 
bor, Thomas Lawlor, while their log cabin 
was being built. The forest was so dense 
that a space had to be cleared even for 
the small dwelling, into which they moved 
October 10, 1854, and at this time there 
was no road to this farm, only a path 
through the woods. They had hired a 
man to bring out their few household 
goods, but the driver, finding it difTficult to 
proceed with the horse and wagon the 
latter part of the way, the goods were 



left in the road, where Mr. Bailey. found 
them, and it took him several days to 
get them to the house, one of the 
neighbors, "Con" Leary, loaning him 
an ox-team for the purpose. The work 
of clearing was begun at once, but it 
was many years before the farm became 
productive, and Mr. Bailey worked at 
lumbering during the winter season to 
earn enough to support his family. A 
large amount of lumber was cut, but as 
there was scarcely any demand for it 
then, they had to burn many thousand 
feet of valuable beech and maple to rid 
the land of it. Those pioneers endured 
many trials and privations in impro\ ing 
and cultivating their tract, but they suc- 
ceeded in converting the dense forest into 
a comfortable farm, and Mr. Bailey has, 
by his own unaided efforts, risen to a 
position among the respected, prosperous 
agriculturists of this section, his life show- 
ing what may be accomplished by energy 
and determination, coupled with perse- 
verance and honesty. He now owns 160 
acres of excellent land, on which he con- 
ducts a successful farming business. He 
has served two terms as supervisor in his 
township, giving satisfaction to all; but 
he prefers to give his attention to his pri- 
vate affairs, and is not an acti\e partisan, 
voting for the man he considers best 
qualified for the office. In religious faith 
he is a member of St. Francis Church, 
De Pere. 

Mr. and Mrs. Bailey have had four- 
teen children, three of whom were born 
in Ohio, as above recorded, and the others 
in Wisconsin, a brief record of them be- 
ing as follows : John is a resident of 
Minneapolis, Minn. ; Ellen is the wife of 
Milan Smith, of Fond du Lac, Wis.; 
Mary A. is the wife of John Sloan, of 
De Pere ; Kate is living in Ashland. Wis. ; 
James died when eighteen months oUi ; 
Bridget is the wife of James Jennings, of 
Scott township. Brown county; Agnes is 
the wife of John Kummel, of .Ashland, 
Wis. ; Lizzie is the wife of James Mills, 
of Ashland ; Alice is living at home ; 



COMMEMORA TI VK lilOGllA PHICA L UECOIW. 



343 



Thomas is a resident of Montana; George 
is living in Washington; Ste%en li\-es in 
Glenmore township; Patrick is at lionie; 
and one child died in infancy. 

On March 13, 1865, Mr. Bailey en- 
listed in Company F, Fiftieth Wis. V. I., 
and did duty through northern Missouri. 
at Fort Leavenworth, Kans. , and Fort 
Rice, Dak., during his service contracting 
rheumatism, from which he has ever since 
suffered. He was discharged in July, 
1866, and returned at once to his home 
and family. Our subject is well and 
favorably known throughout his section, 
and stands prominent among Glenmore 
township's most respected citizens. 



JOHN BAKTELME, one of the prom- 
inent, influential farmer citizens of 
New Denmark township. Brown 
county, was born November 25, 
1810, in I"" ranee, of German descent. His 
parents, George and Mary Schneider) 
Bartelme, were well-to-do farming people 
of Germany, who reared a family of nine 
children (of whom our subject is the eld- 
est), as follows: John, Peter, J<)hanna, 
Nicholas, Michael, Christ(_iph, George, 
Frank, and Belthasar. 

John Bartelme remainetl in his native 
land until twenty-five years of age, work- 
ing principally in a nail factory from early 
boyhood. In the spring of 1836, receiv- 
ing help from friends, he came with sev- 
eral others to America, landing in New 
York in July, after aweary voyage lasting 
seven weeks. He obtained employment 
at once in a nail factory, and worked thus 
some time, but the factory closing, he lost 
one hundred and two dollars, and found 
himself with but a dollar in money. Again 
borrowing from his friends he proceeded 
to Albany, N. Y. , and for five years worked 
on a farm near that city, receiving one 
hundred dollars a year for his services, 
out of which he managed to save and pay 
back all the money he had borrowed. 
Then, in company with two other men, 
he invested three hundred dollars in a 



canal-boat, but the venture proved a fail- 
ure, and he lost all but a hundred dollars. 
His younger brother, Belthasar, having 
come from Germany. Mr. Bartelme now 
went to New York to meet him, and, after 
remaining another nine months in that 
city, set out for the then " l-'ar West," 
coming first to Two Ri\ers, Wis., where 
he remained about a year. At the end 
of that time he came to De Pere and 
purchased forty acres of new land in New 
Denmark township, the nucleus of his 
present fine well-improved farm of 180 
acres, which he has acquired by unceasing 
labor and good management. The first 
dwelling on this jilace was a rude log 
house, which in later years was supplanted 
by the fine stone dwelling in which the 
family now reside, this feeing but one of 
the many improvements which had been 
made on the place. 

When our subject came to this place 
the old Manitowoc road was the only one 
which passed through the town, and he 
was actively interested in building the 
roads to De Pere and Cooperstown, tak- 
ing a prominent part in that, as well as all 
other movements for the benefit of his 
locality. He was the first postmaster at 
Denmark, and held the office for thirty- 
si.x years from the time of his appoinment, 
in 1854. For twelve years he filled the 
important office of chairman of his town- 
ship, and for six years was township 
treasurer, invariably giving satisfastion to 
all concerned by his ability and efficiency 
in every capacity. 

Mr. Bartelme was married at Two 
Rivers, Wis., to Miss Almenia Ench, and 
their union has been blessed with five 
children, viz. : John (who is sheriff of 
Brown county), Balthasar, Catherine, 
Frank, and Michael, of whom Balthasar 
lives on the homestead, caring for his aged 
parents; his mother has been totally blind 
for the last eighteen years. 

Balthasar Bartelme has been twice 
married: his first wife died leaving two 
children, Jacob and Catherine, and he 
wedded for his second wife. Miss Lizzie 



344 



COMMEMORATI\'E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Machtel, to which marriage have come 
five children, namely: Minnie, (icorge, 
Lizzie, Nettie, and Frank. In religious 
faith the family are all Catholics. 



JOSEPH BOEHM. This getleinan, 
\\ ho is now living retired in the city 
of De Pere, has for many years been 
prominently identified with the agri- 
cultural interests of Brown county, where 
he is still an extensive landowner. 

Mr. Boehm was born March 13, 1833, 
in Bavaria, Germany, son of John George 
Boehm, a farmer. Joseph received his 
education in the common schools of his 
native place, and was reared to farm life, 
which he continued to follow in Germany 
till he was about twenty-four years of age, 
working for small wages. Being hard- 
working and economical, he had managed 
to save a little from his hard-earned 
wages, and, concluding he could tind bet- 
ter o])portunity for advancement in the 
United States, he bid farewell to his home 
and friends, and in May, 1857, set sail 
from Bremen, on the "Gungson," this 
being her second trip. They crossed the 
Atlantic in thirty-five days, and on June 
30, 1857, our subject landed in New 
York, with just seventy-five cents in his 
pocket. His ticket carried him to De- 
troit, Mich., where he arrived almost 
penniless, a total stranger, but honest and 
willing to work. In the course of three 
or four weeks he had earned enough to 
bring him to Green Bay, Wis., where he 
arrived in the latter part of Jul\', 1857, 
making the trip from Detroit on the old 
steamer " Michigan." He came to De- 
Pere, and first worked on the " Old Stone 
Schoolhouse," which was then in course 
of construction, after which he went to 
Kaukauna, where he found employment 
on the canal. We next find him in Belle- 
vue township, chopping cordwood for 
three shillings a cord, and boarding him- 
self, and, although the work was hard and 
the wages small, he did it rather than re- 
main idle. At the age of twenty-five he 



received but ten dollars a month for his 
services as a farm hand, and found it was 
useless to expect more. In 1859 he went 
to the Lake Superior country, and there, 
for three and a half years, followed 
mining. While here he was married to 
Miss Marcella ISoyle, a native of Ireland, 
and to this union were born six children, 
viz. : Christ, a farmer of Bellevue town- 
ship; Anna C, widow of Joseph Long, of 
(ircen Ba\'; John, a farmer of Bellevue 
township; Theresa, now Mrs. Joseph 
Vandermost, of Rockland township; Mary, 
who died young, and one that died in in- 
fancy, unnamed. The mother of these 
died in Bellevue and was buried in De- 
I'erc. 

In 1862 Mr. Boehm removed to Belle- 
vue townshiji, Brown Co., Wis., where 
he had purchased forty acres of entirely 
new land, upon which, at that time, there 
was not even a house. He set to work at 
once to clear and improve the place, and 
by dint of incessant toil and perseverance 
succeeded in converting it into a good 
farm, from time to time he also making 
additions to his first purchase, until he 
now owns over 300 acres of prime land 
in Bellevue and Rockland townships. He 
continued to follow farming until 1889, 
when he moved into the town of De Pere, 
and here he has since lived a retired life. 
He is strictly a self-made man, having 
from a start of nothing accumulated a 
comfortable property and a- snug compe- 
tence. In connection with agriculture he 
was for manv years engaged in cattle 
dealing, and tluring his long experience in 
that line became an excellent judge of 
stock. He has seen great changes in his 
section of the country, and has taken 
an active part in its development and 
progress. He has held various township 
of fices, having served as school clerk, 
supervisor, path-master, etc. , with sat- 
isfaction to all. In his political prefer- 
ences he is a Democrat, and in religious 
connection he and his wife are members 
of St. Francis Catholic Church, De Pere. 
On January 29, 1889, our subject was 



COMMEMOHAriVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



345 



married, in De Pere, for his second wife, 
to Mrs. Afargaret Raster, widow of Peter 
J. Raster. She was born February 2, 
1836, in Prussia, daus^hter of Francis 
George and Anna (Piesj Wenthng, who 
came to the United States in 1852, going 
first to Liverpool, whence they sailed for 
New York. In Utica, N. Y. , Mr. Went- 
ling was taken sick, and the family re- 
mained there two months, after which 
they went to Milwaukee, Wis. , where 
they lived two years, thence coining to 
Green Bay, where they made a perma- 
nent home. 



EDWARD BAUMGART. This gen- 
tleman, who is ranked among the 
public-spirited progressive farmer 
citizens of Bellevue township, 
Brown county, is a native of Schlesien, 
Germany, born July 5, 185 1, son of 
August and Gertrude Baumgart. 

August Baumgart was by trade a 
butcher, and he also owned a farm and 
engaged in the manufacture of bricks, 
having often as man}-' as fifty or sixty men in 
his employ. He had considerable prop- 
erty in Germany, l)ut in 1868 he disposed 
of all his interests and came to America, 
bringing his family. They sailed from 
Bremen on the " Schiller, " and, after a 
voyage of eight weeks and three days, 
landed at Baltimore, Md., from which city 
they immediately proceeded to Brown 
county. Wis., coming over the B. & O. 
R. R. via Columbus, Ohio, where they 
were on July 4. Mr. Baumgart purchased 
seventy-two acres of new land in Bellevue 
township, on which at that time there was 
not even a dwelling, and resided there 
until 1883, when he removed to his 
present farm in the same township. 
Here he and his wife are yet living, 
and, though now seventy-five years old, 
he is still an active man. To them 
were born seven children, as follows: 
Charles, who died young, in Germany; 
Joseph and August, of Glenmore town- 
ship; Edward, our subject; John, of Mani- 



towoc county. Wis. ; Paul, a farmer of 
Bellevue township; antl Caroline, Mrs. 
Joseph Landmcr, of Duck Creek, Wis- 
consin. 

Edward Baumgart attended the schools 
of his native place until he reached the 
age of thirteen, and was seventeen years 
old when he came with his parents to 
America. He remained under the pa- 
rental roof until he was twenty-four years 
old, tioing farm work, or anything else 
at which he could earn an honest dollar, 
and turning his wages over to his parents. 
On February 22, 1876, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Annie Hutter, who 
was born August 7, 1845, in Manitowoc 
county, Wis., daughter of Joseph Hutter, 
a native of Bavaria, Germany. After his 
marriage Mr. Baumgart located on a new 
farm, which he at once began to clear and 
improve, and there made his home imtil 
18S0, when he came to his present farm 
in Bellevue township, which contains one 
hundred acres. Though now a well-cul- . 
tivated tract, it was then all in the woods, 
and he has done all the clearing and made 
all the improvements himself. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Baumgart have come children 
as follows: Joseph, Edward, Caroline, 
Annie, Henry, John, Mary, Rosa, Anton, 
and one that died in infancy. Mr. Baum- 
gart is not identified with any political 
party, but votes independently, selecting 
the man best qualified for of^ce, regardless 
of politics. He has served his township 
as roadma.ster, supervisor, and for two 
years as chairman, and he is recognized 
as a thoroughly progressive citizen, al- 
ways ready to assist in any enterprise for 
the benefit of his township and county. 
He and his wife are members of the Ger- 
man Catholic Church at Green Bav. 



M 



ARTIN BARTH, who, for the 
past forty years, has been a 
farmer of Glenmore township. 
Brown county, is a native of 
the Fatherland, born June 18, 1825, in 
Wurtemberg, son of Jacob and Lena 



346 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



(Schenauer) Barth, who were the parents 
of nine children. The father, who was a 
tailor by trade, died when Martin was 
five years old. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in the land of his birth, and there learned 
the weaver's trade. In his carl\- man- 
hood he served three \cars and se\en 
months in the German arm)', and shortly 
afterward came to America, landing in 
New York, July 16, 1854, after an ocean 
voyage of forty-seven days. He imme- 
diatel}' came to Wisconsin, arri\ing in 
Green Hay, August 3, with $11.75 i" his 
pocket, and thence wenttoNew Franken, 
where he remained with an uncle ten 
days. For three weeks he worked for a 
Mr. Eisenman in De Pere, and then went 
to Oconto, where he was employed three 
months in a mill, after which he returned 
to New Franken. .Xgain coming to 
Oconto, he worked here ten months raft- 
ing lumber, and then returned once more 
to his uncle, with whom he made his 
home until he bought land of his own. 
His first purchase was eighty acres of 
totally wild land, on which the timber 
was so dense that a space had to be 
cleared for the 14 .\ 18 log cabin which 
he built himself. At this early date the 
Indians had not all left the country, and 
wild animals were numerous and trouble- 
some, especially the wolves, who made 
night hideous with their howling. There 
were no roads, and Mr. Barth has made 
many a trip on foot to Green Bay, over 
an Indian trail through the woods. In 
order to earn a living he had to do various 
kinds of work, as the farm yielded no 
support the first few years, and the work 
of clearing progressed slowly, for he had 
only a few rude implements, and it was 
twelve years after his settlement here be- 
fore he owned a yoke of oxen. One year 
he worked forty-seven days on the road 
for nothing. 

On February 22, 1865, Mr. Barth en- 
listed in Company F, Fiftieth Wis. V. I., 
served sixteen months in Missouri, Kansas 
and Dakota, and was honorably discharged 



June 17, 1866, returning to his home in 
Brown count}. Mr l^arth was united 
in marriage January 29, 1867, with Miss 
Fmma Kahren, daughter of Peter and 
Maggie (Zimmer) Kahren, farming people, 
who were the parents of ten children, 
vix. : Maggie, Jacob, Lizzie, Kate, Joseph. 
Joseph, Kate, Emma, Kate and Michael. 
When Mrs. Ikirth was three years old they 
came to America, landing in New York 
City, thence coming to Milwaukee, Wis., 
and thence to Illinois, where they lived for 
some time. They then returned to Mil- 
waukee, and later, about three \ears after 
their landing in this country, came to 
New Denmark township. Brown county, 
where they invested in 120 acres of land. 
Here Mr. Kahren passed the remainder 
of his days, d\ing July 8, 1862; his wife 
survived until July 19, 1880. They were 
well-known among the early settlers in 
their locality, and were highly respected 
for their sterling worth. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
Barth lived a year in the small log house 
he had first built, and then moved into a 
more commodious dwelling, also of logs, 
in which they remained until the present 
comfortable residence was erected. Their 
union has been blessed with eight chil- 
dren, named as follows: Lena, Mary, 
Martin, Jacob, John, Louis, Andrew and 
Henry. Mr. Barth is a Republican in his 
political affiliations, but takes no interest 
in politics except as a regular attendant 
at the polls. He and his wife are, in 
religious connection, members of the 
Lutheran Church, in which he has been 
director. 



ANDREW ANDERSON, a repre- 
sentative farmer of New Denmark 
township, Brown county, is a 
native of the Kingdom of Den- 
mark, born May 24, 1828, son of Andrew 
and Karen (Anderson) Hansen, farming 
people, the former of whom died when 
our subject was thirteen weeks old. He 
left a family of eight children, viz. : Peter, 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOOllAPU/CAL RECORD. 



347 



James, Lars, Elizabeth, Kersten, Hans, 
and Andrew and Karen (twins). 

Tiie mother, having thus to provide 
for a large family, the children were obliged 
to assist as soon as they were old enough, 
and our subject commenced to work at 
the early age of seven years, herding 
sheep, in which occupation he engaged 
until he reachetl the age of fourteen 
years, receiving only his clothing for his 
services. He remained in his native land 
until he was twenty-eight years old, when, 
having saved enough to bring him to the 
United States, he decided to seek his 
fortune in the New World. He sailed 
from Hamburg, and, crossing the ocean in 
six weeks, landed at New York, coming 
thence without delay to Brown coimt}'. 
Wis., where in New Denmark township 
he investetl in forty acres of new land, 
whicli he at once commenced to clear and 
improve. Ten years later he purchased 
another forty acres, which he also cleared 
himself, ami has since added sixt\' acres 
more, now having a hue farm of 140 
acres, all highly improved and under cul- 
tivation. This property has all been ac- 
quired by his own honest toil, for he 
commenced with no capital but a pair of 
willing hands, and he is everywhere re- 
spected for his honesty and industry. 

In i860 Mr. Anderson was married, in 
New Denmark township, to Miss Mary 
Hansen, a daughter of Hans Paulson and 
Karen Hansen, who reared a family of 
five children, as follows: Maren Sophia, 
Andrews, Mary, Anna C, and Peter. 
When thirty-four years of age she came 
to America with a brother and sister, and 
ten years after her marriage her parents 
also came to Wisconsin, making their 
home with her as long as the\' lived. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Anderson ha\e been born 
six children, namely: Aldrich, Tine (Mrs. 
Anderson, of Marinette, Wis.), Laura, 
Olof, Peter, and Hans, of whom Olof 
lives at home, and has the principal care 
of the farm work. The family are mem- 
bers of the Lutheran Church, in which 
Mr. Anderson takes an active interest 



and has served as treasurer and trustee; 
in his political preferences he is a Repub- 
lican, and he takes a deep interest in all 
movements tending to promote the wel- 
fare of his communitv. 



JOHN SULLIVAN, who for many 
years has been well-known in Brown 
county, and especially in Lawrence 
township, as a prosperous, system- 
atic agriculturist, is a native of the 
"Emerald Isle," horn December 24, 
1830, in Kenmare, County Kerry. His 
parents, James and Ellen Sullivan, had a 
family of seven children — six sons and 
one daughter — of whom John is the eldest. 
At an early age oursubject commenced! 
to attend the common schools, and at the 
same time was reared to agricultural pur- 
suits under his father's tuition, the latter 
being a well-to-do landowner and farmer. 
However, the father died when John was 
yet a lad, anil the mother suljsequently 
married, for her second husband, Jere- 
miah Sullivan. In 1S45, disposing of the 
property, the entire family immigrated to 
America, first taking passage on the 
" Ajax " from Cork to Liverpool, where 
they remained a few days at " Sheflin's 
Hotel." They then embarked on the 
" Moses Wheeler," Capt. King, bound for 
Boston, in which city they landed after a 
voyage of twenty-two days, strangers in 
a strange land. They located in the town 
of \^'inchendon, Worcester Co., Mass., 
and John commenced to learn the trade 
of tanner and currier, at which he served 
an apprenticeship of seven years, receiv- 
ing at the very beginning one dollar a 
day, which materially assisted his mother. 
A brief record of her family is as follows: 
John is the subject proper of this sketch; 
Patrick is a resident of Winchendon, 
Mass. ; Daniel lives in Melbourne, Aus- 
tralia; Dennis lives in Winchendon, 
Mass. ; Mortimer resides near \\'inchen- 
don; Bartholomew died in this country 
when young; Mary is the wife of William 
Devins, of New Hampshire. By her 



348 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



second marriage Mrs. Sullivan had one 
child, Patrick, now a barber of Fitchburg, 
Mass. The mother is yet living at an 
advanced age. Her husband died some 
years ago. 

John Sullivan remained in W'inchen- 
■don, following his trade, for over fourteen 
years, his wages, up to the time of his 
marriage, all going to his mother, and on 
his wedding day she gave him two hun- 
dred dollars in gold. On October i, 
1854, he was married in South Boston, 
Mass., by Rev. Father Linden, to Miss 
Ellen Harris, who was born in County 
Kerry, Ireland, daughter of Gerald and 
Ellen (Lynch) Harris, and came to the 
United States when a young girl to live 
■with her sister in Boston. The young 
couple commenced housekeeping in Win- 
chendon, where he had purchased a home, 
and there he continued to follow his trade 
until failing health compelled him to 
abandon it. His employer, Ephraim 
Murdock, at one time the most extensive 
wooden-ware manufacturer in the world, 
was a large land-owner, and Mr. Sullivan 
located on one of his farms, a change 
which proved beneficial to his health, and 
he remained three years, succeeding well 
in agriculture. He had been correspond- 
ing with an old school teacher of his, 
whom he had known in Ireland, and who 
then lived in Leavenworth, Kans. , and our 
subject concluded to emigrate to that 
State. His family at this time consisted 
of three chiklren, all of whom were born 
in Winchendon, namelj' : Ellen, now Mrs. 
Charles Davis, of Lawrence township, 
Brown county; Mary, Mrs. Michael Eagan, 
of De Pere, Brown county; and James, a 
farmer of Lawrence township, who lives 
with his father (he married Geneva Mc- 
Abee, and they have one child, Ellen, 
born March 3, 1892). 

On August I. 1864, Mr. Sullivan and 
his family started for the then "Far 
West," going to Chicago, III., via the N. 
Y. C. &. H., and the Lake Shore rail- 
roads, thence by the Burlington and the 
Hannibal & St. Jo railroads to St. 



Joseph, Mo., thence to Weston, Mo., 
and thence to Leavenworth, Kans., by 
boat, as there was no railroad to the city 
at that time, although it was the largest 
in Kansas. There he conducted a hotel 
for about a jear, when he entered the em- 
ploy of the St. Jo Railway Co. , keeping 
boarders and acting as overseer of a num- 
ber of men. Subsequently he was em- 
ployed on the Atchison & Pike's Peak 
railroad, then in course of construction, 
as overseer, his family meantime residing 
in Weston, Mo., whither he returned 
later, owing to a suspension of work 
caused by an absconding paymaster. 
One day, while talking with a Wisconsin 
soldier in Weston, he accidentally heard 
of a sister of his wife, living in De Pere, 
Wis., who had come to the United States 
many years before, and of whom they 
had lost all trace. A correspondence was 
at once opened, which eventually led to 
their emigrating to Wisconsin in about 
1866, the family taking up their home in 
De Pere, Brown county, with Mrs. Sulli- 
van's sister, while Mr. Sullivan went to 
look for work. He found employment at 
his trade in Two Rivers, Manitowoc Co., 
Wis. , with the Wisconsin Leather Co., 
and after remaining with them ten months 
returned to De Pere, where for a short 
time he worked for the Chicago Tight 
Stave Co. He then purchased eighty 
acres of land at five dollars per acre, all 
of which was still in the woods — not a 
stick having been cut — and was without 
improvements of any kind, and on the site 
of his present residence he built a log 
house which served as a home for the 
family for several years, until in 1880 the 
comfortable dwelling they now occupy 
was erected. Under Mr. Sullivan's man- 
agement, this place has been gradually 
cleared and im]iroved, and has also been 
added to, till it now consists of 120 acres 
of excellent farming land. He has met 
with success in his farming operations; 
but it is only the just reward of years of 
thrift and persevering toil, for he has been 
a hard worker, and, though now over sixty 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



349 



years of age, is yet active, and able to 
perform a good day's work. 

Mr. Sullivan is well known in his com- 
munity, and has for the past twenty-three 
years held various offices of trust in iiis 
township, invariably discharging the du- 
ties of his position with satisfaction to all; 
he has also served as deputy sheriff of 
Brown county. In his political faith he 
is a stanch adherent of the principles of 
the Democratic party, to which he gives 
his unfailing support. In religious con- 
nection he and his wife are members of 
St. Joseph's Catholic Church at Wrights- 
town, in which he is trustee. One child 
has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Sullivan 
on their present farm, John M., a bright 
intelligent lad, who was given good edu- 
cational advantages, and intended to study 
law, but on May, i, 1887, he passed from 
earth, deeply mourned by the bereaved 
family. He was buried in Snider cemeter)'. 



M 



AKK ENGLISH, who, in every 
respect, is an admirable speci- 
men of the self-made men of 
whom this country is so proud, 
often modestly declares that he owes his 
success to the greatness of his friends, 
but on the other hand it is -confidently 
affirmed that he owes his friends to his 
own grit, energy and integrity. 

Mr. English is an Ohioan by birth, a 
native of Cuyahoga county, having been 
born November 20, 1837, to Murk and 
Christina C. (Collins) English, natives of 
Connecticut and Ohio, respectively. Thev 
came from Ohio to Michigan in 1839, and 
in the town of Jackson he carried on a 
dry-goods business for several years, dying 
there January 28, 1854; his widow re- 
turned to Ohio, where on September 24, 
1873, she, too, passed away. Children 
were born to them as follows: Dorlisca 
Marilla, born June 22, 1832, is the wife 
of Edson Herrington, of Ionia, Mich. ; 
Christina Grace, born July 30, 1834, is 
the wife of Thomas Newsom; Mark is the 
subject of this sketch; George O., born 



March 6, 1843, is married and resides in 
Escanaba, Michigan. 

Mark English was but a small boy 
when his parents brought him to Jackson, 
Mich., where he was reared and educated 
and also learned the mason's trade. In 
the spring of 1853, being then si.xteen 
years old, he went to Marc]uette, Mich. ; 
where he first engaged in the fishery 
business, afterward in contracting, taking 
the contract for and erecting the Union 
school building, which was the first brick 
building erected in Marquette. In Octo- 
ber, 1865, he came to Green Bay and or- 
ganized the Lake Superior Stage Co. , of 
which he was made president and super- 
intendent, establishing a stage route from 
Green Bay to Escanaba (Mich.) by way 
of Oconto, Marinette and Menomonee. 
It was a daily line, employing 120 horses 
in all, each Concord coach, in suumier, 
or sleigh, as the case might be, being 
drawn by four horses, which were changed 
every ten miles. At Escanaba the line 
connected with the upper peninsular 
division of the Chicago & North Western 
railroad. In addition to the American 
Express it carried the United States mail 
for the entire upper peninsula, the aver- 
age weight of which alone was over 
1 500 pounds. This important under- 
taking Mr. English carried on from 1S69 
to 1877, at which time, the railroad hav- 
ing been completed to Monomonee, he 
sold out and turned his attention to other 
affairs. He soon became one of the or- 
ganizers of the "Green Bay Iron Co.," 
and was one of its board of directors for 
a short time. In 1885 he interested him- 
self in vessel property, becoming the 
owner of the schooner "Cascade" and 
afterward of the propeller " Union," 
which vessels plied on the lakes and were 
principally engaged in the carrying of 
freight. He also became quite extensively 
interested in contracting and building — a 
vocation which still claims his attention. 
He is also the owner of a stone quarry at 
Kewaunee, from which he ships stone to 
all points on the lakes. 



350 



COMMEMOUAriVE lilOd RM'UICM. liECORD. 



It may with propriety be said that 
Mr. Eiifjlishis one of the best known men 
in northern Wisconsin, and his entire 
career has been one of action and enter- 
prise. Coming to Marquette in his early 
manhood, when but about twenty-four 
years of age, he was from the start a 
prominent figure and factor in its busi- 
ness, social and political life. In 1861 
he was made city marshal of Marquette, 
a position that required, at that time, 
a man of courage and resolution, as 
the city was tilled with a floating popula- 
tion of 6,000 or 7,000, consisting princi- 
pally of miners and sailors of an unruly 
and roistering disposition. He held the 
office four years, during the war also 
serving as United States enrolling of- 
ficer, and was a United States deputy 
marshal four years. He was elected antl 
served two years as high sheriff of the 
county, thus serving as a public officer 
for eight consecutive years as incumbent 
of some one of the above-named posi- 
tions, during which time he made a repu- 
tation highly honorable to himself, and 
was an actor in many stirring scenes while 
in the discharge of his official duties. He 
was the first city marshal of Marquette, 
and the only one while he resided in that 
city, with the exception of about three 
months when he was recovering from in- 
juries received while discharging his duties, 
after which he was again iniluced to take 
the office for $1,000 a year and one-half 
the fines. When the locks were built on 
the Fo.\ river at Appleton, Wis., he was 
appointed United States Government In- 
spector, and the lock at that point, known 
as No. 2, was built under his supervision. 
Mr. English has passed through many 
experiences, and doubtless realities, in a 
keener degree than many, the vast changes 
that have taken place in the past thirty- 
five years in the means of transportation 
from one distant point to another. Pre- 
vious to his organization of the stage line, 
during one winter in the early "sixties," 
he conveyed the United States mail from 
Marquette to Houghton fMich.) on a 



sled drawn by dogs. In politics Mr. 
English is a Republican, and he and his 
wife are members of the M. E. Church. 
He is also a member of the Knights of 
Honor, Navarino Lodge, No. 1,384. 

On June 25, 1859, Mr. English was 
married, at Port Sarnia, Canada, to Miss 
Mary Ann\illa Hall, a daughter of Horace 
and Lavina (Porter) Hall, all natives of 
Whitby, Canada, but at that time resi- 
dents of Port Sarnia. The parents moved 
to Marquette, Mich., and later to Green 
Bay, Wis., where they both died in 
March, 18S2, and were buried the same 
day. To Mr. and Mrs. English have 
come two children — Nettie C, born July 
6, 1864, and Lester A., born March 19, 
1877. Since 1867 Mr. English has made 
his home continuously in Green Bay, 
where he has a commodious and pleasant 
residence. 



M 



ICHALL MART IN (deceased), 
who. during his lifetime, was a 
well-known farmer of Rockland 
township. Brown countj-, was a 
native of County Carlow, Ireland. He 
was born in 1828, son of Bernard and 
Mary (McCabe) Martin, farming people 
who had a family of seven children — five 
sons and two daughters. 

Our subject received a common-school 
education and was reared to farming pur- 
suits. In early manhood he emigrated 
from his native land to the United States, 
and coming to Herkimer county, N. Y. , 
remained there four years, in the vicinity 
of West Winfield, working for Lorenzo 
Brown, a farmer. In 1854 he was mar- 
ried, in Utica, N. Y., to Miss Mary Foley, 
a native of County Carlow, Ireland, born 
in 1832, daughter of James Foley, who 
died in 1840. In 1850 she left her birth- 
place, and proceeding to Liverpool took 
passage on the " Columbus," bound for 
New York, in which city she landed after 
a voyage of six weeks, thence continuing 
her journey to Utica, near which city she 
worked until her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



351 



Martin resided in Utica fur two years, and 
then, in about 1856, came westward to 
Wisconsin, leaving their only child, Mary 
Ann, in New York with Mr. Martin's 
mother. The}' came to Milwaukee by 
rail, thence to De Pere, and shortly after- 
ward purchased eighty acres in Section 9, 
Rockland township, the price of the tract 
being two hundred and forty dollars, two 
hundred of which he paid down. It was 
all new land, covered with timber, and a 
small log house, built by Mr. Martin 
himself, was the first dwelling on the 
place. The clearing of the place was com- 
menced at once, but, being equipped with 
only the rude tools of those early days, the 
task was a long and difficult one. But 
those years, though full of hardship and 
privation, were hapyy ones, for the pros- 
pect of having a comfortable home and 
farm which they could call their own was 
everbefore them and cheered them through 
the hardest trials. In a few years a more 
substantial residence supplanted the log 
cabin, the land became productive and 
fertile as a result of their jiersex'erance 
and unremitting care, and prosperity re- 
warded their earl\- years of toil. 

On this farm the remainder of their 
children were born, as follows: Ellen, 
Mrs. William Michaiid, of Talbot, Mich.; 
Edward, li\'ing on the home farm, which 
he works; James, at home; Michael, a 
school-teacher; John, living at home, who 
is one of the leading Democrats in the 
township, and has served as chairman; 
William (twin of John), who died when 
six years old; and Bridg'^t E. and Anna 
C, at home. Mary Ann, the oldest child, 
is the wife of John Milan, of Pound, 
Wis. The father of this famil\- was ac- 
cidentally killed Januar\- 13, i S74, by a 
falling limb, and his lifeless body was 
found by his wife when she went to call 
him to his mid-day meal. He was buried 
in the Catholic cemetery at De Pere, and 
his funeral, which was attended by a great 
number of people from the surrounding 
country, was one of the largest ever seen 
here up to that time. He was a member 



of St. Francis Church, De Pere. In his 
party preferences he was a Democrat, 
and, though not particularly active in 
politics, held Several ofiices of trust, serv- 
ing on the school board and as pathmaster 
of the township. A kind, indulgent 
father and an accommodating neighbor, 
he was very popular, and was respected 
by all who knew him, for his industry and 
sterling integrity. At the time of his de- 
cease he was tlie owner of 160 acres of 
good land, all of which had been accunni- 
lated by hard work, for \\'hen he landed 
in this country he had no cajiital but a 
pair of willing hands. After his death 
his widow took charge of the farm, and 
continued in the management until her 
sons became competent to relieve her. 
In 1 89 1 a comfortable residence was 
erected, in which the famiU' now li\e. 
They are all members of St. Francis 
Church, De Pere, and are highly esteemed 
in the community in which they reside. 



NIELS PETERSON. Among the 
respected self-made farmer citi- 
zens of New Denmark township, 
Brown county, none is more de- 
servmg of mention than this gentleman. 
He was born October 2, 1832, near Mar- 
ibo, Denmark, a son of Peter and Mary 
(Jensen) Peterson, the former of whom 
was a farmer by occupation. There were 
si.x children in the famih', of whom two 
are deceased ; of the others, Stine still 
lives in Denmark, while Jens, Niels (our 
subject), and Rasmus are in New Den- 
mark township. Brown Co., Wisconsin. 
Our subject lost his parents by death 
when he was but eight years of age, and 
from that time on was in the employ of 
farmers in the neighborhood of his birth- 
place. At the age of twenty-seven years 
he immigrated to America, proceeding 
from his native land to Hamburg, whence 
he sailed to New York, the voyage occu- 
pying forty-nine da\s. .After landing he 
came at once to Brown countw Wis., and 



J3- 



COMMKMORATlVt: BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in New Denmark township engaged in 
farm labor for two and a half years fol- 
lowing, or until his enlistment, May 2, 
1862, in Company K, Thirty-third Wis. 
V. I. He was in active service until the 
close of the war, participating in many 
important engagements, among which 
were Cold \\'ater, Vicksburg, Jackson, 
Meridian, Pleasant Hill, Centerville, 
Marks\ille, Yellow Bayou, Tupelo, >sash- 
ville, Spanish Fort and Fort du Russy. 
His record for braverv and gallantry is 
one of which he may well feel j)routi, and 
in recognition of his noble conduct the 
government presented him with a silver 
medal, on which are inscribed the names 
of the battles in which he took an active 
part. He was twice injured, on one oc- 
casion receiving a bullet wound in the 
left side, and at another time having his 
hearing forever destroyed by a blow upon 
the right ear ; he now receives a pension. 
On August 9, 1S65, Mr. Peterson was 
honorably discharged at Vicksburg, and, 
returning to New Denmark township, 
once more resumed the pursuits of peace, 
for almost ten years working at the shoe- 
maker's trade. 

On March 11, 1S67, our subject was 
united in marriage with Miss Martine Jen- 
sen, daughter of Hans and Maren (Ras- 
mussen) Jensen, and about that time pur- 
chased the forty acres of land where he 
yet resides. He constructed a small log 
house, in which they lived for the first 
year, and then erected another dwelling 
(now occupied by his nephew), which in 
turn was supplanted by the commodious 
residence they now occupy. The farm is 
equipped with all necessary outbuildings, 
put up by Mr. Peterson himself, and is 
well improved in every way, and under a 
high state of cultivation, yielding the 
owner a comfortable income. His success 
has been the result of honesty and in- 
dustry, and he has won the esteem of all 
who know him. by his upright methods in 
all his dealings with his fellowmen. He 
is a Re])ublican in political preferences, 
but takes no active interest in part}' affairs. 



PETER MARCUSSEN, farmer of 
New Denmark township. Brown 
county, was born July 9, 1854, 
in Denmark, son of Marks Peter- 
son, a laborer. The latter married Mary 
Peterson, and they reared a family of four 
children, as follows: Peter, whose name 
opens this sketch; Charles, now a resident 
of New Denmark township. Brown Co., 
Wis.; Sophia, living in Washington; and 
August, of New Denmark township. 

In 1858 this family immigrated to 
America, embarking at Liverpool and 
landing in New York after a voyage of 
six weeks. From there they came to 
Manitowoc, Wis., and thence directly to 
New Denmark, in which township the 
father purchased twenty acres of land 
and cleared a space large enough for a 
log house, wherein the family resided for 
some time, and which is still staniiing, 
near Fontenoy postoflice. There the 
father passed the remainder of his days, 
dying in July, 1865. The year following 
the widow married Fred Mogland, and to 
this union were born two children, both 
of whom died in infancy. After a short 
residence in New Denmark township Mr. 
and Mrs. Mogland removed to Franklin, 
Wis., where he owned a farm, and there 
made their home until Mrs. Mogland's 
death, after which her husband sold the 
place and came again to New Denmark 
township. Brown county, where he is 
now living. 

W'hen about twenty years of age Peter 
Marcussen went to Pensaukee, Wis., 
where he was employed in a sawmill for 
three summers. For six winters he 
worked for the Two Rivers Company in 
New Denmark township, logging, and 
then, during the spring, engaged in driving 
logs, continuing in this vocation up to 
the time of his marriage. On October 
16, 1875, he wedded Miss Minnie John- 
son, daughter of John and Carrie (Nelson) 
IVterson. and, for the first two years 
thereafter, the young couple lived in a 
rented house near Fontenoy, Mr. Mar- 
cussen working for D. Benkle in the sum- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUWAL RECORD. 



353 



mer and in the- wootls ilurinj; the winter, 
until he b(uif;ht the farm of forty acres in 
New Denmark township, where he now 
makes his home. He erected the present 
dwelling house, and they immediately re- 
moved to the farm, which was then yet 
in its primitive condition, not a tree having 
been cut from the place; but he has since 
been busily engaged in clearing and im- 
proving it, and, in addition, has worked 
to some extent at the carpenter's trade. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Marcussen have been 
born seven children, as follows: John, 
Josie, Agnes, Arthur, Emma, Louis and 
Tony, all of whom arc living at home. 
Mr. Marcussen, having been given but 
little opportunity during his youth to ob- 
tain a good education, is a hearty sup- 
porter of the common schools and takes 
great interest in their advancement and 
improvement in his section. Politically 
he is a Democrat, has served his township 
faithfully as assessor for four years, 1887- 
91, and in the spring of 1894 was elected 
supervisor. 



HE. MOWERS, of Pittst^eld town- 
ship. Brown county, was born 
January 20, 1844, in Schwarz- 
burg-Rudolstadt, Germany. His 
parents, Henry and Elizabeth (Rust) 
Mowers, had but two children, H. E., 
our subject, and Frederick, the latter of 
\\h<_iin tlied at the age of about si.\ and a 
half years. 

In 1853 Henry Mowers, with his wife 
and son, came to Wisconsin, for about 
one year living in Green Bay, and then 
went to Stiles, later moving back to Green 
Bay and remaining two years. He then 
went to Bellevue township. Brown coun- 
ty, where he pre-empted eighty acres of 
wild land, on which the family lived five 
years, and had cleared about twenty acres, 
when, in 1861, the land was sold for a 
very small price, and the family moved to 
Scott township and rented a farm for 
two years. The father then went to work 
in a sawmill for about three years, 



ne.xt engaged in teaming for Willard 
Lamb's mill two years, and moved into 
a house on the mill groundsand continued 
in its emjiloy another year. He then 
went to Suamico township, and worked 
for Lamb, Watson & Co. for seven years. 
with his team, and then fcr live years 
with our subject. After this he went to 
\arious places, returning twice, and died 
in 1893, at the age of seventy-six jx'ars. 

On March 4, 1865, H. E. Mowers en- 
listed in Company D, Fifty-second Wis. 
V. I., served in Missouri and Kansas, and 
was discharged at Fort Leavenworth 
July 28, 1865. Returning to Green Bay, 
he made a neat sum in a speculation in 
standing pine timber; then, the follow- 
ing spring, teamed for Willard Lamb on 
the dock, and in the fall bought a thresh- 
ing machine for $725 in company with 
Milo Burkert, and worked through the 
country. The winter following he bought 
UKjre standing timber and one team of 
horses and one team of oxen, but diil not 
succeed well, and sold the threshing ma- 
chine. In the spring of i 867 he worked 
around a mill, and in the fall went to 
Flintville and teamed two years, then 
sold the team and worked in the mill un- 
til 1870, when he was made foreman in a 
sawmill on Section 23, in the town of 
Pittsfield, where he had charge of furty- 
five men, five pairs of horses and seven 
yoke of cattle; the next spring he had 
charge of the drive; he then worked two 
years on the river, flooding logs ; and 
next for two years drove a supply team 
for his old employers. Lamb, Watson & 
Company. 

On March 15, 1874, Mr. Mowers mar- 
ried Miss Amelia, daughter of Frederick 
and Minnie (Schultz) Gothe. Mr. and 
Mrs. Gothe were born in Germany, and 
were the parents of eight children, \iz. : 
Hannah, Ferdinand, Amelia, Caroline, 
Earnestine, August, Louise, and Herman. 
The parents came to the United States 
in 1853, lived temporarily at Duck Creek, 
where the father worked for twenty-five 
cents a day, and then settled in Pittsfield, 



354 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



where he made a homestead, on which 
he hved until 1890, when he went to 
Marinette county, returning thence in 
1894. When Mr. Mowers married he 
bought eighty acres of land at $4. 50 per 
acre, and for eleven years lived in a 
log shanty that stood on the farm, which 
has been replaced by a tine modern frame 
dwelling. For seven years he continued 
working for others, and then commenced 
to clear his own farm, now in fine con- 
dition. Four children have been born to 
Mr. and Mrs. Mowers, \iz. : George W., 
born December 18, 1874, deceased Janu- 
ary 30, 1893; Frederick H., born June 
20, 1876, deceased June 8, 1877; Edward 
E., born July i, 1878, and Lewis O., 
born July 30, 1880. The parents are 
members of the Methodist Church, in 
which Mr. Mowers is class leader, trustee 
and Sunday-school superintendent. Po- 
litically he is a Republican. He was a 
member of the town board in 1876, and 
served as town clerk from 1883 to 1890, 
inclusive, and was re-elected in 1894. 
He is a self-made man in every respect, 
and as such is honored and esteemed by 
all who know him or know of him. 



C.^PTAIN JOHN W. JOHANN, 
proprietor of an extensive sash, 
blind and door factory in West 
De Fere, was born June 17, 1837, 
near the city of Homburg, Rhenish Ba- 
varia, on the road usually taken by trav- 
elers through central Germany to and 
from Prussia, and made historic by the 
fact that the great Napoleon sent the 
larger part of his army over it on the ad- 
vance to Moscow, and later by the fact 
that the first battle of the Franco-Prus- 
sian war was fought in its vicinity. John 
W. Johann is a son of Nicholas Johann, 
a coal miner, who married Elizabeth 
Nieder. On March 2, 1846, Nicholas 
Johann, with his wife and three sons — 
Peter, Nicholas, and John W. — left the 
old country, landing in Milwaukee. Wis., 



the following Ma\-. Of the sons, Peter 
married Catharine Witmann. and died in 
1889, his widow now residing in Port 
Washington, Wis. Nicholas died, un- 
married, in 1866. 

John W. Johann attended school in 
Germany from the age of five until the 
date of his leaving for America, a period 
of three years, and this comprised the 
whole of his scholastic studies. In the 
3'ear of his arrival, 1846, the father, 
Nicholas Johann, entered eighty acres of 
wild timbered land, near Port Washing- 
ton, Wis., which land he subsequently 
subdued and developed from it a fine 
farm, the three sons materially assisting 
in the work. In 1862 John W. Johann 
enlisted in Company C, Thirty-fourth 
Wis. \'. I., and soon after was commis- 
sioned second lieutenant. Nine months 
later he received an honorable discharge, 
and almost immediately re-enlisted, on 
this occasion entering Company F, Thirty- 
fifth Wis. \'. I., and from the organi- 
zation served as first lieutenant — com- 
manding his compan}' until 1S65, when 
he was promoted to the captaincy and 
served in that capacity until his final dis- 
charge at MadLson, Wis., April 15, 1866. 
Of his active duty during this long period 
of devotion to the protection of the in- 
tegrity and freedom of his adopted coun- 
try, we can give only this brief record: 
After a running skirmish near Memphis, 
Tenn.. he fought near Morganza, La.; 
then at St. Charles, Ark.-; Brownsville, 
Ark. ; Spanish Fort, Ala. ; Whistle Sta- 
tion, si.\ miles from Mobile, Ala., this 
being among the last fights of the Re- 
bellion. On his return to W'isconsin he 
opened a general store at Port Washing- 
ton in 1866, but sold out in 1869 and 
bought an interest in the woolen mill at 
Ccdarburg, Wis., and was secretary of 
the company until 1880, when he bought 
an interest in the Hilgen Sash & Uoor 
Manufacturing Co. At Cedarburg he also 
served as postmaster from 1869 until 
1 884, acting in the meanwhile as secre- 
tary for the Hilgen Company until the 



COMMKilOllA TlVh: ni(l(lI!Al'IIir.[L RECORD. 



^7 



latter part of 1S83. In i SS4 he moved to 
De Pere and bought the IarL;er part of K. 
W. Person's sash, docjr and blind nnll, 
which business he later (irgani/ed as a 
joint-stock company, denominated the 
Nicolet Sash, Door lS: Hliud Co., of which 
he served as president until 1S91, when 
he liought the entire jilant. The mill is 
of brick, with a capacity dI <ine him- 
dred doors ])er day, in addition to sash 
and moldin,i;s, and when running on full 
time Mr. [cihann emploxssome thirty-fue 
hands. 

On .Vugust 7, iS()(i, Mr. |(iliann was 
united in marriage, at Cedarburg, Wis., 
with Miss I'^liza F. Hilgen, daughter of 
b'red Hilgen. the manufacturer, and t<.) 
tills union three children have been born, 
viz.: Albert H., who married Emma 
Davis, and is living in De Pere; J. Mmil 
and Nellie, both still at home with their 
parents. P'raternally Mi-. |i)hami has 
been a Freemason since 1S58, having 
joined the lodge at Port Washington in 
that year; he is also a member of Chapter 
No. 20, Green Bay, and Sir Knight of 
Palestine Coinmandery, N". iS, at the 
same place; als<5 a member of the Blue 
Lodge (Master Mason, third degree). No. 



H5; at De Pere; and of llarrisc 



Post 



No. 91, G. .\. K., of De Pere, in which 
he has held the offices of senior vice- 
commander, jnmor \ice-connnander, and 
quartermaster. In politics Mr. Johann 
is a standi Re|)ublican, has served as 
delegate to Slate and Congressional con- 
ventions six different times, and was 
chairman of the count\' cminnittee of 
Ozaukee county for twelve years. .\t 
one time he was ])i( miinently mentioned 
for State treasurer, but declined a nomi- 
nation. At Cedarburg, in 1 H.So, be had 
the pleasure of shaking the hand of Gen. 
Grant, and also had the honor of intro- 
ducing several of his ac(|uaintances. 
Prior to this he had seen all the more 
distinguished generals of the Civil war, 
and has met every governor of Wisconsin 
since he has lived in tin- State, Gov. 
Rusk having been an esiiecial friend. 
20 



JOSEPH CORMIER, one of the 
|u'osperous, respected agriculturists 
and business men of Howrir<l town- 
shi[). Brown comity, is a nati\e of 
Wisconsin, born ( )ctol)er S, 1 S4 1 , in ( iii/en 
Bay. 

He is a son of l)a\ id .uid .\deline 
(Goodchild) Cormier, the iailier a iiati\e 
of Three Rivers, Canada, the mother of 
Montreal; she died when our suliject was 
but two ye.ars of age. l)a\id Cormier 
married, for his secontl wiie, a Mrs. Mal- 
let, by whom were boin two children— - 
both sons, and both now deceased. David 
Cormier was a blacksmith, and in 18^7 
located in Green Bay, \\'bere he followed 
his trade for a considerable time, and bu' 
two years was in tlie government emjiloy; 
then engaged in the fish business until 
1850, when he moved to a place near the 
present home of his son, Joseph, on which 
he died in 1888, aged seventy-one years. 
David was a son of Fabian and Geneve 
Cormier, Canadians, who came to Wis- 
consin and also located in Green I>ay in 
1837. but sul)se(iuently removed to near 
our subject's home in Howard township, 
where I'abian Cormier died at the age of 
sixty, and his wife at about the age of 
eighty years. They were the parents of 
eight children — four sons and four daugh- 
ters. 

Joseph Cormier passed his years on 
the farm of his father until his marriage 
in 1864 with Miss Mary Lonzo, a nati\'(; 
of Fort Howard, who was born April 30, 
1841, daughter cjf Jost'ph and judali 
('Greenwf)od) Lonzo, who came to Green 
Bay, Wis., al»<ut 1S37, and in 184S set- 
tled on a farm in Duck Cret'k, where they 
passed the remainder of their days, both 
d\-ing at the age of seventy-live years. 
They liad a f.uiiily of ^wc children, of 
whom four are still li\ing. To the mar- 
riage of Mr. and .Mis. Jose])h ('ormier 
have come two children, \iz. : Delia, Ixuai 
June 25, 1876, and George, born |uiu~ 8, 
1878. Joseph Cormier and his young 
wife began their married life in a little 
big- home on .a fort\-acre tract belonging 



358 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



to Mr. Cormier's father, and livetl in this 
house for two years, when they built their 
present comfortable residence and added 
forty acres to their farm. Mr. Cormier 
also became interested in a stone quarry 
his father sold to the Chicago & North 
Western Railway Company, and was en- 
gaged in running scows on the lakes for 
ten years; his father conducted the Bru- 
nette quarry for ten years. Mr. Cormier 
is a man of most generous impulses, and 
is withal a first-class business man, al- 
though of domestic proclivities. With 
his wife he is a member of the Catholic 
Church, as were his forefathers in Can- 
ada, and he lives faithfully up to its 
teachings. His benevolent disposition 
has been manifested by the adoption, at 
the age of nine years, of a lad named S. 
E. Marcotte, who is now grown to man- 
hood, and is employed as a commercial 
traveler. 



JOSEPH NORTON. Among the 
leading farmers and extensive land- 
owners of Rockland township, Brown 
county, none holds a more enviable 
position in the esteem of his fellow citi- 
zens than this gentleman, who has been 
prominently identified with the interests 
of his section for the past forty years. 
He is a native of Ireland, born January 
20, 1824, in County Wicklow, eldest son 
of James and Catherine (Kelly) Norton, 
the former of whom was an industrious 
farmer in his native country, cultivating 
a rented farm. There were fourteen chil- 
dren in the family — four sons and ten 
daughters — of whom our subject was the 
second in order of birth. 

Joseph Norton attended the common 
schools of Ireland up to the age of fifteen 
j'ears, when he commenced farming, re- 
ceiving his first instruction in this voca- 
tion inider his father. He continued farm- 
ing there imtil 1S50, when he concluded 
to try his fortune in America, and, receiv- 
ing some assistance from his father, he left 
his home on March 17 of that year, pro- 



ceeding to Liverpool, where he took pas- 
sage on the "Kossuth," a sailing vessel 
which had been recently fitted up and 
was then one of the largest vessels afloat, 
carrj'ing 700 passengers. Mr. Norton 
landed in New York after a voyage of 
thirty-three days, and, finding himself 
short of funds, abandoned his original in- 
tention to proceed west at once and 
commenced to work as a farm hand in 
Onondaga county, N. Y. His emploxer, 
Caleb Brown, was one of the leading 
farmers of that section of the State, and 
during the five years he remained there 
Mr. Norton gathered some very useful 
ideas on agriculture. In October, 1855, 
our subject came to Dc Pere, Brown Co., 
Wis., and, with his savings, purchased 
eighty acres of wild land in Section i 5, 
Rockland township, to which he added 
another eighty acres the following year, 
this being the farm of 160 acres where 
he now makes his home. F"inding that 
he could make more money at sawinilling, 
for the first five years he obtained em- 
ployment with Mr. Ritchie in the sawmills 
near De Pere, and being industrious and 
steady was able to save considerable from 
his earnings. 

On July 24, 1858, Mr. Norton was 
married, in Green Bay, to Miss Bridget 
Forestal, a native of County Kilkenny, 
Ireland, whose father, Thomas Forestal, 
died before she was born, and she came 
to America with her mother and two 
brothers, Thomas and Edward; their vox- 
age across the Atlantic occupied si.\ weeks 
and three days. After his marriage Mr. 
Norton settled on his farm, on which a 
few improvements had been made, a 
house and barn built, etc. ; b.it the land 
was still for the most part in its primitive 
condition, and wild animals abounded. 
After years of tireless, unremitting in- 
dustry he fotmd himself the possessor of 
the highly productive, well-improved farm 
where the family yet reside, and which 
has supplanted the unbroken forest which 
stood there when he first came to this 
section. Mr. and Mrs. Norton have had 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



359 



the following children: Katie C, who 
lives at home; Mary A., Mrs. William 
Powers, of Nahma, Mich., who was a 
school-teacher for some time; Sarah, 
Mrs. John Shaughnessy, of Fort Howard; 
James, Timothy and Anna S., at home. 

Mr. Norton has given agriculture his 
principal attention, and has few, if any, 
equals in that hne in Brown county. He 
is now the owner of 600 acres in Wrights- 
town and Rockland townships, which he 
has accumulated through industrj- and 
hard work, and his success in his life- 
work shows what a young man may 
accomplish if persevering and diligent. 
Forty-four _\ears ago he landed in New 
York with but ten dollars in money, to- 
day he is ranked among the successful 
self-made men of his community. His 
energy, economical habits and physical 
strength have been important factors in 
his success, but his business sagacitv and 
good judgment have also proved of no 
small value. I-Ionest and trustworthy, 
he has always enjoyed the confidence of 
all who have had dealings with him in 
any wav. He has lived to see the sur- 
rounding country transformed from a for- 
est, and has himself taken an acti\'e part 
in the advancement and imjiroN'ement of 
the region, especially in his own neigh- 
borhood. 

Politically he is a Deinocrat, and has 
always been stanch in supporting the 
principles of his party, in\ariably voting 
that ticket in National and State af- 
fairs, in local elections, however, giv- 
ing his support to the candidate whom 
he considers best fitted for the office. 
He has never aspired to jiolitical honors 
himself, his own extensive interests de- 
manding the greater share of his time and 
attention, but he served as school director 
in his district. In religious connection 
he and his wife are members of St. Francis 
Catholic Church, of De Pere. Though 
now over seventy years of age, Mr. Nor- 
ton is in good health, and can perform a 
a day's work that would be a credit to a 
man many years his junior. On Febru- 



ary I, 1865, Mr. Norton enlisted at Green 
Bay in Company .V, h'ifty-second Wis. 
V. I., and was sent to St. Louis, but saw 
no service, as he was taken ill with small- 
pox, and received his discharge. 

GEORGE W, SliNSIBA, a retired 
business man and farmer of Su- 
amico. Brown county, was born 
January 14, 1824, in Delaware 
county, N. Y., a son of Alfred Sensiba, 
who was a son of Samuel and Mar\- 
(Taylor) Sensiba. Samuel was a native 
of Germany, and died in Utica, N. Y. , 
an exile from his native laml on account 
of his father's acti\ity in the patriot army 
during the German war. Mar)' (Taylor) 
Sensiba was of English descent, and died 
in Onondaga county, N. Y., at the age of 
seventy years. 

Alfred Sensiba was one of a lamily of 
seven children, and was born in Massa- 
chusetts. When a boy he hired out as a 
farm hand, but sustained a permanent 
injury to his health by contracting a cold, 
and abandoned farming for canal-boating, 
running on the Erie canal three or four 
years. At the end of that time he went 
to Jordan, N. Y. , and established a soap 
and candle business, later ino\'ing to 
Seneca Falls, N. Y., where he engaged 
in the same business a while; then, in 
1842, he went to Indiana, where he con- 
tinued to make soap and candles until his 
removal to St. Joseph, Mich. Here he 
bought a farm, but finally sold out and 
came to Suamico, Brown Co., Wis., 
where he died at the age of seventy-se\-en. 
Alfred Sensiba was married, when t\\ent\-- 
three years old, to Miss Nancy Houghtal- 
ing, who was born in Delaware county, 
N. Y. , and is still lix'ing at the home of 
our subject, George W., who is her only 
child. 

George W. Sensiba worked at \arious 
employments until 1844, when he came 
West, worked in Chicago one vi'ar, and 
then went to Lockjiort, N. ^'., with a 
stock of goods. The next year he re- 



360 



COMMEMORATIVE JJloallAl'lIICAL liECORD. 



turned to Chicajjo and enlisted, in 1846, 
in the Mexican war, but was prevented 
from Roin^ by an attack of nieasels. In the 
fail of the same j'ear he came to Brown 
county, Wis., and for two or three years 
carried on a cooper shop at Green Bay, 
following which he was engaged in the 
fish traile on the lakes six or seven years. 
On August 26, 1850, he wedded Miss 
Maria Wiltsey, who was born in London. 
Canada, and during the Mexican war 
came to the United States with her par- 
ents, Hiram and Susan Wiltsey. farming 
people, who died in Michigan; they were 
the parents of seven children. To Mr. 
and Mrs. George W. Sensiba have been 
born eleven children, of whom ten are 
living, \\z. : Amanda, who married and 
had three children, two of whom are 
married and have two children ; Georgi- 
ana ; Arvilla, marrieil ; Alfred, married 
and has four children ; Frank ; William ; 
EfVie ; George C. ; Burgess ; and Irving. 
Mr. Sensiba resumed the tish trade 
for several years after his marriage, and 
then went on the farm where he now 
lives, and, after cultivating it for several 
years, went north, again entering the fish 
trade. I'or several years following he 
handled cedar posts, and about i860 re- 
turned to his old farm. In 1864 he 
shipped in the navy, serving until August 
22. 1865. when he again returned to his 
farm for a time, and next removed to 
Fort Howard, there following the grocery 
and fish trade until 1S70. in which year 
he sold out and retired to live in peace 
and ease on his homestead in Suamico. 
Mr. Sensiba is a Republican in his politi- 
cal affiliations, and was originally an 
olii-line Whig, casting his first vote for 
Gen. Zachary Taylor. He has been 
(piite active in local politics, and is now 
serving as a justice of the peace. He and 
his family are consistent members of the 
Methodist Eiiiscopal Church, in which 
congregation Mrs. Sensiba is especially 
active, and for which she acts as Sunday- 
school superintendent. Mr. Sensiba's in- 
dustrious business career has won for him 



the admiration of his fellow citizens, 
while his persevering econouiy has se- 
cured for him a competency that enables 
him to enjoy his declining years, bereft of 
the cares that so long engaged his atten- 
tion. He is regarded as an upright, char- 
itable gentleman, at all times ready to 
aid. with his time and purse. an\' move- 
ment calculated to advance the well-being 
of his township and county and enhance 
the happiness of his neighbors, j'oung and 
old. and in consequence enjoys their un- 
feigned esteem. 



JOHN CRAANEN. farmer and stock 
raiser, and owner of a fine farm of 
200 acres in Scott township. Brown 
county, is a native of same, born 
January 30. i860, youngest child of Chris- 
tian and Theodora (Hooken) Craanen. 

Our subject received his early educa- 
tion in the then primitive log cabin schools 
of Scott township, and subsequently for 
three years attended the parochial schools 
at Calvary. Wis. He was reared to agri- 
cultural life, and, after his school days 
were over, commenced to assist his father 
on the home farm, where he always re- 
mained up to the time of his marriage. 
On April 26. 1892. he was married, at 
Bay Settlement, to Miss Jennie Noonyen, 
who was born in Scott township in 
1S72. daughter of Leonard Noonyen, 
a native of Holland, and this union has 
been blessed with one child. Frank, born 
Ma>' II, 1893. After marriage Mr. 
Craanen located in his present home, and 
here conducts a successful general farm- 
ing and stock-raising business. As before 
inentioneil, he has a prime farm of 200 
acres, and is without an equal in his town- 
ship among the farmers of his age. He 
is thorouglily conversant with every depart- 
ment of his chosen vocation, having been 
engaged in agriculture from his early boy- 
hood, and to-day he ranks among the 
most prosperous of the agriculturists of 
his locality. Diligent and thorough, he 
has shown himself fully competent to sue- 



COMMEMORATIVE BWaUAPIIlCAL UEVORI). 



361 



ci'ssfulh' inaiiam' liis cNtriisix'c interests, 
t(i wliieh lie f;i\'es his iiiuliNided .Uteiitinii. 
In i"clif;ioiis comiectioii lie ;iihl liis wile 
arc iiii'iiihers i)f the (.'athnhe ("liiireh at 
]-5ay Sel tieiiieiit, anil in polities he is a 
Dcmncial. hilt j^ivcs little time to parly' 
affairs. 



J 



anil patient Idil h\ hmisell, his wih' and 
his suns, wh.'ll llie l.illel heeanie nid 
eliiiiit^h ti> lend tlnar ,nd. The einldleii 
horn to Mr. and Mrs. |ared 1). .Mason 
were ten in ninnhei, \ i/. : .\n inlaiil, horn 
.April S, 1S5.1, who died nnnained; .\lhert 
L. , horn .\pril S, iSc;,, who died .\iii;iist 
<S, I<S5iS; Marcus | , horn |aiuiaiy 11, 
1S57; Mary, horn h'ehriiaiy i, 1S59; 
Sarah (",, horn Maiih 17, i.S()i, who 
ched l'~ehriiai\ <), I SO J ; Nhirlli.i .A,, horn 



.\l\-h;i) 1). MASON, hirnu'r of I'itts- 
fiejd township, Urowii eoiinl\. w,i> 
horn |niie 1^, lS_^(), in (iiailon, Ajtri! 2^, iSi):;, who died May^, iSdJ; 

('ieoii;e 1)., hoin |illie .'1, 1S113; Minnie 



aer Co., N. V. 



and is (K 



Si'eiided hoin Ke\(>lnl lonai \' stoek, his |., horn Mareh JO, iSdd; Cora !'>., horn 
great-f,Mandfather, Capt. John Mason, an | April _'o, 1S70, and Uialie ('., horn ( )et<>- 



luiijlishnian, haviiip' hcen hiirned at the 



hi-r 1. 1, 1S73 



M 



Mason is .1 de\diit 



slake hy the Iiidi.ins diiriii;^ that patnolii- ineinher ol llie Melliodisl ( IiiikIi. In 



hill fearful sti"iiL;,L;le |oi .\nieijiaii inde- 
|)eii<lenee. |are<l 1). Mason islheeKU'sl 
of seven rlnlihcn horn In |olin and jloro- 
thy Mason, w In > dud on t hen lain 1 > i| 11 h) 
acres in tliiai n.iti\c Slate, New ^ ork, 
and woe interred al Sand Lake nr I'res- 
ton 1 1 ill ', Keiissi'i.ier e( miil \ . 

|aied 1). Masiiii was reared on the 
hoiiu' laini, on wliu li he remained until 
ahoiit lweiil\-tliree wars of aj.;e, when 
he married. May },\, 1S53, Catherine 
Lawlor, daughter of l'"iiwaril and Mary 
(I'^it/patriek I Lawlor, of Irish descent. 
Mr. Mason now honi;ht sixty acres of land 
from his lather at \\\'r dollars |ier acri-, 
on which farm some few improNi'incnts 
had hecn made, and here he and his wifi' 
lived until lS('i5. when llie\ came to Wis- 
consin, stoppiiiL; at Cireeii l'>a\', lux'anse 
the i"ailwa\' stopped there, and thence 
heinj; drawn to the woods h\ llenrx 
Howard with a team of horses. Here 
Mr. Mason rented a lo,i; cahiii, i6x20 
fed, in which he li\c'd one year, workint,' 
for Hrowii tv I'Aiiis, himhcrmeii, lor two 



politics .Mr. M.ison is a Deiiioc rat, and 
has ser\'eil his fellow citi/ens with innch 
credit as meinher ol the side hoar<l lor 
three years, and as town clerk lor one year. 



A 



( I. 1\LI\/, a |iidiiiiiieiil pliolo^ra- 
phei, ol (.ri'eii Bay, ha\in.i; a line 
studio lo( .lied al Nos. J 10 and 
212 Clu'rrx' stre'et, is the only 
child of C,. and Minnie 1 Domier) Kiir/, 
hotli ii.iti\es ol Ciermaiu'. The lather 
came al an earl\ dale to K'ipoii, Wis., 
was later niari"ie(l in I lncaj;o, and rmally, 
in iS(>(), settled upon a new farm in \\'in- 
nehai^o county. ,Al)onl 1871 he reni<)\-e(l 
with his family to Cii-ecn Hay, estal)lislied 
a marhle \al'd, and eni;;i!;e(l at his old 
trade of marhle cnltin^. .\fler a iiumher 
of \'ears he retired from hiisiiiess, and he 
and liis wife are holh yet li\in,L;. 

Our snliject was horn in 1867, in ICn- 
reka, Winneloaso Co., Wis., and when 
ahoiit ff)nr \-ears of ace came with his 



parents lo Cireeii r)ay. Here he received 
dollars per day. He then hon;.;ht lOo ; his education in the piihlic schools, and 



acres of timl^ered land, hut let a hrotlu;r 
in-law, Mr. Lynch, have eifjhty acres of 
the tract. All the vicissitudes of pioneer 
life were here gone throiij^li; tlic cahin of 
18x26 feet is now a comforlahle dwellin;.;, 
and the forest chanj^ed to a f(n-lil(> farm, 
hut all this required j'ears of unceasing 



lilted himself for commercial pursuits hy 
altendinf; l)usiness collcf^e under I'rof. J. 
N. McCiinn. Al the asjje of foiirUu.Mi years 
he hegan to learn the art of photof^'raphy, 
and four years later, in tlie fall of 1885, 
launched out in business at De Perc. His 
original prece]itor in the artist's line was 



36: 



COMMEMOHATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



T. W. Schneider, and the lessons were 
well learned. He formed a partnership 
with Mr. Xus.s, under the firm name of 
Kurz & Nuss, with a studio on Washing- 
ton street, which was continued until 
1892. Upon the dissolution of this part- 
ncrsiiip Mr. Kur/: engaged in business in 
Milwaukee, but in February. 1894. located 
in Green Bay. At this place, in i 890. he 
married Miss Augusta Straubel. daughter 
of Ernest Straubel, an early settler of 
Brown county, who now resides in Green 
Bay. Two children have come to grace 
their home. Mr. \\ur/. is a member of 
Green Bay Lodge. No. 19. I. O. O. F. ; 
Pochequctte Lodge, No. 26. K. of P. ; 
also of the Royal Arcanum and the Order 
of the Maccabees. In politics he is an 
earnest Republican. 



Ri:V. P. j. CAUTEREELS, the 
worlli\' and niuch-be!o\ed pastor 
of the Church of the Holy Gross, 
in Bay Settlement. Brown county, 
is a native of Belgium, born in the city of 
Antwerp, January 3, 1S33. 

His elementary education was received 
at the parish schools of Antwerp, after 
leaving which he studied the classics, 
philosophy and theology in the seminary 
of Malines, in which institution he was 
appointed professor of Latin after his con- 
secration to the priesthood, at Malines 
(or Mechlin), in December, 1857. In 
1862 he resigned this incumbency, and, 
returning to Antwerp, was given the posi- 
tion of chaplain to Ste. Elizabeth Hos- 
pital, which he filled with characteristic 
diligence and Christian zeal until 1872, in 
which year he was given charge, as priest, 
of the church at the village of Hemi.xem, 
Antwerp. At the end of ten years, in 1 8S2, 
he resigned his charge, and having ex- 
pressed a desire, and received permission 
from his superiors, to engage in the labor 
of love among his countrymen and others 
in the Far West of America, he was 
saluted with many a hearty " bon voyage " 
on leaving Antwerp on the 25th of June, 



that year, on board the Red Star Line 
steamship "• Westerland," for New York, 
where he arrived July 10 following. From 
there he came direct to Wisconsin, and 
in the township of Humboldt, Brown 
county, he was stationed as priest, hav- 
ing charge, in all of four congregations up 
to the year 1892, when he came to the 
Church of the Holy Cross, at Bay Settle- 
ment, his present benefice. Mr. Caute- 
reels is also rector of St. Francis Convent, 
where are employed twenty-two teachers, 
and here, as in his congregation, he is 
held in the highest regard as a pious 
ChristiaiH servant of the Master. 



JOSEPH HUSSIN, farmer and hotel- 
keeper in the village of Duck Creek, 
Brown county, is one of eight chil- 
dren — three sons and five daughters — 
still living of a very large family born to 
Joseph and Florence (Toussaint) Hussin, 
natives of Belgium, the former of whom 
was born in the Province of Liege in 1812, 
and the latter in the Province of Namur 
in 1816. 

Joseph Hussin, our subject, was born 
in the Province of Liege, and on June 20, 
1856, sailed with the family from Ant- 
werp for New York, at which port they 
arrived after a passage of six weeks, and 
next day proceeded on their way to Green 
Bay, Wis. The father at once engaged 
at his trade of stone-cutting, working at 
same until October, when he moved to 
Duck Creek and built a log cabin, 20 x 20 
feet, in the dense woods which at that 
early day still covered the country, and 
here his family resided for two years. He 
then rented a farm, on which he lived 
three or four ^-ears, and then bought his 
present farm, following his trade in the 
meantime about five years. Joseph Hus- 
sin, whose name opens this sketch, worked 
on the home farm, and at intervals hired 
out by the month until his marriage, Feb- 
ruary 8, 1869, to Miss Octavie Lumay, 
a native of the Province of Brabant, Bel- 
gium, and daughter of John J. and Fran- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



363 



ces Luinay. The Lumay family came to 
the United States about the same year in 
which the Hussin family immigrated. 
The father was a tailor, a trade he fol- 
lowed all his life, but on his arrival in 
America he rented a farm in Door county, 
Wis. , on which he dietl at the age of si.\ty- 
six years, and his wife at the age of sixty- 
two. They were the parents of several 
•children, four of whom are living; the 
others died in infancy. 

To our subject and wife have been 
born eleven cliildreii, of whom ten are 
yet living; the eldest son is married and 
has three sons. After his marriage Mr. 
Hussin settled on a farm in the vicinity of 
his father's place; but, after a residence 
there of four years, sold out and bought 
his prL'seut property in the village, open- 
ing a hotel and saloon, where his accom- 
modating disposition and pleasing man- 
ners have won him hosts of friends. His 
surplus earnings have been invested in 
farm property, and he is the owner of one 
or two choice tracts of land in the neigh- 
borhood. Politically he is a Democrat, 
and cast his first Presidential vote for 
Samuel J. Tilden; but he is a man who 
thinks for himself and is capable of form- 
ing his own opinions. For four years he 
served as township treasurer, having been 
elected on the Independent ticket — a fact 
which gives evidence of his great popu- 
larity with the people — and for seven or 
eight years he has served as assessor, be- 
ing the present incumbent of that office. 
He is secretary of the Grange, and is 
recognized everywhere as a man of ability. 
The family are all devout Catholics. 



JOHN G. FINDEISEN. who for over 
forty years has been indentified with 
the interests of Scott township. Brown 
county, as a farmer and landowner, 
is a native of Wittenberg, Germany, born 
August 5, 1 8 14, son of Gottlieb Findeisen, 
a farmer, who had three children — one 
son and two daughters — of whom the son, 
John G.. is tlie eldest. 



(Jiir subject recei\-ed his education in 
the connnon schools of his nati\e coun- 
try, which he attended from the time he 
was six years old until he reaclu'd the age 
of fouiteen, also attending the Sabbath- 
school four years, as required by law. 
He was reared to farm life; but his father's 
place being a small fine, he usually worked 
f(jr (jthers, his earnings being very meager, 
never exceeding twenty-five tlollars a 
year. Yet, in three years, he had saved 
enough to pay his way to America, where 
he hoped to lind better opportunities for 
advancement, and, leaving Germauv, he 
proceeded to England, where he em- 
barked, at London, on the sailing vessc;! 
"Maggie Evans,'' bound for New \'ork, 
the \'oyage lasting from May i^ to [une 
19(1848). His destination being Green 
l>ay. Wis., he journeyed from New York 
to Albany l)y boat, thence bv rail to 
Buffalo, from there coming by water to 
Milwaukee, where he remained a week, 
waiting for another boat. To Peshtigo 
he came on a lumber vessel, thence by a 
smaller one to Green Bay, where he 
landed July 20. Here he f(jund w(H-k 
cutting cordwood for a merchant, and 
subsequently came to New Franken, 
which at that time was included in l^ay 
Settlement. In Green Bay township he 
purchased a tract of forty acres (for which 
he paid $1.25 j)er acre), directly opposite 
his present farm, the place at that time 
being all in the woods and totall\- un- 
improved, not a stick having been cut 
or a habitation of any kind erected. 
He set to work and built a log cabin, 
20x28, and also commenced the clear- 
ing of the land, which for a long time 
yielded scarcely anything; but he ob- 
tained a small income by the manufac- 
ture of shingles by hand, for which he re- 
ceived one dollar a thousand. On this 
farm he remained twenty-nine years, and 
then removed across the road into the 
township of Scott, erecting another log 
house on the site of his present substan- 
tial residence, which was built in 18S5. 
Mr. Findeisen now owns 155 acres of 



3^4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



prime fanning land, lying in Scott and 
Green Baj- townships, all acciiiniilated 
from the nucleus of forty acres of wikler- 
ness and timber land that he owned in 
184S. hlis success has been achieved by 
ceaseless industry and unremitting toil. 
He has seen his land transformed from a 
dense forest abounding with wild animals 
to a well-cultivated productive farm, 
which he and his children now enjoy, the 
trials, privations and hardships of those 
early days being forever jiast. Mr. b'in- 
deisen was actively engaged in general 
farming and stock-raising until about 
1880, when he practically retired from 
the work, his farm now being conducted 
by his sons, John, .Andrew and George, 
who have shown themselves fully com- 
petent to manage the affairs of the place. 
Few farmers in the township have met 
with more gratifying success, and Mrs. 
Findeisen also deserves her share of 
credit, for, by her economy and thrift, 
she has been of no small assistance in 
the accumulation of the property. During 
the first winter of their marriage Mr. 
Findeisen was employed in Green Bay, 
cutting wood at six shillings a cord (and 
boarding himself), and during that time 
his wife remained alone in their cabin in 
the forest — but a single illustration cf the 
many inconveniences endured in those 
early days. 

Mr. Findeisen was married in Green 
Bay to Miss Margaret Hoffman, who was 
born July 13, 1824, in Wittenberg, Ger- 
many, and came to America with her 
future husband, their marriage taking 
place July 21, 1848. This union was 
blessed with children as follows: Sophia 
(now deceased), who married Henry Senn, 
and had four children; Louis W., a 
hardware merchant of Green Bay, who 
is married and has two children ; Leonard, 
a member of the firm of Findeisen Bros., 
hardware merchants of Green Bay, who 
is married and has one child; Conrad, 
.\ndrcw, George and John, all living on the 
home farm; Henry, a general merchant of 
Antigo, Wis. ; Caroline, deceased at the age 



of nine years; Edward, deceased at the age 
of five; and Emma, living at home. Of 
these ANDREW, GEORGE and JOHN 
are engaged in conducting the home farm, 
and they are recognized as intelligent, in- 
dustrious young men, successful in their 
chosen vocation, in which they rank 
second to none. Two of the other sons, 
Louis W. and Leonard, carry on one of 
the most extensive and profitable hard- 
ware businesses in Green Bay. 

John G. Findeisen cast his ballot for 
Abraham Lincoln in 1864, and since that 
time has been a stanch Republican, taking 
no active part in politics, however, though 
he is deeply interested in the success of 
his party. His seven sons are also mem- 
bers of that party, and keep themselves 
well informed in its movements. In re- 
ligious comiection he and his wife are 
members of the German M. E. Church, 
in which he has been trustee, and the 
other members of the family at home are 
also identified with the same societv. 



JACOB FALCK, a progressive busi- 
ness man of De Perc, Brown coun- 
ty, is a native of Wisconsin, born 
December 13, 1848, in Milwaukee 
county. Wis., the eldest son of Philip 
and Catherine (Hanger) Falck. 

Our subject was but seven years of 
age when his parents came to Brown 
county, settling in Morrison township, 
where they purchased 290 acres in Section 
7, and also 160 acres in Section 22. On 
the first-named property Jacob was reared 
to manhood, receiving such education as 
the meager school facilities of the day 
afforded. As the eldest boy in the fam- 
ily, the greater portion of the work in 
assisting on the farm fell to his lot, and 
he was but fifteen or sixteen years old 
when a team was placed in his hands, 
with which to help the hired man. He 
labored hard and faithfully until nearly 
twenty-six years of age, and acquired 
those steady habits which have so nuich 
benefited him in his subsequent business- 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGliAPnWAL RECOIW. 



367 



career. In Aiij;ust, 1874, he establisheii 
himself in a salonn in the l>aseinent of 
Wheeler's (lrn,L; stcire m I )e I'ere, where 
he nia<!e many friends and pmspert'd for 
two years; his increasin;; tratle caused his 
removal to a huildiii};' ownetl by C. G. 
Wilcox in the business part oi the city, 
whiih binldin.!;^, with fort y-ei,i;ht feet fron- 
tage, he subse(inentl\ |inrcliasei,l, but in 
April, 1S88, these prennses were de- 
stroyed by lire. With his usual energy, 
however, he erected at once a more sub- 
stantial structure, which lorms one of the 
best business blocks in the city, and here 
he is doing a betlei" trade than r\er. 

On .August 28. 187S, in .Manitow cic 
countw Wis., .Mr. b'alcls married Miss 
Mary .Me\er. a native of that county, born 
April 16, 1859, a daughtei- ol iMcdcrick 
and Sophia (Kasteu) Me\cr. The chil- 
dren lc^ultin^ from this marriage were 
named (ieorge E., bom |une 14, 1879, 
and died |uly 10 of tlu- same year; Alma 
\i. \\.. boin .\ui;ust (>, 1880; Walter R. , 
liorn Xo\end)ei- o, 1S82; Elsa C. S. , 
boiii December 17, 1884; and b>ven J., 
born February 1, 1804. In National and 
State politics iMr. l''alck usiialh' supports 
the Democratic nominei's, but in county 
and municipal matters he votes foi" the 
candidate he ccuisiders best titled lor 
office. He has himself ser\ed creditably 
two terms on the board ol aldi-rmen, but 
has declined lurther nominalion. He 
and his wife are consistent mcMnbers of 
the Lutheran Cluu'cdi, am! both stand well 
in the esteem of the pul)lic. In 189J; Mr. 
Falck built one of the most modern resi- 
dences in De I'ere. lie has the reputation 
of conducting "the most oi'deily saloon 
in the city," and is a very popular citizen, 
is (]uiet and unassuming, makes friends 
with all who meet him, and iftains them. 



M 



I LO .AMES, a successfid fanner 

and lumberman of I'itlsfield 

township, l)rown county, was 

born January 14, 1842, in 

Erie county, Penn., son of Xathaniel 



and Mirantla (Madisonj Ames, the former 
a successful carpenter and farmer; he was 
twice married, first to Miranda Madison, 
and had eleven children. 

(^n .September 10, i8()i, Milo Ames 
enlisted in Comp.any K, Eighty-third P. 
\'. I., in response to the call for 75,000 
nun, and ser\'cd until I'ebi uary 2, 1863, 
when he re-enlisted and ser\'ed until July 
3, 1804. He was in every battle in wliicli; 
the .irnu' of the Potomac was engaged 
duiiu!; this [leriod, and was wounded at 
(iaines' Mills. .\fter his reco\cr\ and 
discharge fi'om the lios|iital he was ap- 
pointed dispatch eoiu'ier, and served in 
this capacitx' until his discharge at Harris- 
burg, wIk'u he retmiied to his home and 
jiassed some time in the oil country. ( )n 
l-'ebruary 22, 1 86('i, he was united in mar- 
riage with Loisa l'>aker, one ol the thir- 
teen children born to William 11. .and 
Loisa (Stowell) liaker, the former a native 
of New ^'ork, and the latter ol N'ermont; 
the father is a successful farmer, and is 
still living in lu'ie county, IVim., where 
he owns 500 acres ol land. Ml. and Mrs. 
Ames w^'re school < hildreii tos^ether, and 
We're m.irriecl in Erie ( duiit), where they 
remaini'd nearly four \ears after their 
union, he bc'in.i; cni|iloyei| m himbeiiu;.; on 
the Alleghen\' rivei' in the meanwhile. In 
1869 they came b\ rail to (ireen Hay. 
Wis., aiul thence directly to Pittsfield, 
where for six years Mr. Ames was em- 
ployed by Oscar Gray in the lumber busi- 
ness, lie then bought eiL;hty .icres of 
timber land, on wliu h stood a log house, 
and he cleared this land by his own labor, 
anil addi'd to it until hi; at one time owned 
120 acri's; but of this lu" sold forty acre's, 
leaving him a well-improved tract of eighty 
acres. Mr. and Mrs. Ames have been 
blessed with three children, \i/. : Rose, 
born |uly 11, i8f)9, now the wife of 
Charles Hiintiiigton, of Pittslield; Emma 
M., born February 3, 1876; and Harry, 
born April 30, 1882. The jiarents arc 
members of the Congregational Church, in 
which Mr. Ames was a de.acon, and of 
which he is now trustee. Politically he 



368 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECOliD. 



was a Republican until last jear, when 
he jjave his franchise to the Prohibitionists. 
He has served as chairman of the town 
■one jear, and as member of the side board 
two terms, and is very hij,'hly respected 
by ail who know him. 



WILLIAM CONEN, an upright 
citizen and successful farmer, 
of De Pere township, Brown 
county, is a native of Holland, 
born June iS, 1844, son of Theodore 
Conen. When four years of age he was 
brought bv his parents to America, and to 
Brown county. Wis., where, in the prim- 
itive schor>lsof that early day, hs received 
all his education. Early in life he was 
put to work on the farm, as the country 
was new, and the farmers of that period 
luul to work hard to earn a living from 
their land; besides, wages were low, and 
if a boy earned his board he was doing 
well. When William was twenty years 
old his father died, and for some years 
afterward he and his brothers were in 
partnership. When the property was di- 
vided he received fort}' acres in De Pere 
township, part of his present farm, which 
at that time was all new land, without 
a single improvement, and he himself 
built the first house on the place. 

In .April. 1870, Mr. Conen was mar- 
ried in De Pere to Anna Styltics, who was 
born August 22, 1840, in Germany, daugh- 
ter of Anton Stylties, a farmer, and the 
young couple immediately commenced 
housekeeping on the new farm. To their 
union have been born children as follows: 
Theodore, Anton, Anna, John, Hattie, 
and Mary, all living, and two that died 
young. Mr. Conen has ail his life been 
a hard-working farmer, and his present 
prosperity is all the result of toil and in- 
dustry. He has increased the area of his 
farm from forty to 140 acres, all in De- 
Pere township, and has transformed it 
from a stumpy, brush-covered piece of 
ground to a well-cultivated and fertile 
tract. This has only been accomplished 



by years of unceasing toil, but his chil- 
dren have been of great help to him, the 
sons all remaining on the farm and as- 
sisting much with the agricultural work. 
Mr. Conen has, during his long residence 
in the count\-, acquired an enviable repu- 
tation for honesty and fair dealing, and 
he is universall}- respected for his many 
good qualities. In religious connection 
he and his family are members of St. 
Mary's Catholic Church, De Pere; in po- 
litical preferences Mr. Conen is a stanch 
supporter of the principles of the Demo- 
cratic part}'. 



JAMES SHERLOCK, a systematic 
progressive farmer citizen of De Pere 
township. Brown county, is a native 
of the same, born April i, 1854. 
Our subject received a fair common- 
school education, and was reared to practi- 
cal farm life on the home place until sixteen 
j'ears of age, after which he commenced to 
follow other pursuits. He spent si.xteen 
winters in the lumber camps of northern 
Wisconsin and Michigan, enduring all the 
vicissitudes and hardships of camp life in 
the winter, and also becoming familiar with 
the hazardous work of " driving logs" in 
the spring. On October 28, 1886, Mr. 
Sherlock was married in St. Francis 
Church, De Pere. by Father Rine, to Miss 
Anna Hughes, who was born in i860, 
along the Canadian and lower Michigan 
line, daughter of Hugh and Margaret 
(Dalton) Hughes, natives of Ireland, who 
settled in 1869 in Gleninore township. 
Brown Co., Wisconsin. 

Immediately after his marriage Mr. 
Sherlock settled on his present farm, 
where he has since continuously resided, 
and on which he has made many improve- 
ments. It is one of the oldest farms in 
East River valley, and consists of 115 
acres of excellent land. In State and 
National affairs Mr. Sherlock votes the 
Democratic ticket, but in local matters he 
pays more attention to the fitness of the 
candidate than to party connection. In 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



369 



1 89 1 he was elected chainuan ol the 
township, in which office he has since 
served with credit to himself and satisfac- 
tion to his constituents. Ide is a reader, 
and well informed on general topics. In 
religious connection he and his wife are 
both members of St. Francis Catholic 
Church at De Pore. They have had five 
children, namel\' : Kaljih (., Maggie \'., 
Annie V., Mary E. and I'hilip E. 

HERRMANN RAYMAKIiIn^S, than 
whom there is no more success- 
ful or progressive citi/ren in Preble 
to\\nship). Brown county, is a na- 
tive of Holland, born Decendier 24, 1829, 
in the village of X'enraij, Province of Lim- 
burg, son of Leonard Raymakers,wh(i was 
a laborer in his native land. 

Hermann Raymakers recei\ed a com- 
mon-s(diool education, and then learneil 
the carpenter's trade, which he com- 
menced to follow when eighteen years old, 
\vorking around at various places, and, 
being industrious and ambitious, he pros- 
pered. While engaged in this he invested 
in six acres of land (going into debt for 
same), the cultivation of which he carried 
on in connection with his trade. On 
April 28, 1856, he \\as united in mar- 
riage, in Holland, \vitli Miss Alliegonde 
Vullengs, also a native of Venraij, and six 
cliildren were born to them in Holland, 
as follows: Leonard, who is now a mer- 
chant of Green I->ay, Wis. ; Christian, of 
Oakland, Cal., and Martin, Andrew, 
Catharine, and Helena, living at home. 
After carrying on his trade some \'ears in 
his native country, Mr. Raymakers con- 
cluded he could better his condition by 
coming to the United States, and in June, 
1868, he and his family sailed from Liver- 
pool on the vessel " Nestorian," landing 
at Quebec after a voyage of nine days, 
and thence proceeding to Green Bay, 
Wis., where they arrived sixteen days 
after leaving Liverpool. In Preble town- 
ship. Brown county, Mr. Raymakers pur- 
chased forty acres of new land, entirely 



ummpro\cd, on which, in a da\- and a 
half afterward, a iikK- home luni been 
constructed, and in this hoiisi.-. whicdi had 
not e\'cn a windnw. his wife aiu.1 six chil- 
dren li\ed fur ;i short time, until a better 
one could be bnih, Mr. i\avmakers 
worked around at \an(jns kmds of labor, 
but could get no money, tlie first cur- 
rency he e\er received in the I'nited 
States coming from the sale of three loads 
of hay, which brought himele\en dollars. 
Some time after locating on the forty 
acres of land lie remo\ed to Green Ba\', 
but later came l)ark to the larm and built 
thereon a house troui a t\\ ent\'-fi\e-dol 
lar pile of lumber, whi( li was tlie resi- 
dence of the family until 189:;. when the 
present magnificent Ikhiic, the finest farm 
house in the townsliip, was erected. The 
sons. f,eonard, Martin, Hcm'\', |ohn, 
W^illiani. Peter, and Gerard, arc all \\ith 
their father in the business of the firm of 
H. Raymakers & Sons, which comprises 
a market garden in Preble, three miles 
from the cit}' of Green Ba\-, and a gen- 
eral produce store in the city. The store 
is in cfiarge of Leonard and Henry, while 
Mr. Ravmakers operates the garden. All 
the children of our subject Ii\e at home 
with the excef)tion of Henry, who resides 
in the city, being married, and Christian, 
who is settled in California. The entire 
famih' are members of the Catholic 
Church. 

Mr. Raymakers lived "in the woods," 
as he expresses it, and literally converted 
his farm from its primitive state to its 
present fertile condition, toiling early and 
late for sixteen years to free his home 
from debt, during which tiiiie he and his 
family endured their full share of the 
hardships incident to pioneer lai'in life. 
But success has rewarded his untiring en- 
ergy, as his beautiful farm and home now 
testify. When Mr. Raymakers bought the 
place the land was quite swampy, the east 
half being covered with deep muck, and, 
knowing this to be an excellent fertilizer, 
he set himself to work to make the most 
of it. Alwavs a reader, he obtained an 



J/^ 



COMMEMOUA Tl 1 'A' BIO G I! A PHICA L HKCOHD. 



idea from the 0/iio Fanner on the subject 
he was so greatly interested in, and his 
plans were no sooner formed than he pro- 
ceeded to carry them out. Digging out 
the muck from the eastern part of the 
farm, which rises above the western part, 
he hauled it away to fertili;ie the rest of 
the land, thus leaving a reservoir for the 
water to gather in, which is fed h\' springs 
and drains, and provides irrigation for the 
land, besides affording a constant supply 
of running water for his house, barns, 
hothouses, stock, etc. ; over ten thousand 
feet of drainage and tiling have been laid 
on the farm. The reservoir, which has 
been well stocked with German carp, is 
ninety feet wide and 6oo feet long, and 
the excellent arrangements make it pos- 
sible to distribute water to the most dis- 
tant parts of the farm, in carts or hose, 
when necessary. With such facilities the 
land is exceptionally well-adapted for 
profitable gardening, and thirty acres are 
devoted to that branch alone, supplying 
various markets, especially Green Bay, 
whither a load of vegetables is sent daily, 
he and his sons conducting a jirosperous 
produce business in the city; the celery 
beds on the farm are unusually fine. 

Mr. Haymakers has spared neither 
money nor pains to make an ideal farm 
and home out of what was once a dense 
wilderness, his fine residence, barn and 
other buildings are all in keeping with the 
other improvements, and he is regarded 
as one of the most enterprising, substan- 
tial farmers in Preble township. He 
takes an active interest in political mat- 
ters, studving carefully the leading ques- 
tions of the day. I'ormcrly a Republican 
and Protectionist, he changed his ideas 
after much study and thought on the sub- 
ject, and is now an advocate of the Free- 
trade syst(Mn. He is very fond of reading, 
keeping himself well informed on general 
topics and public issues, and his home 
contains a well-selected library. He is 
an earnest advocate of thorough educa- 
tion, and believes a country school should 
possess the same advantages and as com- 



plete an equipment as a city school for 
the instruction of the young. In 1890 
Mr. Haymakers paid a short visit to his 
native country, but returned convinced 
that though Holland is good, America is 
better. 



H i:\KV L.VNCASTEI'i, a system- 
atic, skillful farmer of Howard 
township. Brown county, was 
born in January, 1832, in Man- 
chester, England, son of Joseph and 
Catherine (Burke) Lancaster, and was 
a lad about twelve years of age when 
he came alone to this country. His 
father was the son of a coal dealer in 
England, and was a veteran of Waterloo, 
and a pensioner ; he died when Henry, 
our subject, was still a mere lad of seven 
or eight years. Mrs. Catherine Lancas- 
ter subsequently remarried, and came 
with her husband to the United States 
about 1 84 1, Henry following in about 
three years. 

On reaching America our subject went 
to Oswego, N. Y. , where he passed two 
or three years with his mother and step- 
father, and then worked at various places 
until 1850, when he came to Wisconsin, 
to which State his mother had removed 
about a year previous. Here she died 
at an advanced age, the mother of eight 
children, of whom but three are now liv- 
ing. Mr. Lancaster for the first two 
years after his arrival in Wisconsin, rent- 
ed land from his stepfather in Pittsficld 
township. Brown county, and then moved 
to Duck Creek, where he worked in a 
mill until his enlistment, on January 25, 
1862, in the Seventeenth WMs. V. I. 
This regiment being full, however, he 
was transferred to Company L, of an 
fllinois Light Artillery regiment, and took 
part in every battle in which the com- 
mand was engaged, and in all of its 
marches, until the close of the war, with 
the exception of three months, during 
which he was confined in Libby Prison as 
a prisoner of war, and another three 



COMMKMOUATrVE DIOURAPUWAL RECORD. 



371 



months when he was in hospital on ac- 
count of a wound received in the Shen- 
andoah Valley, while fightinj; against the 
Confederate, Gen. Early. He was hon- 
orably discharged in April, 1865, and is 
now receiving a pension for his services. 
After his return to Duck Creek Mr. Lan- 
caster again worked in the mill for a 
time, and also cleared off forty acres of 
his land and bought forty acres addi- 
tional. In November, 1 869, he married 
Miss Catherine Maher, who was born 
in Green Bay, a daughter of Ednnuid 
and Hannah (Handerhan) Maher, natives 
of Ireland. This union has been blessed 
with seven children, named as follows: 
Joseph, Ella, Maggie (wife of Louis 
Jagers, of Kiel, Manitowoc Co., Wis.), 
Hannah, John, Agnes, and Nora. 

Mr. Lancaster, after his marriage, 
brought his bride to his present farm, 
which, under his skillful management, is 
now in a state of luxuriant cultivation, 
and here they have lived ever since, witli 
the exception of one year, when they re- 
sided in Fort Howard. He raises mixed 
crops, and the general appearance of his 
fields and the air of comfort and neatness 
surrounding his dwelling and farm build- 
ings give indication of the watchful eye and 
trained industry of the master, and the 
willing, tasteful and deft employment of 
the hand of his helpmeet, who is known 
to all as a most industrious, cheerful 
woman, a good wife and a thoughtful 
mother. Socially Mr. I^ancaster is an 
honored member of T. (). Howe Post, 
No. 124, G. A. R., and he and his family 
are regarded as most desirable neighbors 
in Howard township. 



HI-: N R Y B O R M A .\, one of the 
leading agriculturists of De Pere 
townsfiip. Brown county, was born 
March 18, 1846, in Belgium, son 
of Grcgorie Borman, who was a farmer 
in comfortable circumstances. 

Conluding he could better his condi- 
tion h\ coming to America, the father of 



our subject in 1857 sold his pro[)erty and 
set out with liis family for the United 
States, landing in New York City. Thence 
they at once journe}'ed westward t(j Green 
Bay, Wis., and, shortly after their arrival, 
located in Allouez township, where Mr. 
Borman was for two years employed in a 
brickj'ard. They then came to De Pere, 
at that time but a small village, and for 
seven years made their home on a farm 
(now included in the town of De Pere) 
which they rented from John Lacey. 
Then, in the fall of 1866, thev purchased 
and rem(3ved upon the farm of seventy 
acres now owned by our subject, which 
at that time was covered with a dense 
forest. They innnediately cleared a spot 
for a house, and erected a frame dwelling, 
which in later years was supplanted by a 
neat brick cottage, and here Mr. Bor- 
man passed the remainder of his days, 
dying in 1883; his wife surviveil him eight 
years, and their remains now rest in De- 
Pere cemetery. They were both mem- 
bers of the Catholic Church, and in poli- 
tics he was a Democrat. 

Henry Borman attended school in Bel- 
gium until the family came to the United 
States, after which he completed his edu- 
cation in the then primitive schools of 
Allouez and De Pere townships. On 
June 2\, 1873, he was married, in De- 
Pere, to Hortense Lhost, a native of Bel- 
gium, born March 8, 1856, daughter of 
John Lhost, who came to the United 
States in 1 86g with his family of seven 
children and settled in Brown county. 
Wis. Immediately after his marriage 
Mr. Borman took up liis residence on the 
farm where he yet lives, and here he has 
been engaged in general farming, of which, 
by good management and untiring energy, 
he has made a success. His farm com- 
prises seventy acres of excellent farming 
land, all of which has been taken from 
the woods, involving many years of un- 
relenting toil before the place was reduced 
to its present fertile condition. Mr. Bor- 
man is one of the best-known men in 
De Pere township, where he is higliK- re- 



372 



COifMEMORATIVE BIOGHAPUICAL RECORD. 



spected. He is a leader in all enterprises 
which promise to benefit his township or 
county, and is regarded as a public-spirited, 
progressive citizen. Politically he is a 
Democrat, is a stanch supporter of the 
principles ol that party, and in 1893 was 
elected treasurer of his township, for ten 
or eleven years previous to which he had 
served as supervisor, giving complete sat- 
isfaction in that office: He and his wife 
are members of St. Francis Catholic 
Church at De Pere. They have had chil- 
dren as follows: Mar\-, John E., \'ictorJ., 
Victoria, Emily, Constant, Julia, Celia, 
Willie, living, and others who died in 
infancv. 



WS. WfHTCOMB, a long-estab- 
lished contractor and builder of 
Cireen Bay, was born in .^nn 
.\rbor, Washtenaw Co., Mich., 
August 31, 1S32, a son of Levi and 
Roxalana (Putnam) Whitcomb, the former 
a native of Pennsylvania, the latter of 
Connecticut. The father was accident- 
ally killed, in 1869, in Howard township. 
Brown Co., \\'is. , and the mother, who 
was a great-granddaughter of Gen. Israel 
Putnam, the Revolutionary hero, died in 
1865. Mr. and Mrs. Levi Whitcomb 
were the parents of six children, namely: 
Sarah, who died at the age of four; Joseph, 
who died in Brown county. Wis., in the 
fall of 1865: Lucius, who died in Michi- 
gan; \\'. S., the subject of this sketch; 
Lucretia, wife of Christian Johnson, of 
Graham comity, Kans. , and Levi, who 
resides in McPherson county, Michigan. 
Our subject remained in Michigan un- 
til May, 1844, when he came to Green 
Bay, and here served three years at the 
carpenter's trade, also three years at 
coopering, working twenty-eight years in 
Green Bay at the latter business with D. 
W. Britton. In 1861 he enlisted in Com- 
pany H, Twelfth Wis. V. I., for three 
years; was assigned to the army of the 
West, and fought at Jackson, Tenn., 
Port GiI)son, Raymoncl Hill, siege of 



Vicksburg, and at Natchez. He then re- 
enlisted in the same company and regi- 
ment for another period of three years, 
and was with Sherman on his march to 
the sea, was in the Carolina campaign, 
and in the Grand Review at Washington, 
D. C. He received an honorable dis- 
charge at Louisville, Ky., in July, 1865, 
and, returning to Green Bay, worked for 
a time at laboring, and then opened up a 
farm in Howard township. 

Mr. \\'hitcomb was married May 12, 
1 86 1, to Miss Martha D. Athey, a native 
of Green Bay, and a daughter of Charles 
W. and Sarah (Gibson) Athey, the former 
of whom, a native of Virginia, when 
twenty-one years of age, or about 1839, 
came to Green Bay, worked at lumber- 
ing, and was married on Washington 
street. Green Bay. He lost his wife in 
I 869, and he followed her to the grave in 
1889. To Mr. and Mrs. Whitcomb were 
born nine children, viz. : George, of Ash- 
land, Wis. ; Charlotte, who died at the 
age of twelve years; Martha, wife of 
Gnstave Waters, of Fort Howard; .\nna, 
wife of Emil Ammerman, of Iron River, 
Mich. ; Edward, residing at Pound, Wis. ; 
Lillian, Nona and Mabel, at home, and 
Maggie, who died at the age of four 
years. Mr. \\'hitcomb is a stanch Re- 
publican, and for nine years was town 
clerk of Howard township. He is a 
member of the Royal Arcanum, Iron Gate 
Lodge, No. 546, and he and his wife are 
consistent members of the Presbyterian 
Church. Mr. Whitcomb has ever mani- 
fested a lively interest in the progress of 
Brown countv. and is never backward in 
lending his aid to any project calculated 
to advance its growth and prosperity. The 
familv enjoy the utmost respect of the 
communitv. 



JACQUES DUCAT, an energetic, 
hard-working farmer of De Pere 
township. Brown county, where he 
is highly respected for his honest, 
straightford methods and sterling worth, 



COMMh'.)fORA TJVI-: B Itld HM'IUCAL nECOUD. 



373 



is n native of Belgium, born August lo, 
1 83 I. He is u son of Loinhard Ducat, 
a farmer, who had fifteen cliiklrcn, of 
whoui our subject was the eldest son, and 
the youngest of three children by his first 
wife. Four of this large famil}' died in 
Belgium, and in 1S55, the parents, with 
the remaining children, came to America, 
sailing from Antwerp, antl after a voyage 
of forty-eight days arrived in New York, 
thence immediately proceeding to Green 
Bay, Wis. Hi'rc, in Green Bay town- 
ship, Brown county, the father purchased 
forty acres of land, and on this farm he 
passed the remainder of his life; Mrs. 
Ducat also died in Green Bay township, 
and their remains now rest in Bay Set- 
tlement cemetery. 

Jacques Ducat was reared from boy- 
hood to farm life, at which he was en- 
gaged in his native land; but, ;dtcrcoming 
to Wisconsin, he found work jirincipally 
in lumbercamps, loading vessels with lum- 
ber, and as a general labcn'er around saw- 
mills. On August I I, 1859, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Afargaret Henrigillis, who 
was born June 24, 1834, in Belgium, 
daughter of Hubert H. Henrigillis, and 
the yoimg couple commenced housekeep- 
ing in Peshtigo, \\'is. b^or a few years 
he cimtinued to work in lumber mills and 
camps, and then, in 1864, came to De- 
Pere township. Brown county, to the 
farm where he yet resides. He first pur- 
chased forty-six and a half acres (on 
which "there was not a stick amiss "), 
and here erected a log house, which still 
stands. During his residence of twenty- 
eight years on this farm he has cleared 
and improved it, and added thereto, until 
it now comprises sixt\'-two and a half acres 
of fertile land, and, in 1892, he erected 
a new residence on the place. All this 
has been accoinplished by years of econ- 
omy and thrift, and unceasing industry, 
and Mr. Ducat is recognized as one of the 
hardest workers in his section. He is 
self-made in every respect, and from a 
start of nothing has prospered, having 
now a comfortable home and well-culti- 



vated farm. In politics our subject is a 
stanch Republican, and in religious con- 
nection he and his wife are members of 
St. Francis Catholic Church. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Ducat have been born children 
as follows; Alphouse ]., who died at the 
age of si.xteen years; Mary, who ilied at 
the age of ten years; Lucy, deceased in 
infancy; Eugene, a cigarmaker, of Sioux 
Cit\', Iowa; lu'rnanline, now Mrs. Louis 
Evrard, of De Pere townshi]); John, who 
died when li\-c years old; Josephine, of 
Chicago, 111.; Eliza, of Green Bay; and 
Leoiia, Peter Joseph and David J., at 
home. 



PATRICK E. .AND JOHN DOL- 
L.\RD, well-known progressive 
farmers of De Pere township. 
Brown county, were born on the 
farm where the\- \i-t make their home, 
the former in .August, 1851, the latter in 
August, 1854. 

Their fatlier, John Dollard, was born 
June 5, 1801. in County Kilkenny, Ire- 
land, where he married Bridget Heffer- 
naii, and while in Ireland two children 
were born to them, \iz. ; Kate, now the 
wife of Joseph \Mialen, postmaster at 
South Milwaukee, Wis., and Ellen, Mrs. 
Michael Murray, of St. Paul, Minn. 
About 1850 John Dollard set out, with 
his family, for Anu'rica. and, sailing from 
Waterford, landed at (Hiebec after a 
long voyage. His brother Patrick was a 
priest in Kingston, Canada, and there the 
family remained while |ohn jiroceeded 
farther west, seeking a home for them. 
After journeying over the State of Michi- 
gan, he crossed Lake Michigan to Mani- 
towoc, ^^'is., and thence came on foot to 
Green Bay, a distance of thirty-fi\e 
miles, through the woods, during which 
trip he met the first wolves he had ever 
seen, and other wild animrds were also 
numerous. The onh' lo.ad was the (jne 
over which the I'nited States mail was 
carried, and fretpientlv there was nothing 
to guide him and point out the way except 



374 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGltAFUWAL RECORD. 



blazed trees. After looking over the 
land around Green Bay, Mr. DoiUird 
selected a tract of 160 acres, in Section 
31, De Pere township. Brown county, for 
which he paid five hundred dollars. The 
place was uncleared and totally unim- 
proved, and Mr. DoUard made a few rude 
preparations for his familj' before return- 
ing to Canada and bringing them to their 
new home in the midst of the forest. 
The first cabin stood about twenty rods 
from the spot where the present substan- 
tial brick residence was built in 1885. 
The father commenced the work of clear- 
ing the farm, an arduous task, and more 
especially so as during the first year he 
had no beasts of burden, and he hauled 
100,000 feet of lumber to a point on East 
river, with a hired team of cattle, before he 
became the owner of a pair of oxen. The 
first crops raised on the farm consisted of 
oats and potatoes, and for some time 
their only farming implement was a hoe. 
On this place Mr. DoUard passed the re- 
mainder of his life, dying January 30, 
1888; he was buried in Dc Pere cem- 
etery. 

In his political afliliations he was a 
stanch Democrat, and he helil almost 
every office in the gift of the township. 
He was chairman of the township, and of 
the county board; was the first township 
superintendent of schools elected under 
the new school laws, and continued to 
hold the office until it was abolished, 
being thus the only man to serve in that 
position in De Pere township. In what- 
ever capacity he acted, his service was 
ever marked by the highest ability and 
integrity and satisfactory discharge of his 
duties. He was a self-made man in the 
strictest sense, having won abundant suc- 
cess from a small beginning, by hard 
work and energy and application to his 
business. In his early life he had re- 
ceived a thorough education, attending 
school until he was twenty-four years old, 
and few, if any, farmers of his time and 
section were his equals in this respect. 
From the time of his settlement he re- 



sided continuously on the same farm, 
and saw it transformed from a wilderness 
abounding with wild animals to the fertile 
and productive tract it now is, taking, also, 
an active and prominent part in every 
movement of interest or benefit to his 
township generally, and was always ready 
and willing to assist any worth)- enter- 
prise. He was widely and favorably 
known all over the county, and had con- 
siderable influence in his community, his 
advice being sought on many questions. 
He also took a leading interest in Church 
matters, and was treasurer and trustee of 
St. Francis Catholic Church, of which he 
and his wife were both members. Mrs. 
Dollard survived her husband until April 
22, 1 891, when she was laid by his side 
in De Pere cemetery. 

Patrick E. and John Dollard were 
reared on the home farm, and received 
an education in the common schools of 
the home district. They have always re- 
mained on the homestead, which they 
now own, and where they carr\' on a 
general farmingand stock-rairing business, 
in connection with the latter branch being 
extensive breeders of sheep. In their 
political affiliations they follow in the foot- 
steps of their father, manifesting great 
interest in the welfare of the Democratic 
part}-, but having no aspirations for office, 
as they devote their time exclusively to 
the farm. They are systematic, indus- 
trious and prosperous agriculturists, and 
quiet, unassuming men. Both arc un- 
married. 



FEl>iDlN.\ND UU.VrSOE, a pros- 
perous farmer of De Pere town- 
ship. Brown comity, is a native of 
Belgium, born December 8. 1S47, 
son of Peter Quatsoe, and is the fourth 
in a family of five children, named re- 
spectively: Angeline, Albert, Jolm. Ferdi- 
nand and Deziria. 

Peter Ouatsoe was a farmer is his na- 
tive land, in comfortable circumstances. 




-^,V 'III 




m%\¥s 







AX 



a^G^^y^- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPHWAL RECORD. 



377 



About 1.S55 he sold all his pidperly, and 
caint: with his faniil}' to the I'liitcd 
States, the voyaf^e from Antw cip to New 
York, which was made on a sailing \essel, 
occupying; sixty da\s. ( )ii his arrival in 
New York, Peter (Jiiatsne exchanged a 
considerable amount ot forei.^u moue\\ 
which he had, lor American gold, and, in 
so <k.iing, was obserxeil by some truck- 
men, who, it was afterwartl evident, im- 
mediately planned to rob him. Hy mis- 
representation they induced Mr. ( hiatsoe 
to let them convey the famiK- and their 
baggage to the cars, whicli left in two 
hours, instead of which, however, they 
took them to an obscure hotel. The 
family, becoming alarmed, refused to enter 
the hotel, and the truckmen, in trying t(.) 
compel them, attracted the attention of a 
Belgian gentleman who li\ed in New 
York, and spoke both the linglish and Bel- 
gian languages. He stopped to ask Mr. 
Quatsoe what the trouble was, and, receiv- 
ing an explanation of the affair, called a 
policeman, who compelled the truckmen 
to carry the family to the steam ferry 
boat, which landed them at the railroad 
station, and, boarding the cars, they once 
more joined the party of countrymen with 
whom they had crossed thc^ ocean. Their 
•destination was Green Baw \\'is.. whither 
they canu> by rail and water, and shortly 
after their arrival Mr. Ouatsoe purchased, 
in Allouez township, Brown county, forty 
acres of land along the Fox rixiM', the 
greater ])art of which was liea\il\- wooded, 
and it reiiuired no stnall amount of hard 
labor to clear it and reduce it to a fertile 
■condition. In connei'tion with farming 
he also engaged in lumbering until his 
death, which occurred in 1871. He was 
buried in Shant\town cemetery. Mrs. 
Ouatsoe, who has now reached the ad- 
vanced age of eight\-four. makes her 
home with her son Albert, in Lawrence 
township. She, as was also her husband, 
is a member of the Catholic Church. 
After the death of the father the sons 
took his real and personal )iropert\', pay- 
ing their sisters fm" their share. Several 
21 



years pre\iously the)- had endiarked in 
the threshing business, operating the first 
horse-power threshing-machine in this 
section of the county; and the\'were also 
extensively engaged in the lumber busi- 
ness, completing several \ery Large con- 
tracts in this line which had bec'n secured 
by their father. 

b'erdinand ( )uatsoe i.\as but se\'en or 
eight years okl when he came with the 
rest of the family to America, and such 
education as he received was obtained in 
the ]irimiti\-e schools which flourished in 
the neighborhood at that early day. At 
£:n early age he was put to work on the 
farm, assisting in the clearing of the 
same, .and hc' resided at home, helloing 
his parents, until the death of his father, 
when he commenced life on his own ac- 
count. On January i. iSSo, lie was 
united in marriage, in Duck Creek, to 
Miss Uix/Ae Ver Hulst, a native of that 
town, born Jul\' 22, 1S5S, daughter of 
John B. antl Catherine Ver Hulst, who 
came to the United States from Belgium 
in 1S54, and located in Duck Creek (now 
in Suamico township), Brown Co., Wis. 
Their voyage consumed sixty-two days, 
during which time the pro\isions of most 
of the emigrants W(n"e exhausted, and 
Afr. and Mrs. \'er Hulst, lia\-ing plent\', 
divided with those who were less for- 
tunate. 

To Mr. and Nfrs. (.juatsoe have come 
three children, namely: I'red, Peter, 
and Louisa. Immediately alter marriage 
they settled on their present farm, where 
his widowed mother made her home with 
them for se\'eral \'ears. The ]ilacc now 
contains 1 i i acres, whicdi, by patient toil 
and ccmstant attention to the details of 
his work, he has reduced to a fertile con- 
dition. He is now fully engaged with his 
agricidtural interests, to which he gives 
his undivided attention, and has \\-on the 
respect of the entire connnunity for his in- 
dustr\'. his honesty and his sterling worth. 
Mr. and Mrs. Ouatsoe are members of 
St. Francis Catholic Church in De Pere; 
in politics he is a Democrat. 



378 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



JAMi:s T. MORAN. register of deeds 
at Green Hay, was born in Glen- 
more, Brown Co., Wis , March 20, 
1856, a son of Michael and Cath- 
erine (Shea) Moran, the former a native 
of Vermont, the latter of Ireland. The 
father came to Brown county in the year 
1853, and settled on a farm in (ilenmore 
township, where he has ever since made 
his home. Mr. and Mrs. Moran reared a 
famil)' of six children, named as follows : 
Daniel, who resides in Athens, Wis. ; 
James T. , the subject proper of this 
sketch; John, who lives on the old home- 
stead; Minnie, wife of H. Asselstine, of 
Ashland, W'is. ; Patrick, a resident of 
Mineral Lake, Wis., and Thomas H., who 
died December 23, 1893. 

The subject of this sketch was edu- 
cated in the sohools of Glenmore town- 
ship and Green Bay, and for fourteen 
years taught school in Brown county. In 
1890 he settled in the city of Green Bay 
and entered, as a student, the law office of 
Hood & McGruere. He was thus en- 
gaged in study, when, in 1892, he was 
elected by the Democratic party, of which 
he is a stanch member, register of deeds, 
and entered upon the performance of his 
duties in Januar}', 1893. ^'''- Moran is a 
member of the Catholic Order of Fores- 
ters, and also of the Young Men's Colum- 
bian Club. By his upright and manly 
bearing he has made for himself a host of 
friends. 



A A. L. ADRIAENSSEN. This 
well-known citi/cn of Green Bay, 
who was born September 10, 
1859, in Belgium, is a son of 
Anton and Sedonie (Gelbert) Adriaenssen, 
also natives of Belgium, who came to 
New York in 1872, and removed to Green 
Bay in 1874. The father was a pattern 
maker by trade, and followe<l same until 
his death in 1876; his widow resides with 
her son, above named, on Harvey street 
in Green Bay. But three of her nine 
children are now living: F. H., a car- 



penter by trade, residing at Kewaunee, 
Wis. ; Desire, now the wife of Jule 
Polaiii, and still a resident of Belgium; 
and A. .\. L. , the subject of this sketch. 

A. A. L. Adriaenssen, who was thirteen 
years of age when he accompanied his- 
parents to the United States, received a 
partial education in his native country, 
completing it in the schools of New York 
and Green Bay. He speaks five lan- 
guages, a fact showing that his oppor- 
tunities for learning were not neglected. 
Upon his arrival at Green Bay in 1874 he 
found employment as a machinist, but 
having learned the jeweler's trade he was, 
later, for some time engaged in that line 
of business on Main street. In 1891 he 
decided to change his pursuit, and ac- 
cordingly 'necame interested in the saloon 
business, at No. 1347 Main street. In 
1883 he took to himself a wife in the 
person of Flora M. Biemeret, born at 
Pcshtigo, Wis., in 1864, and daughter of 
Grcgain and Bertime (V'ander \'est) 
Biemeret. natives of Belgium who came 
at an early date to Wisconsin. Her 
father, who is yet living, was a member 
of the Green Bay police force for fourteen 
years. Her mother is deceased. To- 
Mr. and Mrs. Adriaenssen have been born 
three children: Pearl Irene. Felix Chase, 
and Alta. 

Mr. Adriaenssen is a member of Po- 
chequette Lodge, No. 126, K. of P. He 
has always taken an active interest in 
politics, and since attaining his majority 
has been identified with political move- 
ments in his county, always, to the best 
of his judgment, for the good of his con- 
stituents and their public affairs. An 
ardent Republican, he has been secretary 
of the county conventions of that party 
for the past ten years. He was a mem- 
ber of the city council from 1889 to 1893, 
serving four years on the finance com- 
mittee, also for the same period as chair- 
man of the committee on taverns and 
groceries, as well as for a time on the 
committee on public buildings. As alder- 
man from the Fifth ward his services have 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



379 



been of undoubted vahie to the city. With 
an earnest desire for the advancement of 
his city in all respects, looking to its 
welfare and prosperity, this public-spirited 
fjentlenian will in the nature of things 
continue to be a useful citizen. 



ORIX S. KITTELL. This gentle- 
man, one of the prosperous agri- 
culturists of De Pere township, 
Brown count}', was born Novem- 
ber I, 1S36, in Binghamton, Broome 
Co., N. Y., and is descended from sturdy 
New England ancestry. Grandfather Kit- 
tell was a soldier in the Kevolutionar_v war, 
during which struggle he was wounded 
and was obliged to use crutches the re- 
mainder of his life. By trade he was a 
weaver. 

William V . Kittell, father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Massachusetts, where he 
learned tannintr and glove-making. Eroin 
here he removed to Binghamton, N. Y., 
where he followed his trades until 1S48 or 
1849, when he took up his residence on a 
farm near Colesville, for which he had trad- 
ed. He had married, in Massachusetts, Miss 
Eliza Collins, who was also born in that 
State, daughter of John Collins, and to 
their union came children as follows: 
Julietti', who died when eleven years old; 
Amasa D., a resident of Sheboygan Falls, 
Wis.; John H., who died at Sheboygan 
Falls, in 1893, aged sixty-four years; 
Nancy A., who married Samuel Rouns- 
\'ille, and died at Sheboygan Falls in 
1892; Harriet, wife of Norman F. Pierce, 
justice of the peace and government 
guager at Sheboygan Falls; Edgar, who 
died in 1859 at Meeme, Manitowoc Co., 
Wis. ; Ethan, a mechanic, of Ea Cro.sse, 
Wis., where he. is foreman in a carriage 
factory; Orin S. . whose name introduces 
this sketch; Jennie, now the wife of Capt. 
A. J. Lumsden, of Shebo\gan Falls; and 
Augusta, deceased in infancy. Mr. Kit- 
tell resided on the farm until 1853, in the 
early summer of which year he disposed 
of all his property, and came west to 



Wisconsin, bringing his wife and the two 
children who were yet li\ing at home — 
Orin S. and Jennie. He had been per- 
suaded to come hither by his son-in-law. 
Samuel Rounsxille, an Indian trader and 
extensive landowner, who, with his brother 
Albert, made the first permanent settle- 
ment in Sheboygan Falls; Albert Kouns- 
villc btnlt the first sawmill in Sheboygan 
county. The family journeyed by rail to 
Bufialo, thence by boat to Sheboygan, 
Wis., where they landed in Jul}-, 1853. 
At Sheboygan Falls Mr. Kittell purchased 
several lots and ten acres ot improved 
land, and here connnenced to follow the 
carpenter's trade, a knowledge of which 
he had acquired, thmi^^h he ne\'er ser\'ed 
an apprenticeship at same; but he was a 
natural mechanic, and for many years 
even made his own shoes. In Sheboygan 
Falls he followed carpentry until his death, 
which occurred in 1S82; his wife survived 
him three years, and their remains now 
rest in the cemetery at that place. Both 
were members of the Baptist Church, Mr. 
Kittell for over fifty years; in his political 
preferences he was originally a Whig, 
later a Rejniblican, but he took little or 
no interest in politics, giving his attention 
exclusiveh' to his business interests. 

Orin S. Kittell received a common- 
school education in the schools of Bing- 
hamton, N. Y. , and later attended high 
school. When seventeen years old he 
came with his father to Sheboygan brails. 
Wis., where he commenced to learn the 
blacksmith trade under Mark Brainerd, 
serving an apprenticeship of ten months. 
He then went to Chicago with his brother 
Amasa to work on the Chicago & North 
Western railroad, and, through the influ- 
ence of a relative, Orin obtained a sitn.i- 
tion as fireman, continuing thus for fmn- 
months, and then for a time worked with 
the construction crew between I^"ox Ri\'er 
fill.) and Silver Lake (Wis.). Returning 
to Sheboygan Falls, he commenced driv- 
ing the stage running from that tow n to 
Fond du Lac fa distance' "f forty-two 
miles), his dri\-e being to Plymouth I'fif- 



3So 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAl. RECORD. 



teen miles), but healso covered the wliole 
distance by relays. He was engaged in 
this for two years, and next obtained em- 
ployment in the livery stable of John De- 
Bass, of Sheboygan, for about a year and 
a half, after which he went to Manitowoc 
county, and for one winter worked in the 
lumber regions for his brother-in-law, 
Samuel Rounsville. 

On April 13, 1858, Mr. Kittell was 
married, in St. Xazian/, Wis., to Miss 
Catherine Tracy, who was born February 
3, 1 84 1, in Kings county. Ireland, daugh- 
ter of Patrick and Mary (Malloy) Tracy. 
They came to the United States in 1851, 
sailing from Liverpool on the "William 
Rathbone. " a Black Star liner, and, after 
a voyage of eight weeks, landed in New 
York City. From there they proceeded 
to Buffalo, N. v., where they remained 
one year, and in 1854 came to Liberty 
township, Manitowoc Co., Wis., locating 
on an unimproved farm, where Mrs. Kit- 
tell resided until her marriage. After 
their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Ivittell lived 
in a log house at Meeme, Manitowoc 
county, where he was employed in saw- 
mills as a saw filer, and in various other 
capacities, for several years. In 1864 he 
enlisted at Fond du Lac in the Fourth 
W'isconsin Cavalry, was sent to Baton 
Rouge, La., and participated in his first 
engagement under Col. Moore. He next 
went to Mobile, and was present at the 
fall of that city; marched through Ala- 
bama and Georgia; returned to Mont- 
gomery, Ala., thence to \'icksburg, thence 
to Shreveport, and from there to Browns- 
ville, Texas. He returned sick to Baton 
Rouge, and after his recovery was de- 
tailed as orderly to the colonel of the 
Eighth Cavalry, carrying discharges to 
hospitals. In 1865 he was discharged at 
St. Louis, and came back to his home 
with his health much imjiaired by ex- 
posure and hardship. 

Some time after his return from tiie 
army Mr. Kittell resumed work as a saw 
filer, and followed same until 1871. when 
he removed to Green Baw and in the fall 



of the same year located on a farm in 
Glenmore township, Brown county, in 
addition to his agricultural work engaging 
in saw-milling and hauling coal. In the 
fall of 1882 he purchased and removed 
upon his present farm in De Pere town- 
ship (situated in Sections 32 and 33), then 
comprising fifty-three acres, which he has 
since added to until it now contains 
ninety-five acres. Since Mr. Kittell has 
resided here /.e has greatly improved the 
home and farm, and he conducts a suc- 
cessful general farming business. He has 
also been engaged in charcoal-burning, 
and has done no small amount of work in 
this line for the National Furnace Com- 
pany, of De Pere. In his political pref- 
erences our subject is a staimch Repub- 
lican, and takes great interest in the suc- 
cess of the party, of whose movements 
he keeps himself well informed. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Kittell have been 
born children as follows: William O., a 
liveryman, of De Pere, who is married 
and has two children; Lawrence, who is 
an engineer on the Lake Shore & West- 
ern railroad; Mary E., Mrs. John Dun- 
bar, of Liberty, Manitowoc count}'; Ed- 
ward, of Kaukauna, a fireman on the 
Lake Shore & Western railroad; Cather- 
ine, Mrs. Albert Handeyside, of Menasha, 
Wis. ; John E., who is attending the State 
University at Madison, Wis. ; E. Jennie, 
at home, who attends the De Pere high 
school; Charles C, at home, and Daniel 
E., who died when five vears and seven 
months old. Mrs. Kittell is a member of 
St. Francis Catholic Church at De Pere. 
The entire family are highly respected in 
the community in which they reside, 
where they are leaders in every enter- 
prise for advancement or improvement. 



FR.\NK SNYDER has been en- 
gaged in the livery business in 
Green Bay since 1886, and is one 
of the leading men of his calling 
in the city and county. 

He was born in W^ashington count\', 



COMMEMORAriVE BIOGRAPHICAL liiCCOHD. 



381 



N. Y., May :;, 1S52, oiu' of the familx' of 
nine children of Le\ i and lleiner Louise 
Snj-der, the otluT ei};lit lieiiii; (ieorj^e ami 
Washington, hotli of lihilio; Adehne, 
Mis. II. Huniphre} . of Iowa; Marion; 
Jolni; liinina; Fred, now in Miiniesota, 
and Lewis, wiio died in inlam y. l'"ianl< 
Snyder was hut fifteen \ears of a;,;e wjien 
he left the parental roof to seek his for- 
tune. He first went to Michif;aii, and 
was engaf^i'd in railroading; until 18S6, 
when he came to Green l'>ay and estab- 
lished his present livery business, in which 
he has lieen so successful — owninj; at the 
present nionient the best stables, prob- 
ahh', to be found in the city. 

Mr. Sn\'der was married, I)eeend)er 
29, 1879, to Miss Mary ,\., dani^lilcr of 
Barney McLaughlin, and the eldest in a 
fatnih' of li\i- children, who lost their 
mother when tlle\' were little more than 
infants. Margaret, Cat Ik line and I'di/a- 
beth arc; the names of her sisters; her 
only brother is deceased. The father of 
Mrs. Siniler was a hoted-keeper, and f(U' 
years had been a railroad man, do Mr. 
and Mrs. Siu'der ha\e been boi 11 ti\e 
childri'ii. namely: l!ernar<l (■., breder- 
ick, Earl, May 1\. and rrankim, o| whom 
four are atttMuiiuL; scdiool. The fainil\- 
are C'atholic in religion, while fraternally 
Mr. Snyder is a member of Washington 
Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. M. ; Warren 
Chapter, No. S, K. .\. M.; and Palestine 
Consistorx', No. 20. The business suc- 
cess of Mr. Snyder is a result of his own 
individual attention to his affairs, and his 
urbanity and straightforward treatment 
of his patrons, who have never known 
him to misrepresent the i]uality, conduct 
or |)erforinance of his stocd-; under any 
circmnstances. 



JOHN EISENMAN. who during his 
lifetime was one of the well-known 
farmers and extensive land-owners 
of De Pere township. Brown county, 
wasborn April 10, 1817, in Bavaria, Ger- 



many. Ik' received an edncati(jn in the 
common s( lu)o|s. and le,-iiiied tin- bntcdi- 
er's trade, at \\hi( h he worked in Leipsic 
for ten years. 

About 1845 Ml". ICiseiimaii emigrated 
from his nati\e country to (he fliiited 
States, and, tindiiig eiii|)loyinent :it his 
trade in Ne\v \drk, remaimd lliere one 
winter. lla\ing saved some money, he 
removed farther west, but work was 
scarce and he coiilde.uii but eight dollars 
(ler month at his trade, alllioiit;li he was 
an aife|>t. Howe\ei, he was wiIIiiil; to do 
an\' honest lal)oi, :iiid, obiaining eiii]iloy- 
meiit on a canal in western I'ennsyK aiiia, 
then in course of eonstniet ion, leeeixed 
one ilollar a dav, boarding himself. He 
next went to Illinois, and for a short 
time worked in slaiiglitei houses at ( hi- 
cago and Peoria, About 1 847 he came to 
Green Iku', Wis., and, with a few d(.>llars 
left of his hard-earned s.ivings, formed a 
liartnership with b'rank Hagemeister in 
the butcher business on Washington 
street, in which he eontimiecl two years. 
About 1850 he |)iir( based from his brother 
Michael i()0 acres in b~aton township, 
wdiich the latter had receiwd lor his ser\- 
ices in the Mexican war. Idiere w as not 
e\'en a house on this place, which was 
vet in its prinn'ti\e state, not a tree hav- 
ing been felled at that time, and wild 
animals still abounded in the forests, such 
game as bears, deer, wohes, etc., being 
very [plentiful. Mr. lusemnan sjK-nt two 
sunmicrs on the place, clearing and im- 
proving it, during the winter seasons go- 
ing to Chicago and Peoria, 111., where he 
followed his trade, for being a most in- 
dustrious man, he took every opportunity 
to earn money to pay for his land. 

On April 10, 185^, he was married, in 
Green Bav, to Miss Apollonia Barth. 
born April 20, 1837. in Bavaria, Ger- 
many, daughter of Christojih and Mag- 
dalcna Barth, who came to the ITiited 
States in 1849, sailing from Havre, on the 
"Oregon," and landing in New York 
after a voyage of four weeks. Their 
destination was Green Bay, Wis. , so they 



3S^ 



COMMEMOHATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



proceeded by way of the Erie canal 
to Buffalo, N. v.. from there by the 
steamer •• Michigan " to Milwaukee, Wis., 
and thence by propeller to Green Baj'. 
The}' located in Scott township. Brown 
county. Mr. and Mrs. Eisenman tirst com- 
menced housekeeping in Eaton township 
in a log house he had built before his 
marriage, and which is still standing. In 
December, 1869, he removed to the farm 
where he died March 1, 1882, at which 
time he was the owner of 270 acres of 
land. For thirteen years before his death 
he was postmaster at Pine Grove, and he 
also conducted a hotel and saloon for the 
accommodation of travelers along the 
Manitowoc road. He was buried in the 
cemetery in the southeast corner of De- 
Pere township. In religious connection 
he was a member of the Lutheran Church 
at Green Bay. politically he was a Re- 
publican, and held the office of township 
clerk for si.xteen years. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Eisenman were born children as follows: 
Christoph, deceased in infancy; John C., 
a farmer of De Pere township: Lena, now 
Mrs. .Andrew Eisenman, of North Dakota; 
Maggie, wife of Louis Schone, of Hum- 
boldt township; Mary, wife of Richard 
Schone, of Humboldt: Amelia, Mrs. Otto 
Langosch, of Glenmore; Andrew .\., of 
Bellevue; Henry 1--. and IVed \., at 
home: Emma, of Chicago: and Lessetta, 
at home. 

Mr. Eisenman came to the United 
States a poor boy. with no capital but 
health and energy and a determination 
to succeed. But he was honest, and ever 
ready to work, and his success shows 
what may be accomplished by energy and 
perseverance. He became one of the 
most extensive landowners in his town- 
ship, and he was much esteemed by all 
who knew him. liecoming one of the 
leading German citizens of his section. 
His widow, who has continued to make 
her home on the farm since his death, is 
also held in high respect; her careful and 
economical management of the household 
affairs was no small factor in her husband's 



success, and she deserves great credit for 
the part she has taken in the accumulation 
of their property. She is a member of 
the Lutheran Church. The farm is now 
conducted by her two youngest sons, 
Henrv E. and Fred .A. 



FK.WK C. SMITH, of Green Bay, 
was born in Fort Howard, Brown 
Co., Wis., in 1852, a son of Michael 
B. and Josephine (Forsyth) Smith, 
the former of whom was born in Ger- 
many, but in early life came to America 
and took part in the war with Mexico, 
winning a medal for meritorious service 
on the field of Chapiultepec. 

Michael B. Smith married in Fort 
Howard, and engaged in the grocery, 
liquor and fur trade. In 1856 or 1857 
he moved to Sugar Creek, Door Co., 
Wis., and embarked in general merchan- 
dising, which he ci>ntinued until 1867 or 
I 868, when he settled in Green Bay, and 
here bought what is now the "Adams 
House. '■ but retired in 1S72. While at 
Sugar Creek he was postmaster and town- 
ship trustee, also a justice of the peace 
of Door county. His death took place at 
Fort Howard in December, 1877, that of 
his widow in Decenibcr, 1891. Mrs. 
Josephine (Forsyth) Smith first came to 
Brown county in 1S32, was married to 
John Snavcly. who located on the site of 
the -Bay City House ; " after his death 
she was married to Michael B. Smith. 
By the first marriage there were born 
George A. , proprietor of the ' ' Adams 
House;" Louisa, wife of David Coffin, of 
Gardner, Door Co. , Wis. ; Lewis C, who 
enlisted in the Seventeenth Wis. \. L, 
and died in Memphis, Tenn. To the 
second marriage were born Frank C, 
Nellie, wife of Louis Bender, of the Red 
Banks, Wis., and O. W. Smith, purchas- 
ing agent for Valentine Clark Co. , Chicago. 
Frank C. Smith was reared and edu- 
cated in Green Bay, and began business 
in the employ of the Manufacturers' & 
Builders' Supply Co. In 1873 he went 



OOMMEMORA TIVK lUOGUAPIlICAL RKCORD. 



383 



to Michasjamme. Mich., where lie en- 
t;aged in thf liqiinr business with (n'orge 
A. Sna\ely; in 1S74 he returned to dreen 
Ba\', and was eniplnwd as clerk at the 
"Adams House" nntil iS^y; tlieii went 
west, and was employed as first pantry- 
man on the "Dak(.)ta," pl>'in^ ln'twuen 
l^ismarck, D. T.,and l*"ort lu-nton, Nhint. 
Iveturnint; to Green l>,i\ he was ent;af;ed 
by Hon. D. M. Kelly to act under T. V. 
Bingham, private secrt'tary lor I). M. 
Kelly, general manager of the (in-rii I'.ay, 
Winon.i lV St. Paul railroad. .\ltcu the 
death of 1". P. Bingham in 1 SS4, Mr. 
Smith took up the liipuu' business in 
(jreen l>av,and is now proprietor of "The 
■Office," No. \2}, Washington street. 



A]-5. CONION, dealer in farming 
impkunents, .and oni' of theliest- 
knowii farmers of Scott township. 
Brown conntv, is a nati\'e of the 
county, born February 20, 1S47, in 
Green Bay. 

John 1). Gonion, his father, was born 
in St. iMancis, Canada, and wasof I'rench 
descent, his father ha\ing i)i'en born in 
France. He engaged in farnnng in his 
nati\-e countr\- until iS^q, in whicdi \H'ar 
he came to Green l>ay. Wis., and here 
married Miss Mary Ihanmctt, who was 
also of I'rench extraction. 'I"o tlu'ir union 
were born children as follows: A. )>., 
who is mentioned farther on; Dorninick, 
of Iron Mountain, \\'is. ; Sanuiel, of Khine- 
kuuier. Wis. ; Mar\-, Mrs. Theodore Cham- 



l)ou, of Wallace, Mich. ; L( 



Mrs. 



Abraham LaClare, of Menominc^e, Mich.; 
Josc])h, of Rhinelander, Wis. ; Kate, Mrs. 
John i^urkhardt, of Kaukauna, Wis. ; 
Edward, a farmer of Scott township, 
Brown connt\'; and others wlio are de- 
ceased. In an early ilav John Ix Gonion 
removed to Scott township, ,ind he and 
his wife are now living in Bay Settle- 
ment, he at the age of eightv years. In 
religion he is a Catholic, and in ]iolitics a 
Democrat. 

A. B. Gonion receivetl a somewhat 



limited education in his youth, and when 
but nine years of agecomiui'uccd to work, 
driving team and hauling hmr to Gicen 
Bay, remaining at home and luniiug all 
his earnings over to his ixireuts. t)n May 
20, 1864, then but little oxrr siwcnteen 
years of age, he eidisted at l'>a\' Settle- 
ment in Company G, l"ort\-lirsl Wis. V. 
I., was sent to MiKvaukce, and thence to 
the seat of war, the first engagement he 
participated in being at Memphis, Tenn. 
The command proceeded from there to 
Old Spring, Tenn., thence to La Grange, 
and then back to Memphis, where Mr. 
Gonion was discharged from the service 
Ianuar\-25, iS()5, being must 'red out in 
Milwaukee, and returning to the jxirental 
roof, where he remained mitd his marriage. 
On lune 9, 1866, he w. 'tided Miss 
F.mil\- ChamiHiu, who was boiii in Bay 
Settlement, daughter of Phili]) Champou, 
a French Canadian, and to this marriage 
were fiorn eight children, \i/. : Napoleon 
H., Idubert, lo.sejih, Mary, Fmily, Cliffer, 
Kosa, and Robert, all living. The mother 
of these was called from earth .\ngust 6, 
1887, and Mr. Gonion subsequently mar- 
ried Miss Emily Crevier, who is a native 
of .Scott township, daughter of b'rancis 
Crevier. To this union ha\e come foui" 
children: Mamie (living), and three that 
died young, .\ftcr his marriage our sub- 
ject commenced farming, an<l lolhnved 
that exclusively until 1880, wlu'u he also 
engaged in the sale of f.irming imple- 
ments, establishing his store on Main 
street, in the citv of Green Bay. He has 
continued in this business e\'er since, 
meeting with gratifying success, and is 
now- agent for the Osborne rea]>ers and 
other farm machinery; for fourteen years 
he handled the "Minnesota Chief" 
thresher, and the "Chamberlain Stump 
Puller," as well as many other leading 
makes in tlu^ same line. Politically a 
Republican, Mr. Gonion has for the ]iast 
seven years been the eiTicient chairman of 
Scott township, and he is widely and 
favorably known throughout his section 
of Brown county, having also an cxten- 



384 



COMMEMOItA TIVE BIOGItAPmCAL RECORD. 



sive acquaintance in other counties. So- 
cially he is a member of the (}. A. R. , 
T. O. Howe Post, No. 124, Cireen Bay. 
In religious faith he is a member of the 
Bav Settlement Catholic Church. 



DEUKRK OTTO ANDKKSEN, 
farmer and butcher of New Den- 
mark township. Brown county, 
was born April 13, 1844, in the 
Kingdom of Denmark. His parents, An- 
drus and Paulina (Nelson) Carlsen, had 
seven children, viz.: John, Peter, Christ, 
Catherine, Olof, Lars and Dedrick Otto. 
The father, who was a successful fisher- 
man, died when our subject was but a 
year and a half old. 

Dedrick Otto Andersen engaged in 
sailing, fishing and hunting from the time 
he was seventeen years old until he 
reached the age of twenty-two, when 
he came to America. Sailing from 
Liverpool, he landed at Onebec and 
immediately came to New Denmark 
township. Brown Co. , W'is. , after a 
few days going to Fort Howard, where 
he was employed in a sawmill one 
month. From there he went to Oconto, 
where he worked si.\ months in sawmills, 
and then, after spending two weeks in 
Ripon, W'is. , went to Pensaukee to work 
in the lumber woods. He remained there 
three years, in the employ of Mr. Thomp- 
son, and at the end of that time came to 
New Denmark and invested in eight}' acres 
of wild land, shortly afterward tlisposing 
of half of this tract. After clearing part 
of his land he exchanged it for property 
on the De Pere road, and opened a butcher 
business, which he has conducted ever 
since. In [876 he purchased the forty 
acres of cleared land in New Denmark 
township, on which he has ever since re- 
sided, engaging in farming as well as 
butchering. In 1S92 he slaughtered 200 
head of cattle, besides other stock, and 
has been very successful in all his busi- 
ness operations. 

Mr. Andersen was married in New 



Denmark township, to Miss Anna C. 
Paulsen, daughter of Paul and Sarah 
(Oleson) Nelson, the former of whom was 
a butcher; he had four children, Peter, 
Ole, Anna C. and Nels, of whom Anna C. 
crossed the ocean in 1869, landing in (.Que- 
bec; she came to Green Bay, where she 
remained about one year, and then passed a 
year in Eaton, Brown county. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Andersen have been born seven chil- 
dren, as follows : Sofus, Charles, Sarah, 
Almine, Mary, Olof and Emma. Politi- 
cally Mr. Andersen was originally a Re- 
publican, but has supported the Prohibi- 
ti(3n party since its organization. Though 
not an office seeker, he has been elected to 
various positions of trust, has served his 
township faithfully as supervisor, and is 
now a mend)er of the school board. 



Fll. 1 ri,LFR. the popular and 
trusted agent of the United States 
E.xpress Co., at Green Bay, was 
born in Peoria, 111., in 1865. His 
father, Marvin O. Fuller, is a native of 
New York, and was married in Peoria, 
III., to Miss Emma C. Evans, a native of 
Pennsylvania, and whose father is a mem- 
ber of the Peoria (111.) Candy Company. 
Our subject, after receiving a very 
good education in the public schools of 
his native city, entered the employ of the 
United States Express Co. in 1880, as 
clerk, and for thirteen years has been 
constant in the jierformance of his duties 
in various capacities, not having lost even 
one da\' from illness. In December, 1887, 
he came to Green Bay as messenger on 
the route between this city and Winona, 
Minn., but a few months later was ap- 
pointed route agent for the company, and 
then (1888), express agent at Green Bay, 
on the lines of the Chicago, Milwaukee & 
St. Paul, the Green Bay, \\'inona cS: St. 
Paul, and the Kewaunee, Green Baj' & 
Western, winning in each position the 
confidence of the company, and each 
year advancing in the esteem of its patrons. 
Mr. Fuller was married, in Mitchell,. 



COMMHMOUA TIVE BIOGUAPIIICAI. liECORD. 



3S5 



Iowa, August 26, 1892, to Miss Emma C. 
Vauderpool, a daughter of C". A. Vander- 
pool, of tfiat place. In jiolitics our sub- 
ject is a stanch Republican, and frater- 
nally he is a member of Twin City Lodge, 
No. 25, K. O. T. M. He is universally 
recognized as being one of the foremost 
of the young and promising residents of 
Green Bay, and as being made of that 
stuff which constitutes the best materials 
for aiding in the building up of a moral 
and progressive community. 



H 



M. HITTNER, M. 1)., the well- 
known physician and surgeon, of 
Green Bay, was born in Cincin- 
nati, Ohio, in iSOS, a son of Ur. 
H. M. and Margaret (Dohertyi Hittiier. 
The father was anati\eof Germanx', 
was educated at Munich, and at twenty 
years of age located in Cincinnati, Ohio, 
where he began practice. Through the 
Civil war he was assistant surgeon tt) 
Prof. Kepler, and after its close resumed 
his residence in Cincinnati, where he was 
for several years chief clinical assistant to 
Prof. Bartholow. He moved to Milwau- 
kee, Wis., in 1877, whence he moved to 
Two Ri\ers. W'is., where he died in 1892, 
and where his widow, a native of Ohio, 
still resides. They were the parents of 
six children, as follows: Li/zie, \\ife of 
H. \V. Luckon, of St. Paul. Minn. ; Dr. 
James, residing in Se_\inonr, Outagainie 
Co., Wis.; Maggie, married to |. R. Zet- 
tleman, of Chicago, 111. ; Dr. H. M., sub- 
ject of this sketch; Kate and Bertha. 

Our subject was nine years of age 
when taken by his ))arents to Milwaukee, 
and twelve years old whi-n they moved to 
Two Rivers, in 1880. His earlv educa- 
tion was received at Milwaukee, and in 
1882 he graduated from the high school 
at Two Rivers; he ne.xt attended Cincin- 
nati Busine.ss College, from which he 
graduated in 1884. He then read medi- 
cine with his father until prepared to 
enter Bellevue Hospital Medical College, 
New York, in which he took one course. 



1889-90, and this was followed by three 
consecutive courses at Rush Medical 
College, Chicago, 111., from which he 
was graduated with theclassof 1893, im- 
mediately after which he became the asso- 
ciate of Dr. Minahan, devoting his fore- 
noons to practice at St. Vincent's Hopital, 
and his afternoons to office practice. The 
Doctor has built up a lucrative practice at 
Green Bay, making a sjiecialty of surgery 
in connection with gt'iieral routine duties. 
He is equally popular with his fullow- 
proiessionals as with the public, and is a 
member of the Fox River Medical Society.. 



MRS. ELSIb: JORGENSEN wa.s- 
born December 15, 1852, in 
Denmark, daughter of Christ 
and Anna (Nelson) Jensen, the 
former of \\hom was a successful farmer. 
They had a family of nine children, viz.: 
Niels, James, Christ, Jens C, Dorothea, 
Elsie, Angeline, .\nna and Mary. IClsie 
receised all her education in Demnark, 
and when se\enteen _\ears old came to 
America, joining her parents in New Den- 
mark township, Briiwn Co.. Wis, . whither 
the\' had preceded Iht. About a year 
later she was united m marriage with 
Hans Jorgensen, a farmer of New Den- 
mark township, and took up her resi- 
dence on the farm where she has ever 
since resided, consisting of 120 acres of 
excellent land. At that time it was only 
partly cleared, but Mr. Jorgensen labored 
earnestly to reduce the ]ilace to a condi- 
tion of fertility, and successfully con- 
ducted a general farming business up to 
the time of his death, which occurred 
December 15. 1802. He left a family of 
eight children. namel\': .Arthur. Walter, 
Elsie ('Mrs. Herman Lange) Emma, Dag- 
mar, Alexander, .Alvina and furgcna, of 
whom Arthur, the eldest, now attends to 
the affairs on the home place. The en- 
entire family are held in the highest es- 
teem among their fellow citizens in New 
Denmark township. In religious faith 
they are Lutherans. 



386 



COMMEifORATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



CHARLES MEISTER has been 
superintendent of the Park at 
Green Bay since June 3, 1S90, 
but is a carpenter and contractor 
by occupation. He was born in Germany 
in 1852, and is a son of Christopli and 
Dorothea (Morlag) Meistcr, who came to 
Green Bay in 1853, the father being now 
the oldest contractor in the city. 

Charles Meister was reared and edu- 
cated in Green Bay, and here served an 
apprenticeship at the carpenter's trade, 
which, in connection with contracting, he 
followed until appointed to his present 
position. This park comprises tifty-eight 
acres, and contains an exhibition building, 
a club house, a grand stand, and one of 
the best half-mile tracks in the State, as 
well as quite a number of animals; it is 
also contemplated to build, in addition, a 
$10,000 club house. Mr. Meister is a 
Republican in politics, is a member of the 
Royal Arcanum, Order of Tonti, German 
Benevolent Society, and of the Turn- 
verein. His marriage took place in Green 
Bay, in 18S1, to Miss Frances Peters, a 
native of Kewaunee county. Wis., and a 
daughter of John Peters. Five children 
were born to this union, as follows: Lillie, 
Clare, Louis and Flora, still living, and 
Carl, deceased. As will be seen, Mr. 
Meister is a member of one of the early 
families of the county, and he has himself 
seen many changes take place since his 
childhood. He has always taken great 
interest in the welfare of the city and 
county, and his life has been such as to 
win the respect of all who know him, as 
well as a fine reputation with the general 
public. 



ARNOLD CORSTENS. Among the 
many industrious, loyal citi/ens 
which the little Kingdom of Hol- 
land has given to Brown county, 
may be mentioned this gentleman, who 
is a thrifty, well-to-do farmer of Scott 
township. 

John Corstens, father of Arnold, was 



born in Holland, September 10, iSio. 
and there learned the trades of shoemaker 
and tanner. He was married in his na- 
tive country to Dora Steegs, who was 
born there in August, 1S15, and they be- 
came the parents of the following named 
children: Arnold (whose name opens this 
sketch), Peter (a farmer of Scott town- 
ship), Catherine (Mrs. Joseph Lernuzen, 
of De Pere). all three born in Holland, 
and Hendrika, born in America, now 
Mrs. Joseph Allorn, of Door county. 
Wis.; there were other children, who died 
when young. At the time of his mar- 
riage John Corstens was engaged in a 
prosperous business, but, in 1854, be- 
lieving that the New World offered bet- 
ter advantages to himself and family, he 
disposed of his interests and emigrated. 
They proceeded to Liverpool, England, 
in the spring of that year, sailing from 
that port on a vessel bound for New York, 
where they arrived after a voyage of si.\ 
or seven w-eks, and immediately after land- 
ing came to Wisconsin, passing their first 
winter in Milwaukee, where the father 
found employment at his trade. They 
then came to Green Bay, Brown county, 
for about a year living on rented property, 
at the end of which time they removed 
to Bav Settlement. Scott township, where 
Mr. Corstens purchased six acres of land, 
on which there was a small log dwelling. 
In this house the family resided for some 
time, and he also engaged in shocmaking 
there to some extent, in connection con- 
ducting a small tannery until within a 
short time before his death. In later 
years he purchased more land, and with 
the help of his sons gathered a property 
of eighty-three acres. He was laid to 
rest in August, 1876, in Bay Settlement 
cemetery, where his wife also rests, she 
followinsr him to the grave December 18, 
18S9. Both were members of the Cath- 
olic Church, and in politics he was a 
Democrat, taking but little active interest, 
however, in such matters. 

.Vrnold Corstens was born January i, 
1847, and was but a child when he came 



COMMEMORA Tl VK lllOCU. I I'llK A I, liF.VOHl). 



3«/ 



with his parents to Wisconsin. He 
coinni .Miced f^oinj; to scliool in Scott 
township, and received ail his education 
in the primitive institutions of learning in 
vogue in those pioneer da^s, attending 
until he reached the age of ahoiit fifteen 
years, when he began to work on the 
home farm. In addition to his agricul- 
tural duties he learned the tr.ide of shoe- 
maker imder his fatiii'r, and also engaged 
in tanning in the old \vay. lieing the 
eldest son, hf hail niiicli to do, and he 
faithfully assistecl his parents, always re- 
maiiung on the home farm, the manage- 
ment of which (levol\-ed Upon him after 
the ili'atli of his father, and he carried it 
on for his mother during her liietime. 
Since her decease he and his brother 
Peter have been working togrlher, and 
the present firtile condition oi tlu: jilace, 
which now comprises 230 broad acres, is 
princijiallv due to their industry and un- 
ceasing attention to all the details of 
their work. 

On June 19, 1876. Mr. C.orstens was 
marr^e 1 to Miss Cornelia Busch, who was 
born in Green ]5a\', I'Y'brnarv (>, 1S56, 
tlaughter of lleiman |. Ihisch, a native 
of (ierman\. To (his uniou ha\c been 
horn children as follows: |olm, Her- 
man, Dora, Rosa, llenry, M,ir\', Lena, 
("icorge, and Andrew, .all living, and 
Peter and Joseph, who <lie(l in infanc\-. 
In his political jireferences Mr. C'orstens 
is a member of tlie Democratic party, 
init gives notiuK- to politics, being fully 
occupied with his business aff.airs. In 
religion he and liis wife ;ire members of 
the l'>av Settlement Catholic Chmcdi. 



R\l\. JACOBUS BOZMACK was 
born M.iy 1, 1S48, in Austria, son 
of Valentine and Constantia Boz- 
mack, who had a family of eight 
children, all of whom are deceased ex- 
ce|it our subject. The parents both died 
in their native country. 

Jacobus Bo;;mack received his early 
education in the common-schools of the 



land of his birth, and, at the age of 
twenty-seven years, enteic'd the priest- 
hood. In iS()3 he came to America, 
and alter a very rough xoj'age landed in 
New \'ork Citv, tlu'nee <omiiig diicctly 
to his charge in Maton township. Blown 
Coiintv, W'iseoiism. 



J0SI:PH HKBF.KT, vice-president 
and general manager ol the Creen 
Bay Carriage Co., is a native of 
< hiebee, Canada, born in 1850, of 
I'^reiieh ancestry. His p.iii'nts, Julian 
and S<iphia ([arard) Ilebert. also natives 
of ("anada, died in C'ohoes, New ^'ork. 

Our subject first came to Creen Bav, 
Wis., in I S6<), thenc'e moved to Missouri 
,and learned carriage-making; in 1872 
he v\'ent to New ^'ork, thence to Chicago; 
then again took np his residence in New 
York and other eastern cities, where he 
worked in car shops, etc , until 1877, the 
year of his comini; to Creen I'>ay, with 
which city he has been identified ever 
since — a fieriod now of some eighteen 
years. In 1877 he commenced work in 
the repair shops, and in 1 87(1 entered the 
manufacturing dejiartment ot the lirm of 
Wagner, Chartrand iS: Co., on Pirn' street; 
in 1883 the firm style was changed to 
Wagner, Sn.avelv i\: Co.; in 1886 Mr. 
Suavely sold his interest to Wagner cS: 
Hebert, and under this name the business 
was conducted until the organi;;ation of 
the C.reen Bay Carriage Co., which took 
plac(' in i8go, with A. Weise as president, 
H. B. Baker as secretary and treasiner, 
and |oseph Hebert as vice-president and 
managi>r, the object being to manufacture 
all kinds of carriage work. They have 
an extraordinarily fine plant, it being a 
two-story brick building, i JC> feet frontage 
on Adams street and 160 feet frontage on 
Cedar street, giving employment to fifty 
hands. This extensive establishment is 
considerc^d to be one of the conspicuous 
indiistri.al plants of the citv, and is looked 
upon witii much pride. 

Mr. Hebert was married in Cohoes, 



3SS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



X. v.. ill 1S71, to Matilda Maiuille. a 
native of Oueboc, Canada, and tliis iinii)n 
has been blessed with six children, viz. : 
Kosa, Henry, Lydia, Eva, Li/zie and 
Philemon. [•"ratcrnally Mr. Hebert is a 
nu'iubcr of Washington Lodge, No. 2i, 
V. \- .\. M., and of the Moiiern Wood- 
men; in politics he is a Kepublicaii, but 
is by no means an office-seeker. Having 
been for many years a resilient of Green 
Bay, he has, of course, witnessed its 
giant strides in the march of improve- 
ment, and not one of its citizens takes 
greater delight than ho in its progress. 
The family is recognized for its refine- 
ment and gracious manners, and is highly 
esteemed. 



WILLI.VM Ki:NNi:nV. chief of 
the Fire Department of Green 
Bay, was born, in 1862, in 
Canada. His parents, Henry 
and Mary (Fitz Gibbons) Kennedy, also 
natives of the Dominion, came, in 1872, 
to Wisconsin, and settled on a farm in 
Forestville townshi]i, Door cmintx', the 
tract comprising Soo acres, of which, onlv 
fifteen acres were cleared. (~)n this farm 
the parents still reside. Thev had born 
to them nine children, viz.: Ann, de- 
ceased; Sarah, deceased; Mar\'; Klla; 
Cornelius; James, deceased; William, our 
subject; Henry, deceased; and Michael. 
William Kennedy rendered consider- 
able assistance to his father in making 
the Door county farm habitable and 
profitable, and, at about the time of his 
majority, went to Sturgeon Bay, Wis., 
shortly afterward, in 1SS7, moving to 
Menominee, Mich., where he was con- 
nected with the Fire Department five 
years. From that point he came to 
Green Bav, and here organi/eii the paid 
Fire Department. From his exhaustive 
report to the common council for the 
year ending December 31, 1893, the fol- 
lowing extracts are made as showing the 
effective e()ui]iment of the Department : 
Twelve active members, besides the chief; 



seven horses; one Ainoskeag fire engine; 
three hose carts, to be drawn by two 
horses; one hook and ladder truck; two 
sleighs, for winter use; one set of truck 
bobs; two hand hose carts; .1,500 feet of 
two and one-half inch cotton lead hose, 
in first-class condition; 1,500 feet of two 
and one-half inch rubber lead hose, in 
good condition; two exercise wagons; two 
six-gallon extinguishers; two three-gallon 
extinguishers. 

In commenting on the service ren- 
dered by the Department, the chief re- 
marks: "I take pleasure in congratu- 
lating the citizens of Green Bay on the 
fact that they have escaped serious loss 
by fires during the past year. This goes 
to show the value of a Paid Department, 
by their prompt action in respoiuiing to 
the several alarms, and the successful 
way in which fires were handled. Al- 
though the Department has responded to 
thirty-seven alarms of fire, the total loss 
paid by insurance companies aggregate 
only $14,855.65; a fact which shows the 
great value of a well-equi]iped Depart- 
ment." It is to be regretted that the 
scope of this sketch affords no room for 
further extracts from this valuable re- 
port. 

The marriage of William Kennedy 
took place in Menominee, Mich., in 1891, 
to Miss Eliza Hayes, who was born in 
Saginaw county. Mich., a daughter of 
Martin and Mary (Waters) Hayes, natives 
of Canada. The twc> children' born to 
William Kenneily and his wife are named 
Gladdies and Martin Joseph. In his 
fraternal relations Mr. Kennedy belongs 
to the Royal Arcanum; in religion he 
and his wife are members of St. John's 
Catholic Church. 



JOHN VAN VONDEREN, one of 
the self-made prosperous agricultur- 
ists of Rockland township. Brown 
county, is a native of Holland, born 
July 9, 1835, son of John \'an V'onderen, 
a farmer, who died when our subject was 



commi:m()i:.\ rivr: iU(>(!i;.\riiirM. nrronn. 



3^9 



nillr 3rars oKI. Ili- \s as 1 \\ icf inavnrd, 
ami Icll st'\a'n Miiall cliiMrcu. t\M> smishy 
his first wife, ami Imii sons ami a iiaiii;ii- 
tcr hy ins sccdml, |iiliii Imiii^ llic cldrst 
chi (I born to the sccoml iiiairia,L;i'. 

The family lived on a rented farm, ami 
the eliildreii ((immeneed to work as soon 
as tlie\' could he ol assistance, so that 
|ohn had \erylinnted oppoi 1 unit ii'S for 
ail education, attending; school hut lilth' 
after his father's deatli. In iSoj he 
niarrit'd Miss |oanna l>e(iioot, who was 
hoin |une ^, i'*^.>5. in Holland, and in 
that coimtr\' three children were horn to 
them: John, who is now a farmer ol l\ock- 
land townsliip; Harney, of l)e I'ere, and 
Catherine, Mrs. I'eter De I hihle, of De- 
Fere, In 1867 Mi. \'an X'ondert'n sold 
what property he had in llolland, ;ind 
sailed with his family from Kotteidam to 
(ilasj^DW, where tlu'V <'nd)arked on a \essel 
l)oimd for New ^'ork, in which city they 
arri\ed after a stormy voyaj;e of twenty- 
three days. Thiw innnediateiy set out 
lor Wisconsin, and on May arri\ed at 
Little ("hute, (^ntai;amie conntw where 
tlie\' I'enled land and made theii' home 
for two years. ( )n Nhireh 12, i8()i), tiiey 
came to Rocklaml township, l-Jrown 
county, and pine hased (on credit) a tract 
of eighty acies, tliirt\ of whic h li.id heeti 
cleari'd. Here the lannK li\cd in a 
smali loj;' house, and Mr. \'an N'oiideren 
lahori'd dilij^cMith' to clear and improve 
his farm, an arduous task, hut one in 
which he has met with unl)ounded suc- 
cess, lie has also increased the area of 
the |)lace, which now (i miprises 1 20 acres 
ol prime land acipiired h\' \'ears of 
earnest, unremitt inj; toil, and he has won 
the res])ect of all who know him for in- 
dustry and honesty. ()n this farm cJiil- 
dren as follows ha\c heen horn: Chris- 
tina, who died youuf;; Christina ( j), Mrs. 
Ilenry \'er Strateii; Annie, {''rank and 
Mary, at home; and Hattic. William and 
William (2), all three deceased. One 
child was horn at l.ittle Chute. iKimely 
Andrew, who is now a resilient of l)e- 
Pere towiishii). Our subject is a Demo- 



( rat \\\ Ins pnhlual preferences, and h.is 
sei \ ed as treasurer ol the s( hi>ol boar<l 
lor tweKc yeais. In relii;ious ccjunei tion 
the fanuK aie memheis of St. Mary's 
Clnuih, :it i)e i'er<'. 



H 



.\NS 11.\NS1':N, de;der m taiin 
implements. New 1 )rnm,irk tow n- 
ship, Ihdwn count)', is a native 
of the l\mL;dom of l>enmark, l)orti 
Antjnst 2S, 1 S40. \\c is a son ol K'.isnms 
and .Anna C. (Clsoui Hansen, who weie 
the p:irenls o| ele\en children, \i/. : 
Catlierine, Hans, Mary, Niels, ji'us, 
I'eter, Christ and Stine, and three that 
died in iiifanc\ . The hither w;is a lisln-r- 
iiian liy occiip.it ion, ,ind. as the lamily 
was a lart;e one, the children were ohlii.;i'(l 
to assist as soon as tluw were old enoui;h 
to work. 

Hans Hansen served as a soldier in 
liis native country under l'"rederick \li 
and Christian IX, and subse(iuently was 
in the g'ONernment enipliw as a sta^e 
dri\'er. He continued thus until I SC>7, 
when he decideil to seek his fortune m 
.\im'ric;i, and leaxin;; Denmark he pro- 
ceeded to laverjiool, ICnijlaud, and em- 
barked on an out wiird-bound \a'ssel, land- 
ing; in niiebec .after a ]Tle:is;int and com- 
parati\el\ short vo\;i!.;e. lie came 

thence to Creen l^ay, A\'is. , and thence 
to Oconto, wiiere lie commenced work in 
a sawanill, ami, after enga'jinj; in that oc- 
cupation for two years, went to I'ond dii 
I.ac, where \w was etnplo\i-d (Ui a laiin 
for about a \'ear. Cominj;' from tliere 
direct 1\ to Niwv Denmark townsliip. Brown 
county, he purchased a ti'act of ei^lity 
acres, totally unimi)roved,and coinmenced 
at once to clear it and prejiare the land 
for cultivation, but as he li;i.l little ex- 
perience in this line, the work at first 
pro<jressed very slowly. On June \Ci, 
1870, he was united in marriat^e with 
Mary ("Van ScRf^ern) Asterloh, and they 
immediately came to the farm, where they 
shared all the hardshijis and privations of 
those early years in the wilderness. Their 



390 



C0AIMEMUHAT1\K BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



union has been blessed with eight chil- 
dren, as follows: Rasmus P., Henry 
William, Herman H., Anna C, M. C, 
Fred M., Christ H., and Charles N. T.. 
who died in infancy. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hansen lived in a log 
house on the farm for twenty-two j'ears, 
at the end of which time he disposed of 
his farm and built a saloon; subsequently 
he commenced to deal in farm imple- 
ments, and now carries on both businesses, 
meeting with gratifying success. In polit- 
ical connection Mr. Hansen has always 
been identified with the Republican party, 
and has served in various official positions 
in his township and county, as follows: 
As deputy sheriff, four years; town as- 
sessor, two years; constable, eight years; 
and justice of the peace, five years, giving 
satisfaction to all concerned, and winning 
the respect of all who have had dealings 
with him. In religions faith he and his 
wife arc members of the Lutheran Church. 



JOHN CALMAX. who, during his'life- 
time, was a well-known farmer of 
De Pere township. Brown county, 
was a native of County Cork, Ire- 
land, born January 7, 1822. His father, 
Dennis Caiman, was a farmer, and for a 
number of years rented land in County 
Cork, but later the family took up their 
residence in the city of Cork, where John 
spent a portion of his boyhood da\s. 

When a young man our subject came 
to the United States, and for some time 
worked in a type foundry in Boston, 
Mass. His father had died, and after 
John secured employment he sent for his 
widowed mother, who came to the home 
he had provided, accompanied by his 
brother, William, and sister, Hannah. 
In 1S52 John, with his brothers, Denm's 
and William, came westward to Wiscon- 
sin, and located on a farm in De Pere 
township. Brown county, where he passed 
the remainder of his life. -At that time it 
was all in the woods, an Indian trail be- 
ing the only road from De Pere, and here 



! they built a small log shanty for ihem- 
I selves, their mother and sister residing, in 
the meanwhile, in De Pere, which was 
i then but a small village. After a resi- 
dence of four years on this farm John 
Caiman returned to Boston, where he w-as 
shortly afterward united in marriage with 
Miss Kate HefTernan, also a native of the 
Enieral Isle, born in 1828 in the Parish 
of Glenmore. County Kilkenny, daughter 
of John Heffernan, who died in Ireland. 
Kate Heffernan came to the United 
States in 1850 with her brother-in-law, 
Thomas Fanning, crossing the Atlantic in 
four weeks, and locating in Boston, where 
she was yet living at the time of her mar- 
riage. 

After their union Mr. and Mrs. Cai- 
man spent a year and a half in Boston, 
where he was again employed in a type 
foundry, and here one child, Mary H., 
now Mrs. Thomas Connelly, of De Pere 
township, was born. He then brought 
his wife and child to De Pere township, 
Brown Co., Wis., and they took up their 
home on the farm, where his mother and 
brother, Dennis, also resided. The other 
brother, William, had gone to California, 
where he is yet living, and John and 
Dennis Caiman farmed together until the 
latter's death, when John took entire 
charge of the place. He cleared and 
improved it, and added thereto, until at 
the time of his death he had a fertile, 
highly-cultivated tract of two hundred 
acres. This was the direct result of years 
of patient industry and unrelenting toil, 
for when he purchased the place it was a 
veritable wilderness. He was a thor- 
oughly self-made man. having, from a 
start of nothing but a strong will and de- 
termination to succeed, become a pros- 
perous farmer and a highly-respected 
citizen. He passed from earth October 
31, 1890, and was buried in De Pere 
cemeterv. In religious connection he 
was a member of St. Francis Catholic 
Church, of which he was trustee for 
years. Politically he was a strong sup- 
porter of the principles of the Democratic 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPIIICAL RECORD. 



391 



part\-, and as sucli was elected chairman 
of the township for two years, discharg- 
inf; the duties of his office witli ability and 
credit and to the complete satisfaction of 
his constituents, l)ut he declined re-elec- 
tion on account of failing:; health. To 
Mr. antl Mrs. Caiman were born children 
as follows; Dennis, now a farmer of 
South Dakota; Ellen, now a resident of 
Den\er. Colo. ; Kate, also in Den\er, 
Colo. ; Esther, William, and John, at 
home; and Alice, a school teacher, of 
Seymour, Wis. Since Mr. Caiman's 
decease his widow has continued to make 
her home on the farm, which is now 
conducted by the younger sons, William 
and John. She is a memlicr of St. 
Francis Church, De Pere, and is highly 
respected in the community in which she 
resides. 



GEORGE W. H.WDEN. farmer 
and ex-soldier, of Pittstield town- 
ship. Brown county, was born in 
Fit/william, N. H., May i, 1839. 
His parents were Silas and Betsey Hay- 
den, who reared a family of thirteen chil- 
dren, of whom, howe\er. our subject is 
the only one li\ing. 

George W. Hayden was but thirteen 
years of age when his parents sold their 
farm in the East and came to Wisconsin, 
settling on a tract of forty acres of wild 
woodland in Pittsfield township. Brown 
county, among the Indians, bears and 
wolves. They were a hardy couple, and 
the mother, on one occasion, walked to 
and returned from Green Bay in one day, 
after her si.xtieth birthday, bearing a bur- 
den of twenty pounds. Of their large 
family only four of the children lived to 
come \\'est to aid their parents in car\ing 
out a home from the wilderness. When 
our subject was but fourteen years old an 
axe was placed in his hands, and from 
that time onward he has earned his own 
living. The first winter he worked in the 
woods at twelxc dollars per month, but 
later on his pay was increased to twenty 



dollars, the highest price then paid to 
woodsmen. The father kept steadily at 
work clearing up his land, and added si.x 
acres to his original forty. Mrs. Hajden 
died in 1869, antl her remains are in- 
terred in the Rural Cemetery at Flintville. 
George W^ Hayden remained with his 
parents until 1861, when he responded to 
his country's call and enlisted in Company 
H, Twelfth Wis. \'. I., being assigned to 
the army of the Tennessee, under Sher- 
man. He obtained a furlough of thirty 
days, however, came home and married 
Alice E. Brown, daughter of James and 
Abigail (Tillbrook) Brown, of the State of 
Maine, where the father had been a fish- 
erman. They came to Wisconsin about 
the year 1855 and settled at Mills Center, 
Pittsfield townshij), on land jiurchased by 
Mr. Brown, on wdiich tiiey lived until 
1863, when they sold out and moved to 
the northern part of the township, where 
the father died, after whicli the mother 
lived with her daughter, Mrs. Hayden. 
His thirty-days' furlough having expired, 
Mr. Hayden rejoined his regiment and 
took part in all its marches and engage- 
ments until his discharge, at Louisville, 
Ky., July 16, 1S65. He had fought at 
' the siege of \'icksburg, at Chattanooga 
and at Atlanta, antl had followed Sher- 
man to the sea, experiencing hardships 
and privations that very few could endure, 
but during all his long service was in hos- 
pital only two weeks. When he returned 
home he took possession of a forty-acre 
tract of land he had purchased from the 
Fox River Improvement Company, on 
which no tree had yet been felled. He 
cleared a space large enough for the frtaiie 
dwelling, in which he still li\es, and the 
work of clearing was prosecuted with vigor 
initil the wilderness was roiujuered. He 
has increased his possessions to 160 acres, 
and is altogether prosperous, his elder 
sons of late vears having assisted him 
materially. He has had born to him 
eight children, viz.: Clare (deceased in 
infancy), William, Charles, George, 
Frank. Carrie, and Har\(V and Harrv 



392 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



(twins). Mr. and .\Ir.s. Hayden are mem- 
bers of the Congregational Church, and 
in p(jiitics Mr. Hayden is a KepubHcan, 
and cast his first vote for Abraham 
Lincohi. 



PKTEK KOL15, postmaster at Kolb, 
and one of the well-known citizens 
of I)e Pere township, Brown 
county, is a native of the village 
of Bruttig. Rhenish Prussia, born June 
24, 1S28. His father, Gottfried Kolb, 
who was a boatman on the river Moselle, 
was twice married, and became the father 
of twenty-one children, of whom our sub- 
ject was the third son and the si.xth child 
in order of birth. 

Peter Kolb attended school until he 
was fourteen years of age, after which he 
worked with his father as ferryman. 
Peter's mother died when he was six vears 
old. Having received some monev from 
her estate, he, in the spring of 1S52, bade 
farewell to his home and friends, and set 
out for the United States. He first pro- 
ceeded to Antwerp, from which port he 
sailed, landing, after an ocean voyage of 
two months, in New York Citv, April 10, 
1S52. His destination was Green Bav, 
Wis., where some of his schoolmates had 
previously located, and thither he jour- 
neyed, going by rail to Buffalo. N. Y., 
where, after a delay of two or three weeks, 
waiting for navigation to open, he took 
passage on the steamer "Michigan," and 
arrived in Green Bay about May 10. He 
immediately went to Peshtigo, Wis., and 
for four years was employed in the mills at 
that place. He also spent a winter at 
Meeme, Manitowoc county, where his 
sister, Gertrude ''who had come to the 
United States a short time after him), was 
residing, and it was here he met the ladv 
who soon afterward became his wife. Miss 
I^fargaret Adolff. She was born in 18 v. 
in Munster Mayfeld, Coblent/, Germany, 
daughter of Rhinearous Adolff, who came 
to the United States in i8t;4 The vonn? 
couple were married March 31, 1857, and 



shortly afterward took up their residence 
on Main street, in Green Bay, where Mr. 
Kolb. having saved some mone}', had pur- 
chased a home of his own. Being a skill- 
ful mechanic, he erected his own house, 
and they resided there one year, when he 
sold the place and moved to Meeme, 
Manitowoc county, where for si-N years 
they lived on rented land. During this 
time he was also engaged in clearing land. 
In July, 1863, he came to the farm in De- 
Pere township. Brown county, where he 
has ever since made his home, situated in 
Section 33, Township 23, Range 2i- He 
first purchased forty acres, but half of 
which was cleared, and an old log house 
was the only residence the place afforded; 
but he added to the farm until at one time 
it comprised 236 acres, and he now has 
t86 acres. In addition to his agricultural 
labors he also conducts a saloon on the 
farm. To Mr. and Mrs. Kolb have been 
born children as follows: Jacob, a farmer, 
of De Pere; Peter, residing in Green Bay; 
Margaret, now Mrs. Michael Coregan, of 
De Pere township; Elizabeth, living at 
home; .\nna, Mrs. Nicholas Meyer, of 
Menasha, Wis. ; Joseph, a farmer of De- 
Perc township; and Anton, of Seymour, 
Outagamie county. 

Mr. Kolb's life presents a striking ex- 
ample of what may be accomplished by 
industry, prescrvancc and a strong, willing 
pair of hands. On landing in Green Bay 
in the spring of 1852, he found himself 
four dollars in debt ; but not allowing 
himself to become discouraged, he set to 
work, engaging at any honest labor he 
could find, and always working with the de- 
termination to succeed. He was anxious to 
have a comfortable home of his own, and 
after purchasing his land he spent many 
years of hard, unrelenting toil in its culti- 
vation and improvement. He is one of 
the few old settlers in De Pere township, 
now living, who have endured the trials 
and hardships of those early times, and, 
though now over sixty-six 3'ears of age, he 
is still hale and hearty. He is well known 
in his community, and is highly respected 






.■"St. 








fr;l% 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOURAPUICAL RECORD. 



395 



by all who knuw him. In his pulitical 
affiliations llr. Kolb is a stanch member 
of the Democratic party, always support- 
ing its principles in State and National 
elections, hut in local affairs he votes in- 
dependently, selecting the best man, re- 
gardless of politics. He has filled \arious 
offices in his township; for tweh'e _\ ears 
he served satisfactorily as chairman, de- 
clining further re-election; for five years 
he was supervisor, an office which came to 
him unsolicited ; and since 1S87 he has 
been postmaster at Kolb, Brown county, 
which office was named after him. In 
religious connection he and his wife are 
members of the Cathedral Church at 
Green Bay. 



NICHOLAS WEBER, a well-known 
resident of the township of De- 
Pere, Brown Co., was born in 
1S40, in Luxemburg, Germany. 
He came with his parents to America, 
locating with the famil\- in New Denmark 
township. Brown Co., Wis., where they 
shared the hardshijis and privations inci- 
dent to pioneer life. For many winters 
our subject worked in the lumber re.gions, 
and he specially remembers one winter 
spent at Pensaukee, when he e.xperienced 
trials and dangers that few would be able 
to withstand. He also worked for sev- 
eral firms in New Denmark township, 
and liis work was invariably so satisfactory 
that he could always find employment 
with the same ccmpany a second time. 
In 1865 he enlisted in Company F, Fif- 
tieth Wis. V. I., and served until the fall 
of the same year, when he was discharged, 
returning home at once. 

In 1866 Mr. Weber was married to 
Miss Catherine Daniels, whose father, 
Mathias Daniels, and mother died when 
she was an infant. Our subject purchased 
eighty acres of new land in De Pere town- 
ship, which he cleared and improved, re- 
siding thereon until 1892, when he sold it, 
and now makes his home with his chil- 
•dren. To Mr. and Mrs. Webor were 



born nine children, \iz. ; Hubbard, Nich- 
olas, Mathias, Annie, Catherine, Josie, 
Joseph, Mary and Ceorge, all of whom 
have received good educational advan- 
tages. The mcjther of this family was 
called from earth February 7, 1891, 
deeply mourned b\- her family and friends. 
She was a member of the Catholic Church 
at Pine Grove, as is also her husband. 
Politically he is a Democrat, and takes 
nmch interest in the welfare of his party. 



ABBOTT WILLIAM SLAUGH- 
TER, M. I)., was born December 
I, 1S60. at Westport, Mo. (a 
submb of Kansas City), son of 
Alfred and Laura (Abbott) Slaughter. 

The Slaughters come of an old Virginia 
family of English and Scotch ancestry, 
who came to America during Colonial 
times. The proverbial three brothers 
figure in the family, and the progenitor of 
this present family settled in Virginia, 
where they became prosperous, well-to-do 
planters, representing one of the old aris- 
tocratic families of that State. According 
to the customs of the country they held 
slaves, to whose interests they were as de- 
\-oted as if the\' belonged to the famil\, 
the slaves being well fed, well clothed, 
housed andprovided for. Crauilfather Wil- 
liam Slaughter owned 1,800 acres of land 
in Culpeper county; his father, William, 
lived in Rappahannock count)-. The 
grandfather was a large-hearted man, hav- 
ing a big, robust frame, and well built. 
He was a strong believer in Democratic 
principles and State Sovereignty, a leader 
in his neighborhood in all matters pertain- 
ing to literary and political matters and 
local government, was well educated, and 
a lawyer bv profession. He was chosen 
judge of the people, led a noble life, es- 
teemed and beloved by all, rea(-hed a good 
old age, and quietly passed awa\- one day 
while sitting in a chair. He was the 
father of a large family, of whom on 
Daniel F. Slaughter, of Virginia, and .\ - 
fred SlauLfhtc" --f Green Bav, are yet liv- 



39^ 



COMMEMORATIVK BtOGIiAPUlCAL RECORD. 



iiij;. The hitter was born in Culpeper 
county, \'a.. where he received his pri- 
mary education, and, makinj; teaching his 
profession, taught about forty-three years, 
during which time he was principal of 
Lexington (Mo.) High School about nine 
years, of the Prairie Home Institute also 
nine years, and principal of the McCune 
College, Louisiana, Mo., five years. He 
also taught as principal in the Glenviile 
(Ky.) school two years, but receiving a 
stroke of paralysis was disabled from fol- 
lowing his chosen profession longer. 
Chiefly self-educated, he was at the same 
time well educated, and was a typical gen- 
tleman of the old Southern school of chiv- 
alry; he now resides with his son in Green 
Bay. He married Miss Laura Abbott, 
of West \'irginia, who is yet living, and 
their marriage was blessed with three 
children : Louisa Frances, Laura Slaugh- 
ter, and Abbott William, our subject. 

Dr. Slaughter received his literary edu- 
cation principally from his father, and his 
boyhood dream being to relieve pain and 
help the sick and afflicted, he entereil the 
office of Dr. S. B. Ayers, of Louisiana, 
Mo., a prosperous, prominent physician. 
In i8Si he entered St. Louis Medical 
College, where he studied faithfully dur- 
ing a three-years' term, graduating in 
1 884. The young Doctor at once located 
in Silex, Mo., where in three years he 
built up a large practice; thence moved 
to Whiteside, where he also practiced 
three years, and later, in 1888, attend- 
ed the Louisville (Ky.) Post - Graduate 
School. That spring he returned to 
^^'hitesi(l(^ where he continued practice 
until 1892 He was then induced to come 
to Green Bay in order to enter into part- 
nership with Dr. F. L. Louis, which part- 
nership continued about one 3-ear. He 
has built up a good practice and enjoys 
the confidence and esteem of the people 
to an eminent degree. 

The Doctor was married in Carson, 
Mo., at the old homestead of his wife's 
grandparents, to Ruth Keeds, who was 
educated at the Montgomery High School. 



She is the mother of three children : Al- 
fred (who died at the age of six years), 
Laura Louisa, and Delias. Dr. and Mrs. 
Slaughter are both active members of the 
Baptist Church. He is afliliated with the 
F. & A. M. and K. O. T. M., is a mem- 
ber of the Fox River Valley Medical So- 
ciety, and the American Medical Socie- 
ty, the latter being a national associa- 
tion. Politically he is identified with the 
Democratic party. 



J.\MES SMITH, a prominent citizen 
of Dc Pere township. Brown county, 
where, in partnership with his 
brother, Alexander, he is success- 
fully engaged in general farming, is a 
native of Banffshire, Scotland, born May 
I, 1855, son of George and Isabell Smith, 
who both died in their native lantl. They 
had nine children, namely: Isabella, 
John, George, Helen, James, Adam, 
Margaret, Alexander, and Christina. 

The first of this family to leave Scot- 
land was the son George, who immi- 
grated to the United States in 1872. and 
coming to Wisconsin, settled in Brown 
county, where he passed the remainder of 
his life. He followed farming, renting 
land in tiifferent parts of the county, 
mostly in Rockland township, and died 
March 27, 1891, in De Pere township, on 
the farm now owned by his brothers 
James and Alexander. George Smith 
was for many years a sufferer from pa- 
ralysis, which rendered him helpless, and it 
was principally on this account that his 
brother James came to America. 

James Smith was educated in the 
common schools of his place of birth, 
and lived with his parents until he reached 
the age of fifteen, when he commenced to 
work as a farm hand. When twenty 
years old he commenced to learn garden- 
ing, and served a three-years" apprentice- 
ship at Hatton Castle, at the conclusion 
of which he became head gardener for a 
Scotch gentleman Watson, of Blackford, 
in which position he remained one year. 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



397 



111 June, 1 88 1, Mr. Siiiitli decided to 
come to the United States to care for his 
invahd brother, George, and accordingly 
took passage at Liverpool, England, on 
the " City of Montreal," for New York, 
whence he immediatel_y proceeded to his 
destination, De Pere, Wis., arriving June 
27. He came here with money he had 
earned and saved himself, ami soon after his 
arrival he became interested, in company 
with his brother, in general agriculture 
and stock-buying. In 1887 he ])urchased 
his present farm of seventy-si.\ acres, and 
shortly afterward moved thereon. In 
connection with this farm he now owns 
another tract of eighty acres, and on this 
land he and his brother Alexander conduct 
a profitable general farming business. 

Alexander Smith was born July 29, 
1863, in Banffshire, Scotland, received a 
public-school education, and was reared 
to farming. In 1886 he sailed from Cdas- 
gow on the "State of Nebraska," and 
came directly to Wisconsin, where he and 
his brother James are now engaged in ag- 
ricultural pursuits. For sex'eral years 
after coming to W^isconsiii the brothers 
spent the winter months in the lumber 
camps, and b(jth are thoroughly familiar 
wqth the hardships and dangers of lum- 
bering. As agriculturists they are thor- 
oughly progressive, and, being full of de- 
termination and energy, have made a 
complete success. James Smith is a nat- 
ural mechanic, and has fitted up a black- 
smith shop on the farm, where he attends 
to all work in that line needed liy a farmer, 
shoeing his own horses, etc. He and his 
brother are self-made in e\'ery respect, 
and, though they have not resided in the 
township for any great numlier of years, 
are highly esteemed for their industrious 
habits and sterling worth. They lia\-i_' won 
and kept an enviable reputation for up- 
rightness and fair dealing, and are ever_v- 
where regarded as substantial business 
men and model citizens. The brothers 
are both members of the Republican 
party, and ardent advocates of the prin- 
ciples of Protection; in religious faith 



they are members of the Presbxterian 
Church. They are both unmarried, Mrs. 
George Smith, their brother's widow, 
keeping house for them. 



WILLIAM HOFFMAN. While 
transmitting to posterity the 
memory of such men as is the 
subject of this sketch, it will 
instill in the minds of our children the im- 
portant lesson that honor and station are 
the sure reward of continual I'Xertion; and 
that, compared to u good educatinu, 
abundant experience, coupled witli habits 
of honest industry and judicious econonu', 
the greatest fortune would l)e but a poor 
inheritance. 

Mr. Hoffman is a natiw of Germain', 
born December 14, 1831, in Nenstadt-on- 
the-Warthe, in the Pro\ince of Posen. 
In that town, as far back as the history 
of the family can be traced, the Hoffmans 
were merchants of high standing. Dr. 
Wolf Hoffman, grandfatherof (.nir subject, 
was an educated man and occiiiiied a 
l)roniinent position among his fellow-citi- 
zens. He died at an advanced age, leav- 
ing an honorable record as a useful, con- 
scientious man and a true Christian .gen- 
tleman. He had a large family, of whom 
one son, Louis, learned mercantile busi- 
ness, but while yet a young man he was 
pressed into the army of Najioleon I, who 
had just overrun Prussia on his triumph- 
ant march on Russia. Young Louis Hoff- 
man participated in this memorable cam- 
paign, and marched as far as Moscow, 
the burning of which magnilicent city, by 
the Russians themselves, he witnessed; 
and then, in the depth of a terrible winter, 
the French commenced that fatal and 
fearful retreat southward that disorgan- 
ized and destroyed the grandest army that 
ever followed the banners of Napoleon. 
When the Prussian contingent neared 
their native land, thev deserted the b'rench 
eagles, uniting with the German troops, 
and in turn fought against Napoleon. 
.\t the close of his ser\ice, Lf)iiis Hoffman 



39S 



COMMEMOHATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL liECORD. 



returned to liis home in Xeustadt, and 
became a prosperous j^eneral merchant, 
well known and hij^hly respected. By 
his first wife, who was also a native of 
Neustadt-on-theW'arthe, he had four chil- 
dren, as follows: Michael, Augusta, Ida, 
and Minnie. For his second wife he 
wedded Hannah Neuman, and they had 
eight children, viz. : Rosalie, Bertha, 
Rebecca, Fredericka, William, Adolph, 
Hanchen and Isidor. The father died at 
the age of seventy-eight years, the mother 
when eighty-two. 

The ninth in the order of birth of all 
the children above named is William, the 
subject of this sketch. He was educated 
at the public schools of his native town, 
and, when in his fifteenth year, started out 
into the world to seek his fortune on his 
own individual merits. Proceeding to 
London, England, he there found em- 
ployment at various kinds of work, and, 
after a sojourn of one year in the me- 
tropolis of the world, journeyed to Liver- 
pool, where he took passage for America. 
The good ship " West Point" arrived at 
New York in February, 1848, after a 
pleasant voyage, and here our subject 
found employment as clerk in a general 
store, where he remained till January, 
1852. At this time he turned his e\es 
westward, and, determining to try his for- 
tune in California, set out with bright 
hopes and stern resolutions, his route 
being via the Isthmus of Panama direct 
to San Francisco, where, after clerking 
about one year, he opened a clothing store 
on his own account. In this enterprise 
he met with well-merited success, al- 
though he had the misfortune to be burned 
out twice. After the first fire he engaged 
in mining in the "gold diggings," but 
this not being so congenial to his nature 
as merchandising, he soon returned to 
San Francisco, and again opened a gen- 
eral store. In 1857 he sold out, and, 
coming north to Chicago. 111., embarked 
in the flour and feed business, which in 
turn he solil out the following year (1858), 
and, attracted b\' the promising outlook 



in Wisconsin, came "with lousiness in- 
tent " to the town of Sharon, near where 
he had some friends living. Here he opened 
a store, which at the end of about a year 
he left in charge of his brother-in-law, 
Henry Mitchell, and for the benefit of his 
health took a trip to Clayborn, Ala. 
There he clerked during the first winter 
and following spring, selling his establish- 
ment in Sharon, Wis. (whither he re- 
turned for that purpose), again went south, 
and for another winter clerked in a store 
in Alabama. At this time, the Civil war 
having broken out, he was pressed into 
the Confederate army, but took the first 
opportunity to escape, leaving behind all 
his possessions. Coming north with com- 
mendable speed, he arrived in Chicago, 
111., in May, i86i, and here he remained 
until the following September, when he 
once more turned his steps in the direc- 
tion of Wisconsin. 

At Janesville, on the 17th of that 
month, he was married to Miss Malinet 
A. Pease, daughter of Enos and Lucy 
(Finley) Pease, of Marengo, 111. , and 
shortly afterward the young couple came 
to Green Bay. Here, in partnership with 
Mr. Philip I^ewin, Mr. Hoffman opened 
a clothing store, the firm name being 
Hoffman & Lewin, which so continued 
until 1868, when Mr. Lewin sold out his 
interest to his partner and moved to 
Philadelphia. Since then our subject has 
conducted the business in part alone, and 
in part asssociated with his sons Louis 
and George, with unbounded success — a 
success in every sense well merited, as 
his stock is at all times thoroughly replete 
in all departments, whilst the proprietor 
himself, for courteous and gentlemanly 
bearing, consummate business tact, un- 
flagging enterprise and tireless energy, 
has established for himself an enviable 
and wide popularity. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Hoffman have been 
born six children, to wit : Bertha is the 
wife of l-'rank Topliff, a merchant of 
Oshkosh, Wis.; Louis Wolf and George 
P. are associated with their father in 



COMMEMORA TIVE BHiGHAPJIIVA L RECORD. 



599 



business, Louis traveling in the interest 
of the merchant tailoring department; 
Ada B. died in infancy ; Elmer A. died 
in his nineteenth year; Harold \\ . , the 
youngest, is at home with his parents. 
Mr. Hoffman, in politics is a Democrat ; 
he was elected alderman of the First 
ward, and has served as such, in all, the 
long period of eighteen years, a fact that 
in itself testifies to his popularit\' as well 
as the esteem in which he is held. I^'or 
about fifteen years he was a nienilier, 
and for a consideral)le time foreman, of 
the old (ireen Bay Fire Company, 
"Guardian No. 2." Socially he is a 
member of the F. & A. M., I. O. O. F.. 
and K. of P. , Green Bay, of which latter 
order he is a charter member. 



M 



AJOR LEVI HOWLAND, real 
estate and lumber dealer, F"ort 
Howard, and member of the 
Vermillion Range Lumber Com- 
pany of Minnesota, is descended from 
sturd}' New England ancestry. Heisone 
of nine children born to Thomas and 
Elizabeth (Davis) How land, the former 
of whom was a nati\'e of New Bedford, 
Massachusetts. 

\Mien si.xteen years of age Thomas 
Howland came with his parents, John 
Howland and wife. fr(.)m Massachusetts, 
and settled on a farm in Brown county, 
Ohio, which borders on the Ohio river 
and is also noted as having been for a 
number of years the home of the Grant 
family, Gen. Grant himself h;i\ing been 
appointed to West Point from that county. 
John Howland died in that locality. His 
son, Thomas, married a daughter of Vir- 
ginia, who was at that time a resident of 
Kentucky, and in 1831 removed to Cook 
county, 111., then on the border of west- 
ern settlements. In 1835 he took up a 
farm in Kenosha county, Wis., and lived 
in that State for many years. While a 
resident of Illinois, in 1832, he served as 
a soldier in the memorable Black Hawk 
war, a short-lived confiict which terrorized 



tln' few inhabitants then in the region 
and retarded settlement greath', but which 
put an eflectual end to Indian dejueda- 
tions east of the Mississipjii. Mr. How- 
land died at Fort Howard, Wis., about 
1S77, liis excellent wife havinj; preceded 
him to the shadowy land in 1862. Besides 
our subject. the\' had children as follows; 
Lewis, who was killed in Kansas in 1856, 
durini; the liorder ruffian warfare; Mere- 
dith, whn (hed at Kenosha, Wis., in 1869; 
Lnriiida S., wife of Thomas Dyke, re- 
sidiuL^ in Missouri; Scth, a resident of 
California, whithei he went in 1850; Rtd.iy 
E., wife of John Sauber, also of Cali- 
fornia; Wiltshire, who enlistetl in Cali- 
fornia early in the war of the Rebellion, 
in Col. Baker's regiment, and, like his 
lamented commander, was nnssing and 
supposed to be killed at Ball's Bluff; 
Icliabod, twin brother of Levi, who en- 
listed in .\pril, 1861, at Kenosha, Wis., 
for three months in Company G, First 
Wis. \'. I., re-enlisted at the expiration of 
his term of service in the First Wisconsin 
C^a\alry, ser\ed in the army of the Cum- 
berland, and was killed at Varnell Station, 
Ga., May 9. 1864; .Alfred, who enlisted 
in the same regiment with Icliabod in 
1 86 1, for three months, re-enlisted in the 
First Wisconsin Ca\-alry and served three 
years, and now resides in California. 

Le\-i Howland was born in 1840. in 
Kenosha county. Wis., and was reared 
on his father's farm, one mile from Keno- 
sha, receiving his education in the high 
school of that city. Like his two brothers, 
he enlisted, in April, 1861, in Company 
G, First Wis. V. I , for a period of three 
months. After a lively term of service 
in the Shenandoah Valley umler Gen. 
Patterson, the young soldier, who had 
been a second lieutenant in the infantry, 
re-enlisted as a private in Com]:)any A; 
First \Viscf)nsin Cavalry for three years, 
on September 2, 1S61, receiving a first 
lieutenant's commission in that arm of the 
service. He was subsequently, Novem- 
ber 20, 1862, commissioned captain of 
Company C, and major of his regiment 



400 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



January 6, 1865. He saw active and 
arduous service, participating in the bat- 
tles at Chici<amauga, Dandridge, Tenii. ; 
Anderson Cross Roaiis, Cape Girardeau. 
Mo. ; Chalk Bluffs, and later, after trans- 
fer to the army of the Cumberland, at 
Resaca, Cassville, Burnt Hickory (Ga.), 
Barnesville, Kenesaw Moi\iitain, .Atlanta, 
Campbelltown (Ga. ), Franklin 1 Tenn. j, 
Hopkinsville, Nashville, Selma (Ala.), 
the skirmishes between Montgomery and 
Tuskegee, and West Point (Ga.). The 
Major was mustered out at Nashville, 
Tenn., in July, 1865, and returned to 
Kenosha. He next went west, and passed 
two years as contractor on the Kansas 
Pacific railroad, finally, in 1867, locating 
in Fort Howard, since when he has been 
a continuous resident of that city. Upon 
his arrival he entered the lumber trade 
as a member of the firm of Clinton. Laird 
& Co., afterward J. P. Laird & Co., 
which relation continued a number of 
years, and he is now the only member of 
this old firm residing in Fort Howard. 

Maj. Howland is a familiar figure in 
political, educational and society circles. 
By virtue of his honorable service in de- 
fense of his countrv. he is a member of 
T. O. Howe Post. G. A. K.. and holds 
membership also in the Loyal Legion. 
Socially he is a member of Washington 
Lodge, No. 21. F. & A. M. ; Warren 
Chapter, No. 8, R. A. M. : Palestine 
Commandery, No. 20, K. T. ; and Wis- 
consin Consistory. An active Repub- 
lican in politics, he has served his fellow 
citizens as county supervisor, and as a 
member of the school board, and takes a 
lively interest in all public affairs, exert- 
ing his influence toward the furtherance 
of all plans for the benefit of his citv and 
county. During his twenty-.seven years' 
residence in Fort Howard he has wit- 
nessed the accomplishment of great and 
beneficial changes, to which he has per- 
sonally contributed in no small degree. 

Recognizing the truth of the adage 
that "\i is not good for man to live 
alone," Maj. Howland was married in 



Kenosha, in 1S67. to Edith L. Sykes, a 
native of New York, and daughter of 
Byron and .Antoinette (^Torrey) Sykes, 
early settlers in the county named. Mrs. 
Howland's mother is deceased, but her 
father is yet living, and resides with his 
daughter at Fort Howard. Major and 
Mrs. Howland have two living children : 
Eben \\'., a graduate in the class of 1894 
from the Wisconsin State University at 
Madison, and Maud A., attending St. 
Marguerite College at Chicago. 



Rc^BERT JACKSON, merchant, of 
De Pere, was born P"ebruary 2, 
1826, in Fifeshire, Scotland. His 
father, Henry Jackson, who was a 
blacksmith by trade, was married to An- 
nie White, who bore him the following 
children: Margaret; Henry, who died in 
Marquette in 1S93; Robert, our subject; 
Elspet, now Mrs. William Michie, of 
West Superior; Walter, of Buffalo county. 
Wis.; Thomas, of West De Pere; Alex- 
ander, of Winona, Minn., and Peter, of 
Milwaukee. The parents of this family 
died in Scotland, and later all the chil- 
dren came to America, Robert being the 
first to make the voyage. When a lad of 
fourteen, Robert entered upon an appren- 
ticeship of four years to a blacksmith in 
Scotland named David Lyle, and also 
became a machinist, and later worked as 
a smith for his father. 

On June i, 1848. bidding farewell to 
his native land, he sailed from Greenock 
on the "Charlotte Harrison,'" and, after 
a voyage of six weeks, landed in New York 
with but a few dollars in his pocket. 
From New York he proceeded to Albany, 
and thence over the old "strap road" 
to Buffalo, N. Y., thence via the lakes, 
to Kenosha, Wis., where he found work 
and remained two years; from there he 
went to Oconto county (then a part of 
Brown county\ Wis., where for two years 
he acted as engineer for a sawmill. In 1852 
he came to De Pere and bought out a 
blacksmith shop, which he carried on for 



COMMhWURATIVE DIOGHAPlllCA L RECORD. 



401 



several years, and then took charge of a 
sawniill for Ixitcliie, Iveed cS: Kitcliie, of 
the same city, with whoiii he reinuiiicil 
fourteen }'ear.s, or until the lirni ilissolved. 
About this time the citizens of the East 
side formed a stock company and erected 
a furnace, in the construction of which 
Mr. Jackson acted as master mechanic, 
putting in all the machinery; he was then 
sent to Menomonee, where he superin- 
tended the erection of another furnace and 
also conducted it for several years. He 
then engaged with Kirby, Carpenter cN: 
Co., at that time the most extensive lum- 
bermen of the Northwest, and for four 
years was an engineer in one of their large 
mills at Menomonee. He next contracted 
for the building of a furnace at Charlevoix, 
Mich., and after its completion built a fur- 
nace at Florence, Wis. ; then at Marcel- 
lone, Mich. , he connnenced to build an- 
other furnace, but left liefore its comple- 
tion, returning to I)e Pere, where he was 
instrumental in ha\ing erected, near by, a 
large sawmill, known as the Potts mill, 
the construction of which he superin- 
tended. In company with Andrew Reed, 
Mr. lackson built the first tug-boat owned 
in De Pere, which boat was used in the 
towing of logs, doing good service for sev- 
eral years, and was then rebuilt and re- 
fitted under the superintendency of Mr. 
Jackson, who was probably without an 
equal at that time in mechanical skill, and 
who, even now, though nearing his se\en- 
tieth year, is often consulted in regard to 
intricate portions of disabled machinery. 
Mr. Jackson has been identified, beyoml 
doubt, with more enterprises than any 
other individual now living in De Pere, 
and was especially active in the agitation 
of the waterworks question. He is a great 
lover of athletics, and still indulges with 
great zest in curling, at which he is an 
expert. 

In the spring of 1849 Mr. Jackson 
married, in Kenosha, Wis., Miss Elizabeth 
Heggie, a native of the same part of 
Scotland whence he came. The result of 
this union has been the birth of the fol- 



lowing children: Henry, a machinist; 
and Charles W., Robert, and I'rank (all 
three menhants), all of De Pere. With 
his two S(.)ns, Charles and Robert, Mr. 
Jackson now conducts the most extensive 
general ston.' in De Pere. Although at 
one time a Democrat in his political 
affinities, he is miw a Rejniblican, and 
cast his first Presidential vote for Abraham 
Lincoln. He is stmn^ in his belief in the 
principles of the party, and is one of its 
most stanch supporters. Under its au- 
S)iices he has, at different times, been 
called upon ti> ser\c as alderman, and no 
one has filled that dftice with greater 
credit and ability, nor given greater satis- 
faction to the citizens. He and his wife 
are conscientious members of the Presby- 
terian Church, til the support of which he 
is a most liberal contributor, and of 
whi(-h he is a trustee and substantial 
pillar. Although coming to the United 
States a ])Oor bo\-, Mr. Jackson has 
reached wealth and prominence through 
the exercising of those sterling principles 
of integrity, industry and perseverance, 
which seem to be inherent in the race to 
which he belongs. His career is worthy 
the close study of young men who have 
yet to make their way in the world, and 
his nobilitv of character well worthy their 
emulation. His amiable wife also de- 
serves great credit for her share in the 
good work that has been done toward the 
accumulation of the worldly wealth that is 
now making their declining years com- 
paratively days of rest, and assuredly of 
solid comfort; and the respect in which 
the familv is held gives evidence that 
their many virtues are fully appreciated 
by their fellow citizens. 



AUGUST THIELE, the partner of 
William Hande\side in the most 
po]iular livery establishment of 
the city of De Pere, was born 
September 29, 1S48, in Brandenburg, 
near Berlin, Germain', son of Gottlieb 



402 



COMMEMORATIVE ISWGliAPHlCAJ. liECORD. 



and Hannah (Pfeiffer) Thiele, who both' 
died in that countrj'. They were the 
parents of Karl, August, Hannah, Gusta 
and William, of whom William and Au- 
gust are the only ones living in America. 
August Thiele was reared as a da\- la- 
borer, beginning at the age of nine as a 
dri\er of cattle, and afterward working as 
a farm hand. He was industrious and 
saving, and by 1872 had accumulated 
money sufficient to bring him to America. 
Landing at New York, he at once took his 
departure for Wisconsin, and here worked 
at Waukesha, in the lime kilns and at 
other work, until he had earned money 
enough to take him to Morrison, Brown 
Co., Wis., where he worked in all for ton 
3ears in Morrison town and in the town 
of Glenmore,in Fenton's sawmill, and also 
in Evans' sawmill. He then made a trip 
to Dakota, worked a year, after which he 
came to De Pere, where he worked a year 
for his brother-in-law, Mark Snyder, then 
engaged in the livery business. .\t the 
end of the year he bought Mr. Snyder 
out. At that time the barn contained 
only nine horses; now the stables contain 
sixteen. Soon after his return from Da- 
kota Mr. Thiele was married, .April 24, 
1882, to Mrs. Chri.stine f Snyder), widow 
of .Adam Kammern (to whom she was 
married May 11, 1869) and daughter of 
Frank and Appolonia (Hangan) Snyder, 
who were the parents of six children : 
Philip, Christine, Mark, Libbie, \\'illiam 
and Mary. The father of this family was 
a mason and also a tanner, and at the age 
of twenty came to America, and for a 
while lived in Jackson, Washington Co., 
Wis.; thence he moved to Town 10. about 
twenty miles from Milwaukee, where he 
was married at about the age of thirty, 
and finally came to Brown county, where 
he owned a sawmill. Here he died after 
a residence of thirty years in the township. 
His widow died in De Pere, while residing 
with Mr. Thiele. Nfrs. August Thiele 
had, by her first husband, one daughter 
named Abbie M. Kammern, born in Mil- 
waukee, Wis., June 23, 1872, who now 



makes her home with her mother, but at 
the present time is teaching school. 

For five years after coming to De Pere 
Mr. Thiele carried on the livery business 
on his sole account, making, in the inter- 
val, many improvements in the stock and 
stable ; then joined Mr. Handeyside, and 
has since enjoyed a most successful busi- 
ness. The children born to Mr. Thiele, 
two in number, are Frank and Philip, who^ 
arc attending school at De Pere. Mr. 
and Mrs. Thiele are members of the Ger- 
man Ivvangelical Church. In politics he 
is a Republican, and fraternallj' he is an 
Odd F"ellow. As a business man he is 
recogni;;ed as one of the foremost in De- 
Pere, all being conscious of the fact that 
he has raised himself, by his industry and 
enterprise, from comparative obscurity to 
his present prosperity. 



EDW.KRD FLYXX (deceased). 
This gentleman, who, during his 
lifetime, was well-known among 
the farmers of Holland township. 
Brown count}-, was a native of Ireland, 
born in March, 1827. 

His parents, Eugene and Alice (Mc- 
Guren) Flynn, who were farming people 
of Ireland, lived and died in their native 
country. They had a family of three 
childreUi namely: James, Bridget, and 
Edward, of whom Edward was the only 
one who came to America. He was 
reared to farming, which he followed in 
Ireland until 1848, when he came to the 
New World, landing at Quebec. He 
subsequently came to Wisconsin, and in 
Holland township. Brown county, pur- 
chased 160 acres of new land, where he 
made a permanent home. After coming 
to America he was married, and by this 
union had two children, John and James. 
The mother of these died, and on April 
29, 1872, he wedded, for his second wife. 
Miss Bridget Finnegan, who was born 
in May, 1833. in Ireland, daughter of 
Charles and Bridget (Golden) Finnegan, 
who were the parents of the following 



COMMEMOIiATIVF. BIOGRAniWAL RECORD. 



403 



named nine children: Mary, Patrick, 
John, Ceha, Sarah, Thomas, Marj,^aret, 
Bridf^et, and Hannah, of whom but two 
are now hving, Bridget and Patrick. Mr. 
and Mrs. Finnegan never came to the 
United States, but three of their children 
emigrated at different times. Mrs. Flynn 
left Ireland in the spring of 1S5.:, and 
landed in New York City on the sixth of 
May, after a rough \oyage ol thirt\'-six 
days. She remained in the city a few 
days ami then continued her joiuiiey to 
Schenectad\-. X. Y., where her two 
sisters, Sarah and Margaret, were living, 
and after a three-years' residence there 
she went to Buffalo, N. 'S'. , where she 
kept house for Bishop Kyau about six- 
teen years When she came to Holland 
township the farm was still ]iartly un- 
cleared, and for a time they lived in a log 
cabin, which was the first building erected 
on the place, and it is still stamiing. Mr. 
FKnu devoted his time exclusively to his 
farm, and met with encouraging success 
in his vocation, continuing to follow same 
up to the time of his death, whicli oc- 
curred November 7, 1S82, the result of 
kidney disease; his remains were interred 
in Holland cemetery. He was a self- 
made man in the truest sense, for he 
had amassed a ctunfortable competence 
by persevering industry, and he was re- 
spected h\ all \\ho knevv him for his 
honesty and fair dealing. His widow 
continues to reside upon the homestead, 
the management of i,\hirh is now in the 
hands of the son John. 

JOHN FLYNN was born Novendier 
25, 1864, in Holland t(n\-nship. Brown 
Co., Wis., and was reared to farm life on 
the homestead under the direction of his 
father. At the latter's death he and his 
brother James, who now conducts a sa- 
loon business in Chicago, became owners 
of the farm, eighty acres of which are 
highly cultivated. On June 26, i8qi, 
John Flynn was united in marriage with 
Miss Catherine Finnegan. daughter of 
Michael and Sarah Finnegan, natives of 
Ireland, who immigrated to America in 



1848, and settled in Woodville township, 
Calumet coimty, where Mrs. Flynn lived 
until her marriage. To this union has 
come one child, Angeline, born October 
II, 1893. Mr. and Mrs. IHynn are de- 
vout members of the Catholic Church, 
and they are highly esteemed throughout 
their section, Mr. b'lynn being regarded 
as one of the substantial, jirogressive 
young men in his township. In his po- 
litical preferences he is a Democrat, but 
he takes no part in politics except as a 
regular attendant at the polls. 

CHARLES CLLEKEMANS, gar- 
dener and farmer, h'ort Howard, 
came to the place in 1882 and set- 
tled on a ten-acre tract purchased 
on the Woll creek road. This he sold 
later and purehasi'd the t\\ ent\ -;u're prop- 
ert\ he now owns on the line between 
b'ort Howar<l ami .\sli\\ aulieuon. He is 
also owner ol a lot on Wolf creek, and 
has this year 1 1894) erected a residence. 
Mr. Cleeremans was horn in 1 841, in 
Belgium, and came to the Bay Settlement 
April I. I 867, with his ])arents, Frank and 
MaryiDeLongl Cleeremans. the family 
locating uii()n and eleaiing uji a larni in 
Scott township. The father died in 1877, 
the mother in 1872. ( 'ur .subject was 
educated thoroughly in the schools of 
Belgium, spending twehe years in those 
educational institutions. He was mar- 
ried in 1870, and the sanu' year settled 
upon a farm in Kewaunee county, ^^'is. , 
selling out and remo\ ing to I'~ort Howard, 
after clearing forty ai-res. His wife, Miss 
Caroline Arkins, was born in lU'lgium. 
and came, in 1856, to Kewaunee county 
with her parents, John Bertis and Mary 
E. (Randall) Arkins, both ol whom are 
now deceased. Twehe children lia\ e been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Cleeremans: John 
B., Jennie, Mary, Joe, Frank, Aleck, 
Peter, Julia, Felix, Rosa, Anton, and 
Susan. The parents are members of St. 
Willibrord's Church, at C.reen Bay, Mr. 
Cleeremans being also a member of the 



404 



COMAfE-VORATTT'E BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



Catholic Kniglits at that jilace, and i)f tlie 
Cathohc Order of Foresters. Green Bay 
and Fort Howard have undergone won- 
drous changes in the thirt}' years since Mr. 
Cleerenians came to the locahty, and he 
has, to a considerable degree, contributed 
personally to this development. 



BP. SWEENEY. This gentleman 
ranks amcjng the leading success- 
ful farmers of Glenmore township, 
brown county, where he is highly 
esteemed and well known, having been a | 
resident of same for almost forty years. 

His father, Peter Sweenev, was born ' 
in County Kerry, Ireland, and there mar- i 
ried Ellen Brennan, who bore him three 
children in Ireland, Patrick, Catherine and 
Ann. About 1840 they came to the 
United States, and for a time lived in the 
Eastern States, where two more children 
were born to them, B. P. {our subject) 
and Jeremiah. In 1854 the family came 
westward to W'isconsin, where, the coun- 
try being then new, cheap homes could 
be had. Mr. Sweeney found employ- 
ment on the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul railroad as a day laborer, his family 
living along the road near Horicon, Wis., 
for two years, where they kept boarders. 
Then, in 1857, they came to Ue Pere, at 
that time a small \illage, containing but 
one store, and here the father worked 
as a laborer until the fall of the year, when 
he came to Section 14, Glenmore town- 
ship, purchasing forty acres for one hun- 
dred and twenty dollars cash. The place 
was then literally a " howling wilderness," 
wild animals were numerous, and the only 
signs of civilization were the trails which 
led through the forest. Not a tree had 
been felled, and Mr. Sweeney erected the 
first house on the place, a log one, and 
commenced the task of clearing at once. 
He was hard-working and persevering, and 
the farm soon began to put on a cultivated 
appearance and to afford its owner an in- 
come. Those days of toil and hardship 
are no more, and, as the old pioneers are 



one by one rapidly passing awa}% the story 
of their lives is all that is left to coming 
generations of the trials and hardships 
which they endured. Mr. Sweeney con- 
tinued to reside on the farm in Glenmore 
township until his death, which occurred 
in August, 1892, when he was at the ad- 
vanced age of ninety years. His wife 
preceded him to the grave in March, 
1882, and they now rest side by side in 
Glenmore cemetery. Both were members 
of St. Mar3''s Church, at Glenmore. For 
several years prior to his decease Mr. 
Sweeney led a retired life, making his 
home with our subject. 

B. P. Sweeney, whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, was born August 23, 
1849, in Springfield, Mass., came west- 
ward with his parents to Wisconsin, and 
is now the only member of the family re- 
maining in Brown county. Here he was 
reared to manhood, and at the early age 
of eight years commenced to assist his 
father in the clearing up of the farm he 
now owns and resides upon, where he re- 
ceived a thorough training to agricultural 
life. He received his literary education 
in the common schools of the period 
the first school he attended being in 
District No. 2, Glenmore township, and 
Maurice Casey was his first teacher. 
At that time lumbering was the most 
popular pursuit for young men in that 
region, and he also worked in the lumber 
camps. 

On July 4, 1872, Mr. Sweeney was 
married, in Ccdarburg, Wis. , to Miss 
Johanna Sullivan, who was born in that 
town, daughter of Michael Sullivan, and 
the young couple took up their home on 
their present farm, living with his parents 
during their lifetime. Shortly after his 
marriage he purchased eighty acres of the 
farm, following agriculture thereon, any 
in later years added the other eightd 
acres to the place. In 1890 he erected 
the comfortable dwelling in which the 
family now live, which is the third resi- 
dence built on the farm. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Sweeney were born eight children, viz. : 



COMMEMORATIYK BIOC UAl'inCAL liECOHD. 



405 



Nellie, John, Mary, Catherine, Julia, 
William, Celia and Frances, all living'. 
The mother was called from earth in the 
[all of 1894. Our subject has f,nven his 
farming interests the closest attention, 
and has become one of the foremost agri- 
culturists in his section, taking a lively 
interest in every movement for its benefit 
or improvement. He has held every 
office in the gift of the township, and is 
now serving as clerk, to whicli office he 
was appointed in 1S90, and has been 
elected each time since; he was treasurer 
five years, chairman of the township four 
years, as well as assessor and supervisor, 
and for years justice of the peace; and in 
e\'ery capacity he has shown hiinself an 
earnest, efficient worker. fn his party 
preferences he is a Democrat, an(i he is 
a member of St. Mary's Church, as was 
also his wife. He is highly respected for 
the part he has taken in the opening up 
and development of his section, where he 
is widely known. 



OTTO N. OLDENBURG, of the 
firm of G. Oldenburg & Co., fur- 
niture dealers and undertakers, 
was born in 1.^60, at Fort Howard, 
where he now lives, and is a son of Ger- 
hard and Margaret ( Berner) Oldenburg. 
The former, a native of Schleswig-Hol- 
stein, Germany, came to Fort Howard 
when a young man, with the family of his 
father, Anton Oldenburg, \\-hose wife had 
died in Germany. Anton Oldenlnu'g died 
in Madison, Wis., during the war of the 
Rebellion. 

Gerhard Oldenburg, who was a cabi- 
net-maker and millwright by trade, was 
married at Fort Howard, in 1.S53. to Miss 
Margaret Berner, who was born in Ger- 
many, and had come in an early day to 
Green Bay, Wis. Mr. Oldenburg fol- 
lowed his trade until the breaking out of 
the war, when he was appointed State 
carpenter and stationed at Madison, where 
he remained during the war. Returning 
to Fort Howard in 1865, he established 



himself in the furniture business. He 
was a Republican in pulitics, serving as 
supervisor from the l'"ilth ward. He held 
membership in \\'ashington Lodge, No. 
21, \' . & A. M., and was an excellent citi- 
zen. His death occured June <j, 1890, 
he having li\ed to see rcniarkable changes 
and developments in the region he had 
chosen for his home so many years before. 
His widow yet resides in l-"ort Howard. 
Their children were : Sophia, wife of 
Rev. A. H. Kcipi>lm, West Bend, Wis.; 
Anton, married and residing in Fort How- 
ard ; Henry, married and located in the 
practice of law at Carlton, Minn. ; Otto 
N. ; Amelia, unmarried; iNhirgaret. de- 
ceased when hut four years old ; and 
Lewis. 

Otto N. ( )l(lenbnrg receixed his edu- 
cation in the ])ul)lic schools of Fort How- 
ard, and attended tlu' Green Waw lousi- 
ness College, under Prof. Blackman. He 
has since been engaged in business as first 
noted, the firm dating its establishment 
to 1865. .\s a decendant of a pioneer 
family, and himself a native of I'ort How- 
ard, Mr. Oldenburg, although yet a 
young man. has grown uji with his city 
and seen its developuKMit. He was 
married January 3, 1894, to Miss Joseph- 
ine Anderson, who was born in Sturgeon 
Bay, Wis., where her father, Charley 
Anderson, was an early settler ; he is now 
deceased. Politically Mr. Oldenburg is 
a. Republican, and in religious connection 
a member of the Moravian Church. He 
belongs also to Washington Lod.Lje, No. 
21, F. & A. M., and to Warren Chapter, 
No. 8, R. A. M. 



HENRY A. STRAUI'.EL, retired 
citi/en of Green ISaw was well 
known in the city eighteen years 
as the senior member of the firm 
of Straubel & Eberling, millers. He is a 
native of Germany, born May 11, 1S41, 
in the village of lOlankenburg, Schwarz- 
burg-Rndolstadt. 

His parents, Frederick and Caroline 



4o6 



COMMEMORAriVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



(Lenke) Straubel, also natives of Ger- 
many, immigrated with their family to Wis- 
consin in 1846, settling in Green Bay, 
where the father followed his trade, 
blacksmithing. until retiring from active 
work. He died in 18.S5, the mother in 

1872. They were the parents of six chil- 
dren, a brief record of whom is as follows: 
Carl was drowned about the year 1850; 
Dorothea married Lewis Loher, and re- 
sides at Calumet, Wis. : Minnie married 
A. Friedman, moved to New York, and 
died there in 1872 ; Ernest followed black- 
smithing for a time in Green Bay, and 
since 1873 has been engaged in the manu- 
facture of brick ; Henry A. is the subject 
of this sketch ; Adoph died in the United 
States at the age of three and a half years. 

Henry -A. Straubel was five \ears old 
when the family innnigrated to the Western 
World and took up their new home in the 
town of Green Bay. Here, at the com- 
mon schools, he received a somewhat limit- 
ed education, and learning the trade of 
wagon-maker, followed same from the 
time he was twelve years of age until 

1873, when he embarked in the milling 
business, continuing therein successfully 
for eighteen years ; he retired from active 
business life March i . 1 894. Between 
the years 1 8 59 and 1861 Mr. Straubel was 
traveling throughout the South and West, 
and in the latter year he enlisted in Com- 
pany H, Ninth Wis., V. I., for three 
years' service, being mustered in at Mil- 
waukee. His regiment was attached to 
the army of the W^est, and participated 
in the Missouri and Arkansas campaigns, 
and at the battle of Newtonia our subject 
was taken prisoner, remaining in the hands 
of the Confederates, for three months. 
In 1863 he received an htmorable dis- 
charge, and returning to Green Bay com- 
menced the carriage and wagon making 
business, subsequently, in 1873, embark- 
ing in the milling business, in wiiich. in 
1877, he formed a partnership with J. H. 
Eberling, . The mill is a fine brick build- 
ing, erected by Straubel & Eberling on 
the site of the former's wagon shop, and 



On November 
Straubel and Miss 
united in marriage. 
W^isconsin, born in 



is thoroughly equipped, having a capacity 
of 300 barrels per day. Mr. Straubel also 
owns a half interest in "Cook's Hotel," 
a four-story, seventy-room brick building, 
located on the corner of Washington and 
Cherry streets, Green Bay ; is a stock- 
holder in the Columbia Bakery, Green 
Bay, in the Brown County Fair and Park 
Association, in the Green Bay Planing- 
mill. Electric Light Plant, etc., and since 
I 884 has been a director of the Citizens 
National Bank, of which he was one of 
the organizers. 

17, 1868. Henry A. 

Minnie Altman were 

She is a native of 

Manitowoc county, a 
daughter of early settlers of that section, 
now deceased. To this union two chil- 
dren have been born, viz. : Carl, who was 
bookkeeper for the Citizens National Bank 
for five years, and Arthur. In politics 
our subject is a Republican, and has served 
as a member of the city council some six 
years. Socially he is a member of Her- 
man Lodge, No. III. I. O. O. F. (in 
which he has passed all the chairs), and of 
T. O. Howe Post, No. 124, G. A. R. 
Mr. Straubel is the owner of real estate 
in Green Bay and a productive farm of 
seventy-eight acres in Allouez township ; 
he has won his position in the world by 
his own energy, industry and good man- 
agement, and is a deservedl)- success- 
ful man. 



JAMES DRAKE, proprietor of the 
Green Bay Nursery, and a promi- 
nent, enterprising citizen, is by birth 
an Englishman, born September i, 
1826, in the village of Prelerton, War- 
wickshire, a son of Isaac and Elizabeth 
( Punn ) Drake, also natives of England. 
In I 840 the family came to the United 
States, first locating in Monroe county, N. 
Y., on a farm, but some time later, about 
1855, moving to W'i.sconsin, opening up a 
farm in Sheboygan county, where the 
father died May 4, i 894, the mother about 



COMMKMOUA TIVE liH i(i UAl'lIICAr. HICCOHD. 



407 



the year 1859. They were the parents of 
eight children, of whom the folhiwin;^ is a 
brief record: Mary is the widow of Simeon 
Pond, who was a member of Company F, 
Twenty-seventh Wis. V. I., and died in 
1 864, at Helena, Ark. , from disease con- 
tracted in the ser\'ice; James is the subject 
of this sketch; George, a farmer, resides 
in Minnesota; John enlisted in Shebojgan 
county in Company F, Twenty-seventh 
Wis. V. I. , and died in I S64 at Memphis, 
Tenn.; Eliza and William both died in 
Sheboygan county, the former in 1859, 
the latter in 186S; Jennie died of con- 
sumption in iS — ; Isaac P. lives in Min- 
nesota, where he is an e.Ntensi\-e stock 
raiser. 

James Drake, whose name opens this 
sketch, was fourteen years old when he 
left his nati\'e \\'arwickshire — the count\' 
that gave birth to the greatest of all 
poets — and consequently received all his 
education there. In this country he 
worked on farms till soon after the break- 
ing out of the Civil war, when, fired with 
military ardor, he enlisted in August, 
1862, in Company F, Twent3--seventh 
W^is. V. I., for three years, and was 
mustered in at Milwaukee the following 
October. He participated in the battle of 
Cape Girardeau, Mo., and the siege of 
Vicksburg, after which he was taken sick 
and confined to hospital at Helena, Ark. 
In May, 1865, he was honorably dis- 
charged at Memphis, Tenn., for disability, 
and returned home. In 1866 he com- 
menced in the nursery business, in which 
he has since continued with the most sat- 
isfactory results, having met with un- 
bounded success; in 1879 he permanently 
located in Green Bay. In 1855 he was 
married, in New York, to Miss Roxana 
Davis, by which union there is one child, 
James H., now a resident of Milwaukee, 
Wis., proprietor of a liver}- stable there, 
and a dealer in horses. This wife dying, 
Mr. Drake, in 1S70, was married, in 
Fond du Lac, Wis., to Miss Jennie E. 
Prink, daughter of Rev. Peter and Eu- 
retta P. (Collins) Prink, all natives of 



New York City, who came, in 1844, to 
Oshkosh, Wis., where Mr. I'rink erected 
the third frame house. He was a Bap- 
tist missionary, and resided there three 
years, or until 1847, when he moved to 
Weyauwega, \\'au]iaca county, where he 
passed the rest of his useful life, dying in 
1865; his wife died in Green Bay, Ahirch 
25, 1885. He was widely known as a 
zealous and faithful (li\'ine, and he oiL;an- 
ized churches of the ISajitist (kMioinina- 
tion in Apjileton, Neenah. etc. Twelve 
children were born to him, as follows: 
Laura, who married Matthew Crinell, of 
Albany, N. Y., and died in 18S6; Edwin, 
who was one of the first settlers of Med- 
lo\\\. Wis., and the first judge of Taylor 
county, died in 1885 (he served during 
the Civil war in a New York regiment ); 
Collins, who died in Wisconsin in I'el)- 
ruar)', 1874 (he ser\ed in the Civil war as 
a member of the First Wisconsin Cav- 
alry); Amanda, who married William 
Graves, of New York City, and died De- 
cember 20, 1893 (Mr. Graves served in 
the regular armv); Ruth, wife of Lindall 
H. Crosb}', of Walnut Grove, Mo.; Sarah 
Ermetta, residing at Oshkosh; Oscar 
Henry, who served three years in the 
First Wisconsin Cavalry, now residing in 
Gilman, Iowa; fennie E., Mrs. Drake; 
Eugene, who also served three years in 
the First W^isconsin Cavalrj-, and now re- 
sides at Eau Claire, Wis., where he is a 
gardener and proprietor of a meat market; 
W'illiam, now a resident of Gilman, Iowa, 
who served two years in the First Wis- 
consin Cavalry; Elijah, a lumberman; 
and Emma H., wife of E. A. Williams, a 
surveyor, both of Stevens Point, W'is. 
\\^hen the younge,^ ' these was thirty- 
two years old, all tn>., members of the 
family were alive. 

In his political views Mr. Drake is in- 
dependent, always supporting men and 
measures that he considers best for the 
general good; socialh', he is a member of 
T. O. Howe Post, No. 1 24, G. A. R. He 
and Mrs. Drake are members of the Pres- 
bvterian Church. She is identified with 



4oS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



many beneficent works; was one of the 
organizers of the Woman's Kelief Corps, 
was president during the first tliree terms, 
and was an officer of the Department in 
1892. She is also superintendent of the 
Children's Home Society of Green Bay. 



AUGUST F. RADOI-: (deceased), 
for many years a much esteemed 
citizen of Eaton township. Brown 
county, was a native of the Father- 
land, born March 26, 1820, in the village 
of Arnswalde, Prussia. His parents, Daniel 
and Sophia (Leipsite) Radoe, had a family 
of five children, as follows: August F., 
the subject of this sketch; Christian F., 
who lives in Africa, where he owns 1,020 
acres of land; John, who died leaving a 
wife and several children; Ernest, who 
lives in Russia; and Henrietta, Mrs. V'clse, 
who resides in Germany. The parents 
were f)nly in moderate circumstances, and 
consequently the children commenced to 
earn a living early in life. 

When our subject was fifteen years 
old he hired out as a shepherd boy, and 
continued in that occupation two years, 
receiving ten dollars a year for his services. 
For the next two years he served as 
coachman to a private family, and then 
commenced to learn the trade of wagon- 
maker, at which he served an a|ii)rentice- 
ship of three years, and for which his 
parents paid twenty-five dollars. After 
completing his apprenticeship he worked 
as journeyman at various places in Ger- 
many until 1S43, when he married Miss 
Henrietta Coldeme, who died eight years 
after, leaving five children. In 1854 Mr. 
Radoe wedded Miss Augusta Harder, and 
the following year they emigrated to Amer- 
ica, landing in Ouebec after an eight-weeks' 
voyage, thence coming directly to Mil- 
waukee by boat, and from there to Water- 
town, Wis., where Mr. Radoe entered the 
employ of a wagonmaker. After w(jrking 
for his employer two months, our subject 
rented tiie shop and conducted it on his own 
account two years, at the end of which 



time he came to Eaton township, and 
purchased eight)' acres of land, where he 
passed the rest of his days. At that early 
date there were but four or five other set- 
tlers in the town, and their nearest trading 
point was Green Bay, a trip to the mill and 
back occupying three days; and, as there 
was but one o.\-team in the town, all the 
neighbors would arrange to send their grist 
at the same time. Mr. Radoe cleared and 
cultivated his land, converting it into a 
highly improved tract, where he and his son 
conducted a profitable farming business. 
He died July 2, 1894, universally respected 
in Eaton township, where he was recog- 
nized as a kind-hearted neighbor and loyal 
citizen. 

Mr. and Mrs. Radoe had a family of 
nine children, their names and dates of 
birth being as follows: Maria P., August 
31, 1 85 5; Albertina A., December 28, 
1857; William D., January 19, i860; Carl 
R., February 9, 1862; Gustave A., March 
6, 1864 fdeceased July 28, 1865); Ann 
R. and Herman T. (twins), April 13, 
1866; Augusta L., December 9, 1869: and 
Louis M., December 22, 1873. The 
mother of this family passed from earth 
November 22, 1888. Mr. Radoe was a 
Methodist in religious belief, and, though 
there is no church of that denomination 
in Eaton township, he was much inter- 
ested in all church work; he donated the 
land for the cemetery in Eaton township, 
and gave a ready support to all beneficial 
movements of interest to the community 
in general. In 1891 he made a trij) to 
his native country, returning after a pleas- 
ant visit of about four months. 



JOHN MEEHAN, a well-known agri- 
culturist of New Denmark township. 
Brown county, is a native of Ire- 
land, born July 19, 1836, .son of 
Thomas and Mary (Jordan) Meehan, who 
were farming people of that country. 
They had children as follows; John, 
Ellen, Kate. Aim. Mary, and Christopher, 
of whom John is the subject of this sketch; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOnAPUlCAL RECORD. 



409 



Ellen becanic Mrs. John Moore, of Den- 
mark, Brown Co., Wis.; Kate is the wife 
of P. Faj^an, of Denmark; Ann died in 
infancy, and Mary keeps house ft)r her 
brother John. 

In 1849 the parents disposed of their 
belonf,'ings in Ireland, and, proceeding to 
Liverpiool, embarked on an American- 
bound \'essel, landing in New York City. 
Going at once to Troy, N. Y., they lived 
in that city one year, and then removed 
to Lanesboro, Mass., where they made 
their home about three years, Mr. Meehan 
finding employment at the inm works. 
From there the family removed westward 
to Brown county, \\"is., and settled on 
t6o acres of wild land which they had 
purchased in New Denmark township 
(the farm now occupied by our subject), 
making their home for several years in a 
log house, which is still standing. The 
surrounding country was still unimproved, 
and wild beasts and Indians were yet 
numerous in the neighborhood. They 
lived here about a year before they could 
afford to buy a team, in the meantime 
borrowing the o.\-team that btdongcd to 
their neighbor. Mr. Bradley paying for 
its use in work. Their trading was gen- 
erally done in Manitowoc. On this farm 
the parents passed the remaintlcr of their 
days, the father dying in 1870, the 
mother in 1892, at the ripe old age of 
ninety-two years. 

J<ilm Meehan, being the eldest in the 
family, commenced to work at an earl\- 
age, and he had his full share of the pri- 
vations and hardships of pioneer farm 
life. He and his brother gave valuable 
assistance to their father in the clearing 
of the farm, which was no small task, as 
the land had to be literally taken from the 
forest. Work being so abundant at home, 
he had but little opportunity to attend 
even the schools that flourished in the 
neighborhood in those early days, but he 
has acquired a practical business training. 
In 1862 he went to Coles county. 111., 
where he entered the service of the gov- 
ernment, being employed to care for 



horses for the army; and alter remaining 
there three years came home. Six 
months later he went to Winona, .Minn., 
where he conunenced railroading and 
continued in that incupation six mniiths, 
since which time he has lixcd on the 
homestead in .New I )i.Munark township. 
His sister Mary has also remained on the 
farm, and, as abo\e mentioned, keejis 
house for him. Mr. Meehan is an mdus- 
trious, ])rogressi\'e farmer, and is profit- 
abh' engaged in general agru nhuic. Po- 
litically he is a Republican, and takes 
great interest in the affairs of his I'arty; 
he has tilled several niiiior oitices, such as 
super\isor and school director ol his 
townshiji, with credit to hinisell and sat- 
isfaction to all <-oncerned, and is a di- 
rt'ctor in the I'armers Insurance Com- 
jianj', of which he also served one year 
as president. 



ClII^lSTl.VN KUNTZ, who, lor the 
jnist ten years, has been li\ ing re- 
tired m ( deimiore ti iwnsliiji. Brown 
count}', was born No\eiiiber 14, 
1 8 1 3, m the \illage of Ottweiler, Rhine 
Prcnince, Prussia, son of Christian and 
Sophia (\\'alsinger) Kuntz. They had 
four sons — Christian, Jacob, Lewis and 
Conrad — all of whom ,ire now deceased, 
except our subject. The mother died 
when Christian was six years old, and his 
father subse(]uently remarried. fie died 
in Ciermanw where he was a lile-long 
farmer. 

Christian Knntz attended tlu- schools 
of the I*"atherland, was reared to farming, 
which he continued to follow, and in his 
earl\- manhood, as is the custoni in Cer- 
man\-, served three years in the arm}', 
from 1833 to 1837. In the latti-r \car, 
his father ha\-ing provided him with 
m(_)nev to come to the United Statt-s, he 
proceeded to Havre, there emliarkint; on 
a vessel bound for New 'N'ork, where he 
landed after a vovage of t went) -eight 
days. For two years he vvoiki'd lor a 
farmer near Rochester, N. Y., and while 



4IO 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ill that State was iiiarried, in 1S38, to 
Miss Caruliiio Conrad, also a native of 
Germany. In the spring of 1843 they 
came by water to Wisconsin, huuiing at 
Milwaukee, whence Mr. Kunt/ went to 
Washington (now Ozaukee) county, and 
]>urchased a piece of new land. The 
County had not yet been di\ided intt) town- 
ships, and he was the first settler in his 
section. Clearing u]i his farm he resided 
thereon until 185.S, when he came to 
Brown county, anri here purchased 320 
acres of wild land in Section 9, Morrison 
township, on which tract he built the first 
house and made the first improvements, 
having his ht)me there until 1884, when 
he came to Glenmore township. Here 
he has since li\ed, retired from acti\e 
work, residing with his son-in-law, Adolph 
Cilawe. He was \ery successful in his 
farming operations, being an industrious 
worker and a good manager, and has also 
been fortunate in his real estate invest- 
ments. 

Mrs. Caroline Kunt/ died in 1857, in 
O/aukee coimty, where she was buried, and 
Mr. Kuntz subsequently married in that 
coimty Miss Elizabeth Klugg, a native of 
Germany, to which union have come three 
rhildreu : Henrietta, now Mrs. .-Xdolph 
Glawe, of Glenmore townsliip ; Albert, a 
farmer of Clark count\'. Wis.; and Emma, 
Mrs. Joseph Rank, of Ciiippewa county. 
Wis. Hy his first wife there were chil- 
dren as follows : Phili]i, who died young ; 
Charles, who died in Brown county (he 
served in the Civil war) ; Louis, who died 
in New York State at the age of twenty 
three : Caroline, Mrs. Powell Probstfcld, 
of Missouri ; Henry, of Chippewa Falls, 
Wis. ; Christian, of Marshfield, Wis. ; 
Sophia. Mrs. Ernest Hafer, of Superior, 
Wis.; William, of Grand Rapids, Wis.; 
and .\nna, also of Grand Rapids. 

Mr. Kimtz has, until recent years, been 
one of the most active men in his local- 
ity, public-spiritetl. enterprising and ever 
ready to encourage any measure of benefit 
or interest to the community. He is an 
ailherent of the principles of the Demo- 



cratic part}-, but uses his own judgment 
in voting, alwa\s supporting the best 
man. He was seven times elected chair- 
man of Morrison township, and also 
served as supervisor, and for three terms 
as assessor. In religious faith he is a 
member of the E\angelical Church. He 
has traveled more than the average 
farmer. In 1841 he paid a visit to his 
native land, spending a month there, and 
again went to Europe in 1884, this time 
remaining four months in France, Hol- 
land and Germany ; he has also journeyed 
extensively over Canada and the United 
States, visiting almost every State in the 
Union, and in all has tra\eled over twen- 
ty-five thousand miles, some seventeen 
thousand by water. Mr. Kuntz is well 
preserved, has a good memory, and was 
e.\tremely robust until 1892, when an 
attack of "la grijipe " somewhat im- 
paired his health. [Since the above was 
written we have received intimation of the 
death of Mr. Christian Kuntz. — Eoitok. 



JOHN B. HI:YRMAN, senior mem- 
bor of the popular printing firm of 
Heyrman .S; Kuypers, proprietors of 
the Brown County Difnocrat, and 
the A- ]'o/ksstiiii. is one of the most 
prominent of all the pioneers who came 
to northern Wisconsin, conspicuous not 
onl\' as such, but as one of the best-known 
and most widely respected citizens in this 
portion of the State. 

Mr. Heyrman is a native of Belgium, 
born in the town of Bornhein, Province 
of .Vntwerpen, a son of John and Anna 
Catherine (De Jonghe) Heyrman, also of 
Belgian nativity, born respectively at 
Basele. Province of East Flanders, and 
at Bornhem, Province of .\ntworpen. In 
1856 the parents, accompanied by tiicir 
eldest son, Charles Louis, took second- 
class passage on a sailing vessel for 
.America, and after an uneventful voyage 
landed at New York— that is, the father 
and son did, for the mother was fated 
never to see land again, having, after a 





fe-^y (^ y^^^j^-t^^ ^ 



COMMM.tfOIlA TIVK BIOGIiAPniCAL UECORD. 



4 '3 



brief illness, died on inid-Dccan, ruidiii.L; a 
grave ill llic deep bosom of tlu' Atlantic 
Ocean. I'roni New Yoik the biTiN'U'ed 
fatlier and inotluM'less son proi'i'cdcd by 
rail to Detroit, Mich., where two other 
sons, John B. and Jose[)h, joiiKuJ them, 
they having arrived in the country tlie 
previous year, as will l)e presently related. 
The ciuartettc then at once cann- to Wis- 
consin, landing- in (ireen l^ay in 1S56. 
Here, in the town of Preble, they l)ouL;lit 
a half section of timberland whicli they 
imniediately began clc'ariiif; with a view 
to making a pcrii-ianent stay. 'I'lie father 
died on this farm in 1 S74. The son. 
Charles Louis, continued to reside there- 
on, and culti\-ated it, until his decease in 
1891, after a jirosperous career as an 
agricnltnrist ; he marrieil, and had a family 
of three sons and three daughters; and 
when he died he left a widow and two 
sons and two daughters. 

John H. Hej'rinan, the subject ])roper 
■of this sketch, received a liberal education 
at the common schools of his birthplace, 
his instruction being in both the Flemish 
and French languages, and in 1H55, ac- 
■companied by his brother, Joseph, board- 
ed a sailing shi]) as passenger for the 
United States, laiuling at New York. 
From there they tra\eled to l^hiladelphia, 
at which city they made an arrangement 
with an American firm, owners of a large 
tract of land in Ln/eriu! county, Penn.,to 
begin the clearing up of a portion of this 
land for a Belgian colony, our subject be- 
ing ai)iK)iiited siiiierintendent of the work. 
Accordingly, he and his brother, [oseph, 
assisted by two other Belgians, com- 
menced tlu' work of clearing u|) a passage 
to said land through a <lenscl\-tiinbered 
wilderness. Arrived at their destination, 
the first thing the part\' did was to ])ut 
lip a log shanty, which, thanks to the 
kindly assistance of the far-distant neigh- 
bors, was ready to shelter them in a few 
weeks. The nearest neighbor, an Amer- 
ican. was a true friend to the little |)ioneer 
party of foreigners, and would willingly 
have given his last crust of bread and 

23 



sacrificed his life in their deleiise; but 
there was no danger, lor theii' was plenty 
of game to be had for the killing, and 
nothing wortlu' ol a])|)reliensioii more 
dangerous than an occasional visit from a 
\-agahond bear or wolf, themseh'es hunt- 
ing for the necessaries of lifi', 'i"lu: near- 
est ta\ern to tiiis embryo colony was sit- 
uated somewhere at the foot ol the ,\lle- 
ghany Mountains, on the Blooinsbiirg and 
Towaiula pike, the most popular hostelry 
belwei'ii these two ])oints, and was kept 
by a (iermaii named Kei/er; while the 
nearest store, at which they could j)ro- 
cure their provisions, etc., was no less 
than thirty-five miles distant, a good day's 
journey for a few pounds of tea or tobac- 
co. On this wild piece of l.ind these 
four iiitri'|iid I telgians continued 1.1 live, 
keeping a s<nt of • • liai lielor's Hall," 
hewing down the trees and eleaniig away 
the brush, until the following s|iriiig. when 
tlie\- "broke cam])." 'idle brothers Heyr- 
man, having learned of the arrival of their 
l)arents in the country, then set out for 
Detroit, Mi(di., where they awaited tluun; 
and, oil the' leuiuou of the laiiiily. the 
parts' came direct to Wisconsin, as above 
related. 

During the first tweKf years of his 
residence in Wisconsin. lohii \\. Heyr- 
maii lived on the farm \\ith Ins lather and 
brothers, aiu! then, having married, he 
kept a general store at ]?ay Settlenumt, 
iJrowii county, but at the laid ol two 
\'ears. owing to failures and fire, he lost 
his all. At this time he hired (uit as a log 
scaler to a lumberman [nr one winter, and 
during the ensuing summer worked as 
filer in the sawmill at New I'r.-uikeii. in 
the town of Scott. Brown county. In 
the fall of 1S71, having removed with his 
famiU to Di' I'ere, he reronnneiieed mer- 
cantile business, opening a general store 
in that city, wliiidi he successfully con- 
ducted 'seven years; then selling (uit in 
order to be better at liberty to give his 
attentioti to journalism, for whi(di be had 
a natural penchant. The jiajier lie estab- 
lished was the De Pert' Stam/niuf, at that 



4'4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



time the only Catholic newspaper in the 
United States published in the Holland 
language, and (or twelve years he and his 
associate conducted it with eminent abil- 
ity and careful management. Mr. Heyr- 
man then sold out his interest in the 
Sttj>i(/tm/ to his partner, and in January, 
1890, in company with John Anton Kuy- 
pers, purchased the Brown County Dem- 
ocrat (established in 1877), a weekly 
paper printed in the English language, 
and shortly afterward they commenced 
the publication of a new Holland weekly, 
Dc I'olksstciii, in connection with which 
they conduct a general printing estab- 
lishment, equipped with all modern im- 
provements and facilities to be found in a 
first-class office. The business is carried 
on under the firm name of He\rman iv 
Kuypers, and is steadily expanding. 

On May 6, 1867, Mr. Heyrman was 
united in marriage with Miss Barbara 
Isabella De Both, also a native of Belgium, 
born at Ottenburg, Province of Brabant, 
and ten children — five sons and five 
daughters — were born to them, of whom 
two sons and two daughters died in in- 
fancy; the survivors are Henry, -Anna 
Catherine, Marv Magdeline, Peter, Julia, 
and Ale.xander, all grown to manhood 
and womanhood. In his political sympa- 
thies Mr. Heyrman has been a consistent 
Democrat from the day he cast his first 
vote, in 1S56, to the present time; in 
1 875 he was elected a justice of the peace, 
but resigned the office before the close of 
two jears. For two successive years 
he served as alderman of De Pere, since 
when, in 1894, he was elected a member 
of the county board of supervisors for 
three j'cars. Since 1872 he has been a 
member of St. Joseph's Catholic Society 
in De Pere. 

Daily engaged in the details of his 
prosperous business, faithful in the dis- 
charge of all social and other obligations, 
Mr. Heyrman yet finds time to make a 
cordial and practical response to the calls 
of |)hilanthropy, and to join with his fel- 
low citi/ens in measures that tend to pro- 



mote good government. He is honored 
and respected by all who know him. and 
enjoys a reputation for unflinching adher- 
ence to the principles of right, justice and 
freedom, which any man might covet. 



JOHN (.. C.KOSS. farmer, dairyman 
and himberman of Morrison town- 
sliip. Brown county, was born in 
iS2y, in Bavaria, Germany, whore 
he was reared and received his education. 
He immigrated to America at the age of 
twenty-one, and after remaining three 
years in \ew York came to Wisconsin, 
first to Germantown, Washington county, 
and thence to Morrison township, Brown 
county, where he ownsabout 320 acres of 
land, a portion of which has been cleared 
and developed by his indiviiiual labor. In 
1867 he commenced lumbering, a busi- 
ness in which he met with such success that 
in 1875 he purchased the mill which he now 
manages. He also became a stockholder 
in the first cheese factory established in 
the town, an enterprise which proved 
very profitable to the people. F"or twenty- 
iive years lie has assisted in the local civil 
government, serving in various county and 
town offices, representing his town on the 
county board for eight years, and has also 
taken a lively interest in educational af- 
fairs. In 1853 Mr. Gross married Nfar- 
garet Moschel, and to their union have 
come nine children — four sons and five 
daughters. 

Cli.\KLi:S I'RUST, of .Morrison 
township. Brown county, was 
born March 8, 1846, in Germany, 
a son of John and Charlotte 
(Combis) Prust, who were the parents of 
nine children, viz. : Frederick, .Austiiie, 
William, Charles, August, Johanna, and 
Henry, all living; and .Mary and .\nna, 
deceased. Charles Prust served a three 
years' apprenticeship at wagonmaking in 
Germany, receiving for his last year's labor 
fifteen dollars. The faiuiiv then came to- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPEICAL RECORD. 



4>S 



America, sailing; from Hamburt; and land- 
ing ill Ouebec, whence they came to 
A\'rightstown, Brown Co., Wis., where 
the father bought a tract of forty acres of 
cleared land. They remained at Wrights- 
town until 1888, then removed to Marsh- 
field, Wis., where the father also bought 
forty acres of land, and there lived until 
his death, May 12, 1890. 

.\fter his arrival in Brown county our 
subject went to Glenmore, and worked at 
carpentering for two years, continuing to 
work at that trade, for the most part, until 
1887, when he started in the machine 
business in De Pere, moving thence to 
Morrison, where he engaged in the same 
line of business until May, 1893; he had 
bought eighty acres of land, mostly wild, 
but in May, 1893, he sold his farm 
and businesss and started a saloon. Mr. 
Prust was united in marriage, December 
5, 1869, with Augusta Conrad, daughter 
of Ludwig and Caroline (Prust) Conrad, 
and they have had nine children, as follows : 
Minnie, Mary, Augusta, Ann, William, 

Bertha, John, Harrison, and . 

In religious connection they are members 
of the Evangelical Association, of which 
Mr. Prust has been a trustee fifteen years, 
treasurer thirteen years, and iot four years 
he was preacher. In politics he is a Re- 
publican, and has served as supervisor, 
assessor, and for two \ears as chairman. 
Mr. Prust has made many friends in Mor- 
rison, is popular in his business as well as 
in his political relationship, and his family 
are all highly respected as honest and 
peaceable neighbors. 



JH. TAYLER, cashier of the McCart- 
ney National Bank at Fort Howard, 
Brown county, was born here in 
1859, and is a descendant of a very 
ancient English family. He is a son of 
Joseph and M. V. ( Kennanj Tayler, the 
former of whom came from England to 
Neenah, Wis., in 1852, soon after remov- 
ing to ("ireen ]>a\-. wliere he ens:a<'ed in 



the commission business imtil 1S57, the 
year of his removal to I~ort Howard ; 
here he was engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness for some years, but is now acting as 
insurance agent. For about twenty years 
he was postmaster at Fort Ht)ward, and 
for a number of years has been city treas- 
urer, being always recognized as a first- 
class business man and a model gentleman. 

J. H. Tayler was reared and educated 
in Fort Howard, and after leaving school 
began his business life as assistant post- 
master, holding the position with credit 
for ten years ; he was city treasurer two 
years, and since his connection with the 
McCartney National Bank has also held 
the office of mayor of Fort Howard. His 
banking experience began with the or- 
ganization of the Exchange Bank in 1881, 
of which David McCartney was the presi- 
dent and Mr. Tayler the cashier ; in 1892 
the McCartney National Bank was organ- 
ized, with the same officials. During 
this period of fourteen years Mr. Tayler 
has maintained his position as cashier to 
the entire satisfaction of the business pub- 
lic, and his uniformly pleasant method of 
performing his duties has made him a 
favorite with the bank's customers and the 
citizens generally. He is also a director 
of the Green Bay and Fort Howard Water 
Works Company. 

Mr. Tayler was married, in 1889, to 
Miss Eleanor J. Richardson, who was 
born in Wisconsin, daughter of George 
and Susan Richardson, the former a na- 
tive of England who settled in Fort How- 
ard about the year 1865. The only child 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Tayler, named 
George R., was taken from them in his 
earliest childhood, causing a void in their 
otherwise happy home that is felt most 
keenly. Mr. Tayler is in politics a Re- 
publican, believing that the principles pro- 
mulgated by that party are the best adapt- 
ed to the good of the ]ieo]ile of the State 
and Nation. In tin- social circk's of Fort 
Howard he and his wife are shining lights 
and recognized ornaments, and in the 
sterner and more serious conduct of local 



4i6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



progress Mr. Tajlor's advice is eagerly 
sought and is freely given, while he him- 
self never fails to bear his full share of the 
labor and cost of public improvements 
— material, religious and educational. 



M 



J. CORBETT, wholesale and 
retail grocer. Fort Howard, 
Brown county. This gentle- 
man, who is one of the promi- 
nent business men and stanch citizens of 
Fort Howard, has had an interesting and 
varied experience. He was born in Ot- 
tawa City, Canada, son of Lawrence 
Corbett, a native of Ennis, County Clare, 
Ireland, who died in Ottawa, Canada; 
the mother of our subject died when he 
was an infant. 

M. J. Corbett was educated in a pri- 
vate school in his native city. At the 
age of fifteen years he went to Buffalo, 
N. Y. , where he worked in a stone-yard 
one season, and in the fall of i 866 shipped 
as a boat hand and came to Fort How- 
ard, Wis., here engaging in boating on 
Green Bay, first on the • ' Sarah Van 
Epps. " when she ran on the east shore, 
later on the steamer "Ozaukee," and 
afterward on the "Katie Reed." After a 
few years' service on the Bay he entered 
the boiler works of I). M. l^urns, and 
after remaining there some time served a 
three or four years' apprenticeship as a 
machinist in the Monitor Iron Works. 
He next worked as a journeyman in the 
Green Bay & Winona shojis until 1877, 
going thence to Lake City, Colo., on a 
prosjiecting tour, and later to Texas and 
Alabama, where he followed his trade. 
He was in the employ of the I. & G. N. 
R. R. at Houston, Texas, as a machinist, 
and later worked in the same cajiacity in 
the H. & T. C. shops at Galveston, re- 
maining in the South until about 1880, 
when he returned to Fort Howard and 
commenced business for himself in a small 
building now occupied as a boot and shoe 
store, buying and shipping potatoes. He 
purchased and improved his present two- 



story brick veneered building in 1 884. 
and, from the small beginning made in 
1 880, has grown the extensive business 
which he now enjoys. Mr. Corbett is at 
this time the leading merchant of Fort 
Howard, carrying a complete line of 
groceries, crockery and glassware, flour 
and feed, giving employment to six clerks 
and enjoying an extensive custom in 
northeastern \\'isconsin and northern 
Michigan. The wholesale branch of this 
business was established about 1890, 
and his large double store on Main street, 
80x60 feet in dimensions, is a busy center 
of trade. 

In addition to his mercantile affairs, 
Mr. Corbett finds time also to devote 
to social and public matters, and is a 
thoroughly public-spirited citizen. Po- 
litically he votes with the Republican 
party, and has served as alderman at large 
for his city. He is a member of Poche- 
quette Lodge. K. of P., of the A. O. U. 
W. at Fort Howard, and is a director and 
manager of the Fort Howard Building 
and Loan Association. He is full)' identi- 
fied with the interests of the city, and in 
all respects is a valuable citizen. 



E 



PHKAI.M CROCKER, ex-sheriff 
of Brown connt\. Wis., farmer 
and liveryman, was born July 16, 
1 8 19, in Colerain, Mass.. a son of 
William Crocker, who was a native of 
Washington county, N. Y.-, born near 
Crocker's Falls, named after the grand- 
father of our subject. 

William Crocker, who was a farmer, 
settled in 1833 in Ohio, where he died at 
the age of forty-eight years. He had 
married Miss Elizabeth Potter, also a 
native of Washington county, N. Y., who 
became the mother of ten children, all 
but two of whom grew to maturity, She 
died in Ashtabula, Ohio, at the age of 
about seventy \ears. As far as Mr. 
Crocker knows, he has one brother. W'ill- 
iam H., living in Australia: another, 
Charles, in Arizona; and one. Levi, in 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



417 



Wisconsin, ail engaged in mercantile trade. 
Old-time war reminiscences are plen- 
tiful in the Crocker family, and, among 
others, it is related that Ephraim's father 
was on Lake Champlain, September 11, 
1 814, when the famous battle was raging, 
and could distinctly hear the roar of the 
cannon. Both grandfathers were officers 
under Washington in the Revolution; a 
granduncle, in the same struggle, was 
taken prisoner and consigned to Canada, 
and while crossing a riter was set to row- 
ing a boat; but, pretending he could not 
row, he fell behind, and, by (li\crging 
from the proper course, escaped; after 
reaching the shore he applieil to a house 
for something to eat; the lady tnld him 
her husband was a Tory, but she w as true 
blue, and concealed him under the Hoor 
in the cellar until an opptjrtunity offered 
for his escape, thus saving his life. 

Ephraim Crocker lived on the home 
farm until the death of his father, which 
occurred when he was about si.xteen years 
of age. Times being hard and his mother 
poor, he then started out in life for him- 
self, and his meanderings were \aried and 
long. He made a start for Columbus, 
Ohio, but before reaching his destination 
found emploxnient in a hotel; he next 
drove team at Zanesville, w here he re- 
mained awhile, and then went back again 
to his last employer and cared for horses 
two years. Going next to \\''heeling, W. 
Va. , he engaged in teaming, and for about 
three years was a driver on the National 
road for Stockton, Falls & Co., after 
W'hich he l)ound himself as an apprentice 
to a millwright in Cumberland, Md. Ac- 
companying his employer to Harrisburg, 
Penn., he helped to build a sawmill, and 
worked six moths in same, thence going 
to Smithland, Ky., where he built a 
steam tannery and a gristmill. His ap- 
prenticeship expired there eighteen months 
later, and he returned to Ashtabula, Ohio. 
After working for a time on a vessel he 
went to Buffalo, and then to New York 
City, where for three years he worked at 
shipbuilding for W^illiam Webb; then went 



to St. Louis, Mo., and worked one winter 
on a large steamer; then reached Chicago, 
where he worked in a shipyard, and while 
there helped to build the first boat that 
passed through the Illinois canal. 

Mr. Crocker now returned t<i Ohio, 
and November 20, 1S4S, \\;is married tt> 
Miss Hannah S. Hewitt, who was born in 
New York State, a ilaiighter of David and 
Sally Hewitt, natives of New York, who 
early settled in Ohio, dying in Ashta- 
bula. To this marriage were Ixnn seven 
children, two cif whom are yet living", 
viz.: Sarah C, who is the wife (jf Rob- 
ert Henderson, and has three sons; and 
Frank G., who married Miss Irwin, and 
has a son and a daughter (he is a resident 
of Iron Mountain, Mich., and is register 
of deeds there). .-\fter his marriage Mr. 
Crocker returned to Chicago fcjr a year, 
and in 1850 came to Fort Howard, where 
he has ever since remained, with the ex- 
ception of the time occupied in making a 
trip to California. Here he first engaged 
in general building, which he followed 
until 1854, when he started a livery stable 
which he has condutteil, with the excep- 
tion of two years, until the present time, 
owning, besides, a large tract of \aluable 
land quite near the cit\'. In 1873 and 
1874 he was sheriff of BriAvn county, and 
his career was a most exciting one in that 
capacit\'; three-card montc men infested 
the region and helil officers, attorneys and 
the populace under intimitlation; but 
Sheriff Crocker proved to be a match for 
them. The great trouble was that indi- 
viduals who were swindled by them were 
terrorized and dare not appear against 
them when arrested. But Sheriff Crock- 
er, as it were, took the law in his own 
hands, and on one occasion entcrt'd the 
courtroom, took out the thief, and forced 
him to disgorge $40 of his ill-gotten gains, 
and on another occasion comjielled the 
culprit to surrender over $200. The 
sheriff's name became a terror to the 
desperadoes, and, despite all threats of 
personal violence against himself, he 
tenaciously clung to his duty and extermi- 



4i8 



COMMKMORATIVi: BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



nated the evil-doers from the region. 
Sheriff Crocker was possessed of fjreat 
nerve, and at one time captured four 
desperadoes single-handed, his only 
weapon being a revolver that was utterl)' 
unfit for use. He is a man of strict 
honor, and one the people lia\e always 
iniplicitl}- relied upon for uprightness. In 
politics he was formerly an Old-line 
Whig, and cast his first vote for Gen. Will- 
iam Henry Harrison; he now affiliates 
with the Republicans, and was chairman 
of the first Republican caucus held in 
Fort Howard, which met in 1856 in the 
office of his present livery barn. He and 
his family are members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, of which for seven 
years he was Sunday-school superintend- 
ent. His standing socially is very high, 
and as a business man he is without 
reproach. 



WH. PETERSON, liveryman, 
Main street, l-'ort Howard, was 
born at Stowe, Lamoille Co., 
\'t . ill 1850, and is a son of A. 
and Mary .\im (Somers) Peterson, na- 
ti\es of the same State, in which the}' 
lived and died. The senior Peterson was 
a farmer by occupation, and died in 1885, 
his wife preceding him in 1866 to the 
mysterious beyond. Their four children 
were : Edward, who resides in Green 
Bay, and is engaged in the milling busi- 
ness at Cooperstown, Wis. ; Gustie, who 
is married, and resides at Nashua, Iowa ; 
W. H., of Fort Howard, and Alfred, who 
died in Stowe, \'t., about 1890. The 
grandfather of Mr. Peterson was also a 
native of the Green Mountain State, born 
of Scotch ancestry, and was a soldier in 
the Revolutionary war. 

W. H. Peterson, who was reared and 
educated among the rugged mountains of 
his native State, early became interested 
in the trotting-horse business in eastern 
Vermont, and continued until his removal 
to Fort Howard in 1870. He had mar- 
ried, the previous year. Eunice Kimball, 



daughter of Luke Kimball, both \'er- 
monters. Death parted the youthful 
couple in 1872, and the wife's remains 
now rest beneath the soil of her native 
State. Mr. Peterson was again married, 
in 1874, at Milwaukee, this time to Mrs. 
Anna Rice, a widow with one daughter, 
who is now Mrs. Nellie Wheeler, of Mil- 
waukee. Upon coming to Fort Howard 
Mr. Peterson engaged in teaming for some 
time. When the Milwaukee & Northern 
railroad was constructed to this point he 
became its transfer agent, continuing un- 
til 1876, when he became interested in 
milling in Eaton township. Fire destroyed 
the property in 1880, and he again turned 
to his first love, trotting horses, finally 
establishing himself in the livery business. 
He has taken pride in handling fine stock, 
getting fancy prices when making sales. 
In politics Mr. Peterson is a Republican ; 
socially he is a member of the K. O. T. 
M., and was one of the originators of the 
Fair and Park Association, at whose fairs 
he has always served as marshal. He 
has witnessed verj' many changes since 
coming to Fort Howard, and has always 
been interested, as a true American citi- 
zen should be, in all that would enhance 
the prosperity of his home, city and county. 



PH. CARLIN, one of the prosper- 
ous business men of Green Bay, 
Brown county, where he conducts 
a flourishing livery establishment, 
is a native of Kingston, Canada, born 
January 6, 1856. 

William Carlin, father of subject, was 
a native of Ireland, and by trade a mill- 
wright, also engaging in lumbering. He 
married Ann Nefcy, and their union was 
blessed with fourteen children — eight sons 
and six daughters — eleven of whom are 
yet living. In 1867 William Carlin came 
to Green Bay, bringing his wife and 
family, which then consisted of seven 
children, and after a short residence here 
removed to Oconto, Wis., living in that 
vicinitv the remainder of his life. He 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



419 



was a man of means, aiul owned a '^aod 
farm, beiiij; alst) engaged In a cdnsider- 
id)le extent in lumber dealing. During 
his youth he had recei\ed hut a limited 
edueation, but he acquired a practical 
business training, and was altogether a 
self-made man. He |)assed from earth 
October j, i'^77, and was bmied at 
Oconto, at which [ilace his widow, now 
aged sixty-two j-ears, still makes her 
home. In politics he was a Democrat, 
and in religious faith a member of the 
Catholic C'hurch. 

P. H. Carlin attended the common 
schools in Canada until his twelfth year, 
when he came with his parents to Wis- 
consin, and here finished his education in 
the schools of the time. When eighteen 
years of age he went out with a surveying 
corps as helper and compassman, prior to 
which he had assisted his father, at the 
age of sixteen having charge of a camp of 
eighty-tive men in the lumber regions. 
He continued as helper to surveyors until 
he became competent to work for him- 
self, and in following this business he has 
been over a considerable portion of Lower 
Canada, Nfichigan, W'isconsin, and ^^in- 
nesota, having continued in the ))ursuit of 
the prt)fession more or less for the last 
twenty years. He has also engaged in 
the lumber business for his own account, 
and for five or six years was superin- 
tendent for the Murphy Lumber Co. He 
has also bought lumber for othei's, his 
competence! and sound judgment being 
everj'where recognized anil fulh a])preci- 
ated, and in this capacity has probably 
purchased over ten million dollars' worth 
of lumber. On July 6, 1S92, Mr. Carlin 
purchased from J. A. Cusick the profit- 
able livery business, in the conducting of 
which he is now engaged, having one of 
the largest and best establishments in that 
line in Green Bay, where he is well known 
as a substantial business man; he also 
owns two farms in Oconto county, and 
several tracts of timber land in northern 
Wisconsin, which are carefully looked 
after. He has been a self-made man in 



e\ery way. and besides making his own 
wa\" in the world has faithfulK' assisted 
his [larents. and lor se\eral years after 
the death of Ins father was tlu' head of 
the lamily. 

On l~ebruary 4, i''^94. Mr. Carlin and 
Miss Margaret Runnel weri' umted in 
marriagt' in Cireeii ixiy, in which city she 
was born, daughter ol .\dani Runnel. 
Our subject cast his lirst vote for James 
.\. Ciarfield. ami has always been a stanch 
i\epid)lican and Protectionist ; though tak- 
ing a li\el\ interest in the success ol his 
part\. he is no asjiirant tor offua' and 
has declined nomination o\\ x'arious occa- 
sions. In religions f.iith he and his wife 
are both meiidK-rs of the Catholic Church. 



THOMAS LAWLOR, a retired 
farmer, now residing in De Pere, 
iiniwn county, was born in No- 
\ ember, iSjj, in County KeiTy, 
Ireland, son of John and Lllen ( Hahan) 
i^awior. He- lost his father in 1832, 
anil his mother being thus rendered un- 
able to kee|) her famih' together, our sufi- 
ject commenced work at the agt' of fif- 
teen. His first place was with Kew 
leather Thomas Fitzgerald, with whom 
he remained two years, afterward iinding 
emploNUK'nt with the farmers of his 
county, where he worked h.ird and saved 
all the mone\- he earned. 

In 1845 Mr. Lawlor married Mary 
Connor, who was born in iSj8 in County 
Kerry, daughter of Timothy and Mary 
(Murphyl Connor, and for two years 
thereafter worked as a farm hand, at low 
wages. To this marriage one chihi was 
born in Ireland, named Patrick, who 
died in Clenmore township. P)rown Co., 
Wis., at the age of eighteen. Mr. Lawlor 
having decided to come to America, he 
set sail from Liverpool, l-'ebruary 12, 
1847, embarking with his family on the 
sailing ves.scl "Siddons," and arriving 
.April I, of the same year, in New York, 
went thence to Creenfield, Franklin, 
Co., Mass., and for (wc years worked for 



420 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



thf farmers of the neighborhood. Here 
were born two daughters, Ellen and 
Mary, the former of whom is married to 
Robert Wilson, and the latter to William 
Patten, a fanner. By this time our sub- 
ject had saved $600, and in the fall of 
1852 he came with his little family to 
Wisconsin. Reaching Green Bay in 
September, he located his family in West 
De Pere and went to work on the canal 
at Kaukauna, Outagamie county, for a 
month or more, after which he returned 
to Brown county and bought eighty acres 
of wild land in Glenmore township. Not 
a road was on or near the place, and he 
blazed the trees to mark his path. He 
found shelter for his family in a neighbor's 
cabin until he could clear a space for 
building a cabin of his own, a task which 
was soon accomplished, and here the 
family lived very happil)'. Wolves were 
numerous, their howling being heard at all 
hours in the night, and game was also 
plentiful, -Mr. Lawlor on one occasion 
killing a bear on his own farm, and the 
animal served for many good meals. But 
what was then a wilderness is now a broad 
expanse of w^ell-tilled fields, occupied by 
well-to-do farmers .Kfter many years of 
labor devoted to clearing up and develop- 
ing his farm — now one of the finest in 
Glenmore township — Mr. Lawlor built a 
hewn log house and, later, a substantial 
brick dwelling, which still stands and is 
likely to stand for many years yet to 
come; he also erected three fine barns. 
After thirty-si.\ years of good hard work 
on this farm, he sold all his real estate, 
and in August, 1888, came to De Pere, 
where he has since passed his days in re- 
tirement, respected for his many virtues 
by all who know him. 

The children born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Lawlor in Wisconsin were named John, 
Sarah, Thomas and Maggie (twins), Fan- 
nie, Michael and William, of whom two 
sons and three daughters yet survive. In 
politics Mr. Lawlor is a stanch Democrat, 
but has never sought office. His dealings 
with his fellow men have always been 



-Straightforward and honest; he owes no 
man anything, neither has he ever bor- 
rowed m<jney from an\' man. In religious 
connection he and his faithful wife are 
members of St. Francis Church, De Pere, 
and they are most sincere in their faith. 
l*"ew people have lived together as hap- 
pily and contentedly as this honored 
couple, and there are few in Brown county 
who have made more friends. They are 
esteemed by all who know them for their 
many good cjualities of head and heart, 
and their lives have been an example 
worthy of imitation by the young people 
of the Fox River Vallev. 



J.VSPER STEPHEN CHASE, the ex- 
tensive lumberer and flour-mill pro- 
prietor, of De Pere, Brown county, 
was born at Port Huron, Mich., Sep- 
tember 17, 1853, a son of Nathan B. and 
Ann M. fMcClure) Chase, who were of 
luiglish and Scotch ancestry, respectively. 
The paternal grandfather. Stephen Chase, 
came from England to Woodstock, Can- 
ada, about the year 1 800. and by vocation 
was a farmer. His son, Nathan B. 
Chase, became a prosperous lumber 
dealer and proprietor of two sawmills at 
Port Huron, which he sold out in 1S54, 
and next engaged in mercantile trade at 
Green Bay, W'is. , where, through the 
trickery of a partner, he lost over forty 
thousand dollars. In 1 856 he re-engaged 
in the milling business, which, for eight 
years he carried on at Wrightstown, and 
then moved his mill to Oconto county, 
where he continued the business until 
1870, when his son, Jasper S., in com- 
pany with Isaac Dickey, purchased the 
mill property, and Nathan B. Chase re- 
turned to his farm in the vicinity of Green 
Bay, where he passed the remainder of 
his days, dying in F"ebruary, 1884. 

Jasper S. Chase ac(]uired a very good 
education in the schools of De Pere and at 
the Green Bay Business College; he next 
clerked for L. Day, a wholesale grocer at 
Green Bay, for three years, then bought 



COMMEMORATIVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



421 



his interest in the nuUin^ business in 
Oconto county, in whicli he continued 
seventeen years, during which time he 
cut from sixty million to seventy million 
feet of lumber. Mr. Chase became 
very influential in the rcj;ion of the mill, 
and the township in which it was located 
was named "Chase, " in his honor. For 
eight years he was a member of the 
county board of commissioners, and for 
an equal length of time was chairman of 
of the township board of trustees. Since 
settling in De Pere, in icSSg, he has served 
as supervisor one year, also as count}' 
treasurer one year, and is now serving as 
city alderman. His social anil business 
relations are extensi\e and complex. He 
is president of the De Pere Lumber lv: I'uel 
Compan}-, which handles all kinds of lum- 
ber that grows in this climate, as 
well as pine and other lumber indi- 
genous to the south, and dot-s a busi- 
ness averaging fifty thousand dollars per 
annum; he is secretary of the John I-". 
Dousman Milling Company; secretary of 
of the De l\'re flight i.S: Power Company, 
all of which companies he took an active 
part in organizing, and is also a meml)er 
of the board of directors of the Artesian 
Water Supply Companw His business 
activity and enterprise are universally rec- 
ognized, and his interest in the material 
advancement of De Pere is equally well 
conceded. Socially he is a member of 
the Knights of Pythias. The marriage of 
Mr. Chase took place, in [879, to Flora 
Call, daughter of W. P. Call, a retired 
business man, the result of the union 
being three children, named Rena, M(jr- 
ris and Hazel. 



THEODORE COLBURN, a well- 
known and highly-respected citi- 
zen of De Pere, Brown county, 
was born December 9, 1830, near 
the city of Quebec, Canada, son of Fran- 
cis and Angeline fThomas) Colburn. 

Francis Colburn was a son of ]ean 
Colburn, who was a nati\e of l-'rance. 



Francis was a farmer in Canada, also near 
Plattsburgh, N. Y., and of his fifteen chil- 
dren ten were sons. He lost his wife in 
New York State, and later moved to 
Michigan, thence coming to De Pere, 
where he passed tiie remainder of his 
days. Theodore Colburn received but 
one week's schooling, and was reared to 
hard labor on the farm. He was married 
at Plattsburgh, N. Y. , February 3, 1851, 
to Miss Celia Deniro, who was born April 
3, 1835, in Canada. He was at that time 
a poor young man, but self-reliant and 
strong. He rented a farm eighteen miles 
from Plattsburgh, worked hard for nearly 
two and a half years, made some money, 
and in the fall of 1S53 disposed of his 
jiersonal effects and started f(_)r Wisconsin 
with his wife and sur\iving child, Mar- 
shall (now of Stiles, Wis. j, having lost 
one child in New York State. In Novem- 
ber, 1853, he landed in Creen Bay, and 
shortly afterward came to De Pere, 
where he rented a house, and for three 
years worked in the woods for James 
Ritchie. In 1854 he went in debt for 
h\e acres of land at that time in the 
woods, but now a part of the city, 
and built the first house erected on 
the tract, the whole costing $150. 
He lived on this place until a short time 
before the breaking out of the Ivebellion, 
and then bought sixty acres on the East 
river, in De Pere township. This was 
also a wilderness, in which he built the 
first house. He next moved to Rockland 
township, where he burned charcoal 
for a time, then lived in the cityof De Pere 
for a while, returning thence to his 
East river farm, which he soon sold, 
going to Black Creek, Outagamie county, 
where he bought a steam sawmill, but 
within a year and a half lost $10,000; 
then bought forty acres near De Pere; 
next removed to Dakota, and for three 
3'ears and a half lived near Big Stone 
City, where he owned 700 acres; tln^n 
returned to \\'isconsin and built a hotel 
at Marinette ('then known as "Pound"), 
whiidi he conducted, and also kept a saloon ; 



422 



COMMEMORATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



■then moved to Green Bay, and about 
1882 settled in De Pere, where he has 
since made his home. 

Mr. Colburn had a short war e.xperi- 
•ence. In March, 1865, he enlisted at 
■Green Bay in a Wisconsin infantry regi- 
ment, his avoirdupois being then 204 
pounds; he served in Missouri, doing pa- 
trol and guard duty until July, 1865, 
when he was discharged on account of 
sickness, his weight being at that time 
I 60 pounds, and he has been an invalid 
ever since. The children born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Colburn were named as follows: 
Louis, now of De Pere: Cclia, now Mrs. 
J. H. Kosell, of Plaintield, Wis.; John, 
of Ingalls, Mich. ; Sophia, at home with 
her parents; Frank, who died at the age 
of five years; Mary, who died at the age 
of two and one half-years; \'irginia, who 
also died young; Ida, now Mrs. Michael 
Lawlor, of De Pere; and Xavier and 
Clara, who both died young. Mr. Col- 
burn is a Democrat, and has always 
voted with that party; he and his wife are 
members of St. Joseph's Catholic Church. 



CHARLES L. D.WIS, farmer and 
stock raiser, and one of the pro- 
gressive, public-spirited citizens 
of Lawrence township. Brown 
county, was born July 25, 1848, in the 
town of Koyalton, Niagara county. New 
York. 

His father, E. B. Davis, was a native 
of Schenectady county, N. Y. , where he 
married Polly Schadd, and while living in 
New York they had children as follows: 
John, a member of Company I. Third 
Wisconsin Cavalry, who died at Madison, 
Wis.; George, who died in Elyria, Ohio; 
and Charles L. , whose name introduces 
this sketch. Mr. Davis was a farmer in 
New York State, and in 1 849 he removed 
to Lorian county, Ohio, and purchased a 
farm in Carlisle township, where he con- 
tinued to follow agricultural pursuits, and 
here he also dealt extensively in lumber, 
principally the purchasing of staves for a 



Buffalo firm. In Lorian countv was born 
another child, Jane C, who married 
Bruce Lindsley, and died in Flintville, 
Brown Co., Wis. Mrs. Polly Davis died 
in Lorian county, January 17, 1857, and 
was buried in Elyria, same county, and 
Mr. Davis then married Miss Susan Oak- 
ley, who died in Lorian county July, 11, 
1858. In 1859 he wedded, in Lockport, 
N. Y. , for his third wife. Miss Mary Bar- 
rett. In i860, the lumber business hav- 
ing gradually declined with the clearing 
away of the forests, Mr. Davis concluded 
to remove farther west, and brought his 
family to Brown county. Wis., traveling 
by rail to Oshkosh, and from there by 
stage to Wrightstown, Brown county, 
where they located. Mr. Davis again 
engaged in the stave business, buying 
timber from farmers, and he put consider- 
able money into circulation here, as his 
trade was an extensive one. He invested 
in a large amount of land in Brown 
county, and pre-empted over 300 acres 
of government land. He was a well-built 
man, of splendid physique, and was well 
known and highly respected in his com- 
munity. At the time of his death, which 
occurred March 11, 1878, he was com- 
fortably situated. In his political belief 
he was a Democrat, and a stanch sup- 
porter of the party, but was not an active 
politician. He lies buried in Wrights- 
town cemetery. 

Charles L. Davis received his first 
school training in Carlisle township, 
Lorain Co., Ohio. After the death of 
his mother he returned to Niagara county, 
N. Y., and for two years made his home 
with his grandfather, then, in i860, com- 
ing to Wisconsin. In October, 1864, 
then but a little over sixteen years of 
age, he enlisted at Green Bay, Wis., in 
Company H, Twelfth Wisconsin In- 
fantrVj was sent South, and, joining the 
regiment at Marietta, Ga. , participated 
in the entire campaign through the Caro- 
linas. He took part in the Grand Review 
at Washington, D. C, was mustered out 
at Louisville, Ky. ; and received an hon- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



423 



orable discharge at Madistjn, Wis. 
When he first came to Wisconsin, the 
schools were very poor and he did not 
attend much, as he assisted his father in 
the latter's extensive lumber business, 
becoming familiar with the details of 
same when yet a mere boy. After the 
war he became partner with his father in 
the business and continued to hold an in- 
terest in same tnitil 1879. 

On April 9, 1877, at Wrightstown, 
Wis., by Rev. Father De Wilt, Mr. 
Davis was united in marriage with Miss 
Ellen Sullivan, who was born Januar}' 
22, 1857. in Winchendon, Worcester 
Co., Mass., eldest child of John and 
Ellen (Harris) Sulli\-an. For five years 
previous to her marriage she followed the 
profession of school teaching, in the 
meantime having her residence in Law- 
rence. In 1882 Mr. Davis purchased 
his present farm in Lawrence township, 
and moved thereon, at the same time 
severing completely his connection with 
the lumber business. Since that time he 
has been exclusively engaged in general 
farming and stock-raising, and he now 
has a fertile, well-improved farm of 
ninety-nine acres. In politics he is one 
of the leaders of the Democratic party in 
his section, and for three years has been 
chairman of the Democratic committee. 
He is always among the foremost men in 
the township in any enterprise tending to 
benefit the cummunity in general. To 
him and his wife have come children as 
follows: Jennie E., born August 2, 
1879; Mamie L. . born February 4, 1S81, 
died February 7, 1882; John E., born 
June 18, 1882; Harriet C. , born May 24, 
1886, died May 7, 18S7; and Charles F. , 
born April i, i88g. 



JOHN G. GROSS, chief of the Fort 
Howard Fire Department since Janu- 
ary, 1 894, and for three years a 
member of that organization, takes 
pride in the fact that he is at the head of 
a thoroughly equipped volunteer depart- 



ment, having one engine and all the neces- 
sary auxiliaries. There is but one paid 
man in the department. 

John G. Gross, father of our subject, 
was born in Bavaria, and came to New 
York in 1850. Pushing westward in 1852 
to Milwaukee, Wis. , he there married Mar- 
garet Moschel, and settled, six months after 
arriving in Milwaukee, on a farm in Mor- 
rison township. Brown Co., Wis., which 
he cleared and improved. Later he en- 
gaged in the lumber and milling business, 
and he and his wife still reside on the 
farm on which they originally settled. 
Their children were nine in number: 
August resides in Morrison township, 
where he is engaged in sawmilling and 
conducts a cheese factory; Caroline, wife 
of Frank Falck, resides in Seymour, Wis. ; 
John G. is the subject of this sketch; 
Louisa is ihe wife of Joseph Leonard, of 
Medford, Taylor Co., Wis.; Fred P. re- 
sides in Fort Howard; Maggie, wife of 
Daniel Schunk, resides on the old farm; 
Sophia is the wife of William Peters, of 
Brillion, Calmuet Co. , Wis. ; Christina is 
the wife of Charley Furstenburg, of Bril- 
lion; Gottfried, unmarried, resides with 
his brother, John. 

Our subject was born January 21, 1858, 
on the home farm in Morrison town- 
ship. Brown Co., Wis., and when he was 
fourteen years of age went to work at 
teaming, milling and farming, continuing 
until his removal to Fort Howard in 1883. 
In the latter year he established a saloon 
and billiard parlor at the corner of Main 
and Pearl streets, which he still conducts. 
In 1882 he was married, in Morrison 
township, to Miss Bertha Schultz, who 
came to the township in 1 866 from Prussia, 
with her parents, Ferdinand and Anna 
(Tinnn) Schultz, the family locating upon 
a new farm, which the\' improved. Mr. 
Schultz died in 1890; his widow still re- 
sides on the old homestead. Their other 
children are: August, married and re- 
siding on the old farm; Albert, married 
and living in Morrison township; Hannah, 
wife of Albert Sorwald, of Brillion, Wis. 



424 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Mr. and Mrs. Gross are the parents of 
two children. William and Clarence. Mr. 
Gross was reared in the Lutheran faith. 
He is a member of Green Bay Lodge, No. 
119, L O. O. F., and of the American 
Legion of Honor at Fort Howard. For- 
merly a Democrat in politics, he has found 
reason to change his political belief, and 
now casts his vote with the Republican 
party. Since his boyhood, although that 
period is not remote, he has witnessed 
great changes in the region around 
his home. 



M 



KS. OLIVE L SHERWOOD, 
(if Howard township, Brown 
county, was born April J, 1.S22, 
in Oneida county, N. Y. , and 
is the widow of the lamented Edison 
Sherwood, who was born May 21, 1813, 
in Fairfield, ("onn., a son of Wakeman 
Sherwood. 

Edison Sherwood was a gentleman of 
considerable prominence in the early da}s 
of Green Bay, having migrated hither as 
early as 1835. He had been reared a 
farmer, and on coming here went to the 
Mission building in ihe capacity of an 
agriculturist. In 1843 '^e married Miss 
Olive I. Holmes, and then engaged in 
general stock business in partnership with 
her brother, A. G. E. Holmes, conduc-t- 
ing same for almost forty years with un- 
varying success, and with unswerving 
adherence to the principles of mercantile 
integrity. His death took place January 
25, 1880, in Green Bay, and was most 
deeply mourned by all who had ever been 
associated with him in any of the trans- 
actions of life- -domestic, social or com- 
mercial. After his decease his widow 
lived with her brother, A. G. E. Holmes, 
until thirteen years ago, when she moved 
to the home of her sister, Mrs. A. B. 
Oatley, with whom she has ever since re- 
sided. Mrs. Sherwood adopted two chil- 
dren, whom she reared with affectionate 
attention and care, viz.: Carrie L. , who 



was l)orn October 9, 1858, and died in 
Milwaukee, F'ebruary 17. 1893, leaving a 
daughter thirteen jears old; and Fannie 
E., who was born December 1, 1873, 
married Dr. Gilbert, and is now a resi- 
dent of Fond du Lac (she has one daugh- 
ter). Mrs. Sherwood was always promi- 
nent in social circles until her husband's 
death, and has always been an active 
member of Christ's Episcopal Church, 
Green Bay, of which he was also a 
member. Of the seven children born 
to her parents, .-^Ivah and Sophronia 
(Ellis) Holmes, four sons and two daugh- 
ters still survive. [Since the above was 
written Mrs. Olive I. Sherwood was taken 
sick, which sickness terminated in her 
death, September 10, 1894, at the age of 
seventy-two years; her remains were laid 
to rest in W'oodlawn Cemetery, beside 
those of her beloved husband]. 

Ai.HERT B. O.^TLKV was born Octo- 
ber 12, 1832, in Burlington, N. Y.. a son 
of Benedict and Kosanna (Green) Oat- 
ley, the former of whom was a native of 
Rhode Island. 

His father, Benedict Oatley, Sr. , was 
also a native of Rhode Island, and died 
in Onedia county, N. Y. , at the age 
of seventy, his wife at the age of sixty; 
he had been a soldier in the Revolution- 
ary war. Benedict Oatley, Jr., who was 
the eldest in a family of eight children — 
five sons and three daughters — was reared 
to farm life in Oneida county, N. Y. , and 
there died at the age of si.\ty-two. His 
wife, Rosanna. who was born in New 
York, was a daughter of Simeon and 
Rosanna fBudlong) Green, natives of 
Connecticut, the former of whom was a 
soldier in the Revolution, at the close of 
which struggle he settled in Bridgewater, 
Oneida county, N. Y. , and built a hotel 
or tavern, which is still standing, and 
which he conducted many years, after- 
ward purchasing a farm which he culti- 
vated about five years and then retiring to 
Bridgewater, where he died at the age of 
eighty, his wife at about the same age. 
They were the parents of eleven chil- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



425 



dren — six sons and lixe daugliters — of 
whom one son and one tianghter are yet 
living. Mrs. Rosanna fGreeii) Oatiej' 
died in Utica, N. Y. , at the age of fifty- 
fi\e. 

Albert 1:5. Oatley is a member of a 
famil}' of ten children, seven of whom 
are still living — farmers and business men. 
He was reared a farmer, and has practi- 
cally followed that vocation until the 
present time. On January 27, 1S50, he 
married Lavantia C. Holmes, who was 
born April i", 1832, in Bridgewater, N. 
Y., a daughter of Ahah and Sophronia 
Holmes, and to this union have come 
fi\'e children, as follows: Ella S., born 
March 12, 185 i, who is married to Wil- 
liam Finnegan ; Alva H., born February 
14, 1853, deceased when two and a half 
years of age ; Nettie H., born September 
6, 1859, and married to H. B. Haxland, 
now of Horton, Kans., engaged in rail- 
roading (they have had five sons and one 
daughter, the latter of whom died at the 
age of two and a half years); Edison S., 
born November 20, i 864, married to Nel- 
lie Mead, and has charge of the old home- 
stead; and Olive R., born September 10, 
1869, wife of Robert Delaney. After his 
m arriage Mr. Oatley bought a farm 
of 120 acres in the town of Suamico, 
Brown county, Wis. , and erected a block 
or hewed-log house, 16 x 20 feet, in which 
he li\'ed twelve years, after which he 
came to the town of Howard, Brown 
county, Wis. , and bought the farm where 
he now resides, in the winter of 1874 
erecting his present dwelling. In politics 
Mr. Oatley is a Democrat, and voted for 
James Buchanan. He has served as jus- 
tice of the peace several years, and is 
regarded with great respect in the com- 
munity. Several members of his family 
served through the Civil war, including 
three brothers, one of whom was wounded 
in battle and died in Washington. Mr. 
and Mrs. Oatley are members of the 
Presbyterian Church, and are among 
the most respected people of the town- 
ship. 



Ri:\-. ELSEAK i)K WILT is a na- 
tive of Holland, born July 8, 1827, 
at Uden, North Brabant, in which 
province the name of de Wilt is 
an old one, the family having resided 
there for many generations, some being 
farmers, others business men. 

Grandfather Francis de Wilt was a 
man of considerable ability, also a fine 
hunter and a very courageous man. Dur- 
ing the French revolution a party of 
French soldiers and sympathi;^ers at- 
tempted to tear down a large statue of St. 
Peter in the gable of the church at Uden, 
and he was just returning from hunting, 
accompanied by his dogs, when he dis- 
covered their designs. To these vandals 
he announced that if they persisted a 
Frenchman would come to ground sooner 
than St. Peter, and it is needless to say 
the statue remained standing. At another 
time he saved the same church from being 
burned down. The steeple had been 
struck by lightning, and, the sacristan re- 
fusing to give up the keys, Mr. de Wilt 
pitched him out of the window, took the 
keys from him, and climbed the tower, 
where already the rafters were on fire. 
He stamped out the fire, and thus saved 
the church, although himself badly burned. 
The sacristan sued him for damages, but 
lost the suit, and Grandfather de Wilt was 
rewarded for his braver}' by a permanent 
seat in the church which descended to his 
children. He was a man of commanding 
appearance, and of great influence in his 
town. He reached the great age of four- 
score years, and at the age of seventy was 
still a great hunter. He reared a family 
of seven children, of whom the second 
son, Martinns, afterward inherited the old 
homestead and resided there till his death. 
He was more of a business man, became 
one of considerable consequence, took an 
interest in church matters, and lived a 
good Christian life. He was born May 
-9' 1797. and died January 28, i860. In 
the prime of life he married Maria Anna 
\'an Den Broek, born at Uden, Holland, 
May 9, 1804, who became the mother of 



426 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



six children, of \shom our subject is the 
eldest child. 

Rev. Father de Wilt received his 
primary education in his native town, 
and later on studied in Bruges, West 
Flanders, Belgium, where he made his 
noviciate in the Order of St. Francis, and 
afterward was ordained a priest by the 
bishop of Tournay. He soon after be- 
came professor of philosophy, and later 
professor of theology at Enghien; taught 
for about eight years, and was then sent 
to England to assist the bishop of 
Shrewsbury, where he presided as pastor 
of the parish at the city of Flint, Flint- 
shire, Wales. After two and a half years 
he was recalled to Antwerp, where a 
monastery was erected, and from there 
served as a missionary through Belgium, 
Holland and France. Finally he was 
placed in Brussels, his work remaining 
the same, until he got permission from 
Rome to proceed to America, which he 
did in 1868, when the diocese of Green 
Bay was organized by Bishop Melcher. 
He first took charge at Duck Creek, 
where he brought the congregation to- 
gether, and where they have had a priest 
ever since. In 1869 he moved to Little 
Chute, and here resided about five years; 
then was placed at Montello, where he 
remained till he came to Wrightstown, in 
1876, and began the erection of a resi- 
dence. He changed the church into a 
parochial school, and in 1885, with his 
own money, began a new church edifice 
in the name of the congregation. It is a 
large brick structure, and is as fine a 
church building as can be found in the 
Fox River Valley; the interior of it was 
recently (1894) finely painted and decor- 
ated at an expense of about six hundred 
dollars. 



AL" G U ST H OC 11 G K i: \" E, 
(deceased), was born October i 5, 
1832, in Herzberg, Hanover, Ger- 
many, the eldest in a family of 
eight children — three sons and five daugh- 



ters— -and, like his father, who bore the 
same name, became in his younger years 
a proficient brewer and cooper, trades 
which he learned in his father's establish- 
ment in Germany. 

Having received an excellent educa- 
tion, learned his trades, and fitted him- 
self for the struggles of life, Mr. Hoch- 
greve left his German home at the age of 
twenty years, and, sailing from Hamburg, 
arrived at length at New York City. Af- 
ter remaining there for one j'ear, w(jrking 
as a cooper, he removed to Manitowoc, 
Wis. , and engaged in the same business. 
In the summer of 1861 he located in 
Allouez township. Brown county, and in 
company with Henry Rahr, who had 
worked in the same establishment with 
him at Manitowoc, founded the brewery 
which is now conducted by his famil}-, 
and which has become one of the princi- 
pal institutions of Brown county. After 
eight or nine years, the firm having 
greatly prospered, they built another 
plant, now the H. Rahr's Sons' Brewery, 
and for some time conducted both estab- 
lishments; but the partnership was finally 
dissolved, Mr. Hochgreve taking the orig- 
inal plant and Mr. Rahr the one on East 
River, Green Bay. The former's business 
increased to such proportions that in 1874 
he built the present substantial brick 
structure, where the business is now car- 
ried on by Mrs. Hochgreve and her sons. 
A new and handsome dwelling has also 
been erected, and prosperity continues to 
smile upon the family. 

On October 20, 1862, Mr. Hochgreve 
was married at Manitowoc, to Caroline 
Kiel, who was born June 18. 1842, in 
Lippe-Detmold, Germany. Her father. 
Christian Kiel, was a farmer, who came 
with his family to the United States in 
the spring of 1851, landing at New York 
at the end of a seven-weeks' voyage from 
Bremen, and removing thence to Manito- 
woc. The children of Mr. and Mrs. 
Hochgreve are: August, residing in Green 
Bay, Wis. ; Lena, widow of Henry Freck- 
man, now residing in Milwaukee; Augusta, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



4-7 



Adolph, Louisa, Etta, Christian ami 
Mamie, at home; of these, Adoljih is 
superintendent of the brewery, Christian 
being bookkeeper. Mr. Hochgreve died 
February 23, 1877, and his remains rest 
in Woodland cemetery. During life he 
was an upright citizen, a stanch Republi- 
can in politics, and a prominent Odd 
Fellow. His widow is a member of the 
Lutheran Church. The family is num- 
bered among the leading ones of Brown 
county, and the memory of its founder is 
respected by all who knew him. 



ANDREW C. MAILER, M. D., 
one of the leading practitioners of 
medicine of Brown county. Wis., 
was born April 4, 1853, at De- 
Pere. His parents, Andrew and Barbara 
(Caldwellj Mailer, were natives, respect- 
ively, of Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scot- 
land, and in 1849, came to the United 
States, locating first in Milwaukee, Wis., 
whence they shortly afterward removed to 
De Pere, same State. The father engaged 
in various business enterprises in the city 
up to the time of his death, which occurred 
in 1878; Mrs. Barbara Mailer now resides 
with a daughter in Portland, Oregon. 

Dr. A. C. Mailer was educated in the 
public schools of his native city, at Law- 
rence University, Appleton, Wis., and in 
the University of Michigan, after which 
he taught school for a few terms and then 
engaged in the drug business at De Pere 
for four or five jears, reading medicine 
while thus employed. He ne.xt attended 
medical lectures at the University of 
Michigan at Ann Arbor during the ses- 
sions of 1874 and 1875. In 1877 and 
1878 he took a course at Rush Medical 
College, Chicago, from which he gradu- 
ated in the spring of 1878, and soon after 
began practice at De Pere in partnership 
with his former preceptor. Dr. Fisk, a 
connection which lasted eleven years, 
since the expiration of which time he has 
been in business on his own account. 
After his first three years' practice the 



Doctor supplemented his studies by a 
course at Bellevue Hospital Metlical Col- 
lege, New York, receiving an ad iiindnir 
degree from this institution in the spring 
of 1882. 

In politics Dr. Mailer is an ardi'Ut Re- 
publican, and has served hi different ca- 
pacities under the auspices of that party. 
He has been for six years a member of 
the boaril of education, of which he acted 
as president for two years. He has twice 
been elected mayor of the city, a jiosition 
he still holds. The Doctor is a member 
of the American Medical Association, 
State Medical Society, and Fox River 
Valley Medical Societ\', and is surgeon to 
the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul rail- 
road. He is associated with se\eral fra- 
ternal and social societies, among which 
are the Masons, Knights i)f Pythias, etc. 
His professional standing is of the high- 
est. 

Dr. Mailer was united in matriiuonj', 
at De Pere. on [une 1, 1887, In Miss 
Alice Belle Wincgard, a nati\'e ot De- 
Pere and a daughtt'r of a Union soldier 
who died in the arni\- during the war lor 
the jjreservation of the Union. One child, 
Katharine, adds sunshine to their pleasant 
home. The Doctor is by birthright a 
Presbyterian, and Mrs. Mailer is an Epis- 
copalian, and their walk through life has 
won for them the respect of all their neigh- 
bors and the citizens in general. 



REV. FATHER CHARLES J.C.AL- 
LAGHER, of St. Francis" Xavier 
Church, De Pere, Brown county, 
was born July 8, 1851, at No. 74 
Sands street, Brookl\-n, N. Y. , within two 
blocks of the site of the present rtMiowned 
Brooklyn bridge. His parents weri' Mi- 
chael and Jane (.Stejihens) Gallaglu-i", and 
were natives, respectively, of Sligo and 
Ballyshannon, Ireland. Michael Galla- 
gher was a journalist, and sonu- ol his 
sons followed the same profession — one, 
especially, Barclay Gallagher, ha\ingbeen 
city editor of the New ^'ork l'ri/)!iii< iiii- 



428 



COMMEifORATIVK lilOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



der Horace Greeley, and being connected 
with the Associated Press down to the 
present time. 

Father Gallagher received his prepar- 
atorj- education at the Jesuit College, 
of Fordhain, N. Y., from which he 
graduated in 1870. taking a collegiate 
course at that institution, and afterward 
taking a theological course at Mount St. 
Mary's, Emmittsburg, Md. In 1S75 he 
was ordained priest at St. James' Cathe- 
dral. Brookhn. N. Y.. by Bishop Laugh- 
lin, and for twcKe years was assistant to 
the \icar general of the diocese of Brook- 
lyn. In 1888 he was given charge of St. 
Thomas Church at Poygan, Wis., the 
church pr(jperty at which place was much 
improved under his earnest efforts; at 
Omro, Wis., he entirely rebuilt St. Mary's 
Church, and also rebuilt the church at 
Winnecomic, Wis. In June, 1893, Father 
Gallagher was given charge of St. Francis 
Xavier Church at De Fere — the first 
Catholic Church erected in the place. The 
congregation of this Church comprised 
175 families, and its jiarish school has 
acconnnodation for 200 scholars. Father 
Gallagher is very popular with and is 
greatly beloved by his people, and his 
well-known energy and wisdom will doubt- 
less soon result in greater improvement to 
his flock and to the parish. 



JOHN ANTON KUYFEKS. It would 
be hard to find a better illustration 
of the facility with which, under the 
liberal institutions of this great coun- 
try — be they Rej)ublican or be they Dem- 
ocratic — a man of ability and integrity, 
whether native-born or of foreign birth 
and impressions, may rise to any station, 
perhaps among the most exalted, than 
is afforded in the history of the gentle- 
man whose name here appears, a^^d who 
is fast ascending the ladder of i)nblic 
fame. 

Mr. Ku\pers is a native i>f Hnlland, 
born in the village of Oeffelt, Nmlli Bra- 



bant, March 2, 1869, a son of Michael 
and Joanna (Emons) Kuypers, both also 
of North Brabant nativity, the father 
born in Oeffelt, the mother in St. Hubert. 
Until the age of eleven years he attended 
the common school of his native village, 
and then took a regular high-school course 
at Bo.xmeer. at the same time studying 
French and German, as well as. for a 
few months, the English language. At 
the age of fourteen he entered the Nor- 
mal School in the same town, in order to 
lirepare himself for the profession of 
teacher; but his plans in this regard were 
interrupted, before he had finished his 
course, by the emigration of the famih' — 
his parents and their children (two broth- 
ers and three sisters — Theodore, Arnold, 
Algonda, Antonia and Bertha, the latter 
now dead) — to the United States. Land- 
ing, after an ocean \(nage of three weeks, 
at New York, January 25, 1886, they at 
once proceeded westward to Wisconsin, 
settling in the thriving city of De Fere, 
Brown county, and here stoicallj' com- 
menced a new home in a new country, 
with but little knowledge, if any, of its 
language, laws and customs. 

On the first day of February. 1886, the 
subject of these lines, with a determinntion 
to succeed, a determination not to be ob- 
structed by any obstacle, precipitated him- 
self into the arena of journalism by 
entering the employ of the Standard 
Printing Co., in the role of "devil." 
From this Arcadian, though somewhat 
nondescript position, he soon rose to the 
more dignified one of "typo." his natural 
al)ility and perseverance soon manifesting 
itself, (juickly observed by his employers 
and his associates. With this firm our 
subject remained till December, 1889; 
and so rapidly had he mastered the de- 
tails of the jirofession and fathomed its 
mysteries, that, during the last two years 
he was in the employ of the Standard 
Printing Co., he acted in the capacity of 
one of the editors of the De Pcre S/niiii- 
ani. a newspaper published by them in 
the Holland language. In January. 1890, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



431 



in compan)' with John 1!. Hcyrtnan, lu' 
purchased tlie Brown C*( unity Dcuiocrat 
(estabhshed in 1S77), a weekl}- paper 
printed in the En,L;h'sh hm.t;iiaf,'e, and 
shortly afterward they commenced the 
pubhcation of a new Holland weekly, 
De Volkssteiii, conducting, in connection, 
a general printing establishment, equipped 
with all modern impro\ements and facili- 
ties for turning out good work. The 
business is carried on under the firm 
name of Heyrman & Kuypers. The 
Democrat has a circulation of 1,300, the 
Vo/ksstci/i, of 1,250, and both are influ- 
ential papers. The Democrat, true to its 
name, is an able exponent of Democratic 
principles, while the \'olksstcm is more of 
a newspaper in the literal sense of the 
word, being confined to religious and 
secular matters of interest, and is read Ijy 
Holland and Flemish Catholics in every 
State of the Union. Both are eight-page 
papers, I5.\22, and are both edited by 
Mr. Kuypers, whose untiring efforts and 
harci work have largely contributed to the 
bringing of them to their present standard 
of excellence. He is a charter member 
of Columbus Court, No. 315, Catholic 
Order of Foresters, and its recording sec- 
retary; is also a member of Branch No. 
46, Catholic Knights of Wisconsin; direc- 
tor of the De Pere Business Men's Asso- 
ciation; member of the city council; and 
secretary of the Fire Department. 

When Mr. Kuypers came to this coun- 
try nine years ago, a rosy-cheeked lad of 
seventeen summers, he knew but little of 
the English language — merely the rudi- 
ments — and never attended school here; 
yet, by assiduous and most persevering 
home study, he has succeeded in making 
himself master of it in a comparati\ely 
short time. By attending strictly to 
business, and using all his leisure time to 
advantage, he has succeeded in attaining 
his present position, and securing a well- 
earned popularity with all classes. He 
takes an active part in public matters, 
and is recognized as one of De Pere's 
most enterprising young men. 

24 



PHILIP SHERLOCK. This gen- 
tleman, an iuHuential well-to-do 
farmer citizen of De Pere town- 
shi[). Brown comity, is a member 
of one of the oldest i)ioneer families of 
same. 

Andrew Sherlock (father of Philip) 
was a native of County Wexford, Ireland, 
where he was born in 1S13, s<in of Philip 
Sherlock. Andrew learned the carpen- 
ter's trade, and also engaged in merchan- 
dising, dealing in coal, etc. He was mar- 
ried in 1843 to Anne Sinnot, who was 
born in County Wexford in December, 
1816, daughter of James and Catherine 
(Brown) Sinnot, and two children were 
born to this union in Ireland, namely: 
Margaret, who died unmarried in De Pere 
townshi[i, when aged twenty-nine; and 
Anne, who died in De Pere at the age of 
eighteen years. In iiS49, Mr. Sherlock 
having managed to sa\'e a small sum of 
money, the family left Ireland, sailing 
from New Ross in "The Jane, "and after 
a voyage of ten weeks and three days 
landing at Quebec, where they were de- 
tained ten days in (luarantine, as cholera 
had broken out on board the vessel and 
many died. From Ouebec they pro- 
ceeded westward, coming via Buffalo and 
Detroit to Milwaukee, Wis., where they 
resided for about a tvvehemonth, during 
which time Mr. Sherlock followed his 
trade, carpentry. Here one child, Philip 
(subject proper of this sketch), was born 
to them December 15, 1850. In May, 
1851, they came to De Pere, Brown 
county, at that time but a small \-illage, 
making the trip from Milwaukee by water, 
via Sturgeon Bay to (ueen Bay, thence 
by wagon to their destination, and shortly- 
after his arrival here Mr. Sherlock pur- 
chased a house and lot. In the summer 
of 1S50 he took up a tract o[ 200 acres 
in De Pere township, along the liast river 
(the tract whereon his sons Phili]) and 
James now reside), removing his family 
thither in the fall of 1852. The previous 
spring he had erected a temporary abode, 
which later was replaced b\- a frame 



432 



COMMEMORATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



house. The land was all in the woods, 
and although some of the timber was cut, 
no clearing had been done, and the stumps 
and brush remained. Here the following 
children were added to the family: An- 
drew, a farmer of Dakota; James, a farmer 
of De Pere township; Catherine, who died 
when ten years, two months and eleven days 
old; John, residing in the State of Wash- 
ington; Ambrose, who died at the age of 
thirty-one years in Colorado; and Raphael, 
of Dakota. After locating on this land 
Mr. Sherlock labored diligently to clear 
and improve it, and by the time of his 
death had transformed it into a fertile 
farm. He was a self-made man in every 
way, and was much respected for his in- 
dustry and sterling worth. On January 
27, 1885, he passed from earth, and was 
buried in De Pere cemetery. After his 
decease his widow resided on the home 
farm with her son Philip until December, 
1893, when she took up her residence at 
the Home of the Si.sters of the Good 
Shepherd, in Green Bay, where she yet 
remains. 

Philip Sherlock received his elemen- 
tary education in the early schools of De- 
Pere township, and afterward attended 
the "Old Stone School" in De Pere a 
short time, the first school in that city. 
He was reared to farm life, and being the 
eldest son was put to work as soon as he 
was old enough, remaining on the farm 
altogether until he was about seventeen 
years old. He then commenced to fol- 
low lumbering in the winter seasons in 
the lumber regions of northern Wisconsin 
and Michigan, and continued therein for 
si.xteen or seventeen winters, enduring all 
the vicissitudes and hardships of camp 
life. He was engaged during the spring 
for fifteen years in the hazardous work of 
driving logs. In thorc days lumbering, 
though arduous and dangerous work, was 
very profitable, and during his long ex- 
perience in the business our subject be- 
came familiar with all its details. 

On July 7. 1892, Mr. Sherlock was 
united in marriage with Miss Mary Ann 



Hughes, daughter of Hugh and Margaret 
(Dalton) Hughes, who came to the United 
States when Mary A. was an infant. Mr. 
Sherlock has resided on his present farm 
ever since coming to Brown county, with 
the exception of the time he was away 
lumbering. He has taken several pleasure 
trips, and in 1891 made a tour of the 
Northwest, going over the Canadian 
Pacific railroad and returning over the 
Northern Pacific railroad, and during his 
trip he visited the leading cities in the 
Northwest along the Pacific coast and in 
the State of Washington, and also \'ic- 
toria, British Columbia. Mr. Sherlock, 
having come here when the country was 
almost entirely new, has seen his entire 
neighborhood transformed from its primi- 
tive condition into productive farms. His 
own place now consists of 145 acres of 
fertile land, on which he conducts a profit- 
able farming business. In local political 
affairs our subject votes independently, 
caring more for the fitness of a candidate 
than for party lines, but in state and na- 
tional elections he supports the principles 
of the Democratic party. He is no 
aspirant for office, his time being fully 
occupied in looking after his private in- 
terests. In religious connection he and 
his wife are members of St. Francis 
Catholic Church at De Pere. 



FLORENTINE FRISOl'E. the 
well-known enterprising merchant 
tailor of Green Bay, is a native 
of Belgium, born August 27, 1849, 
in the town of Grez-Doiccau, Province of 
Brabant. 

He comes of a long line of talented 
musicians, performers upon various in- 
struments, including the church organ, his 
grandfather being an especially highly 
educated musician, and excelling as a 
teacher. He, the grandfather, led an 
honorable, temperate life to a good old 
age, dying in his ninety-third year, and 
retaining his faculties to the last. In 
Belgium, his native countrv, he married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Miss Marie Dclvaux, a lady of education 
and culture, who lived to be seventy-five 
years old, and their family numbered five 
sons and three daughters, of whom one 
daughter, Mrs. Bernardine Maireese, is 
yet living, her age being eighty-nine 
years. 

One of the sons, by name Florentine, 
father of our subject, was a graduate of 
the Conservatory of Af usic at Brussels, on 
church organ, and was an exceptionally 
able musician, master of several instru- 
ments. He died in Belgium of typhoid 
fever at the age of thirty-seven years, and 
his early taking awaj' with all the brilliant 
prospects before him was a source of the 
very deepest regret to his many relatives, 
friends and admirers. His wife was Miss 
Rosalie Van Drisse, a Belgian lady, daugh- 
ter of Joseph Van Drisse, a well-known 
surgeon who had a diploma from Napo- 
leon Bonaparte for valuable services ren- 
dered on the field of Waterloo. After 
the death of Mr. Frisque she married, in 
1856, George La Marre, of Grez-Doi- 
ceau, farmer at Bay Settlement, Brown 
county, by whom she has four children, 
as follows: Jule, Desire, Matilda and Afary. 
By her first husband, Mr. Frisque, Mrs. 
La Marre had also four children, viz. : 
Rosalie, Florentine (our subject), Leo- 
cadie and Zelia. They are all living ex- 
cept Zelia (the youngest of the first fami- 
ly), are all married, and have families. 

Florentine Frisque, whose name in- 
troduces this sketch, received his educa- 
tion in his native land, and learned the 
trade of tailor, which he followed there 
till February, 1871, when, in company 
with his mother and the rest of the family, 
he emigrated to the United States, and 
made a settlement in Brown county. Wis. 
In 1S76 he came to Green Bay, 
and established his present prosperous 
business. In 1S73 Mr. Frisque was mar- 
ried in Brown county to Miss Josephine 
Grossell, daughter of Louis Grossell, a 
native of Belgium, and seven children 
have been born to them, viz. : Zelie, John, 
George, William, Mary, Louis and Charles. 



In his political preferences our subject has 
been identified with the Republican party. 
In social affairs he is a member of the I. 
O. O. F., Order of Tnnti, and Knightsof 
Honor. In 1889 he took an extended 
trip to Europe, visiting England, Scot- 
land, Ireland, Belgium, Germany and 
France, visiting the Paris Exposition of 
that year. In 1893, along with his family, 
he visited the World's Fair at Chicago. 
Painstaking, and honorable in all his deal- 
ings, Mr. Frisque well merits the esteem 
in which he is held by the community at 
large. 



DANIEL H. MARTIN, the genial 
and courteous county clerk of 
Brown county, is a nj^tive of 
Waukesha count}'. Wis., born 
June 10, 1846. 

Patrick and Bridget (Cain) Martin, 
parents of our subject, were natives of 
Ireland, born in County Meath, whence 
in 1844 they migrated to this country and 
to Wisconsin, making their first home, in 
the Western World, in Milwaukee. From 
there shortly afterward they proceeded to 
Waukesha county, where the father, who 
was an agriculturist, conducted a farm 
during the remainder of his days. He 
died there in 1845; his widow now resides 
in. Fond du Lac county, Wis. Their 
family numbered two children: T. C, 
county judge of Waukesha county. Wis., 
and Daniel H., the subject proper of this 
sketch. 

Daniel H. Martin received his educa- 
tion at the schools of Waukesha county 
and Carroll College. In 1868 he came 
to Brown county, locating in Morrison 
township, where he was engaged in the 
dual vocations of farming and teaching, 
in which he continued until January, 1 893, 
when he took office as cotinty clerk, hav- 
ing been elected in 1892. In 1873 he was 
married in Morrison township. Brown 
county, to Miss Mary Josephine Gibbons, 
a native of the county, daughter of Pat- 
rick and Hannah (Clancy) Gibbons, early 



434 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



settlers of Morrison township, where they 
3-et reside. Three children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Martin, viz. : Mary, 
Tessie and John. The family are mem- 
bers of St. John's Catholic Church, 
Green Bay. 

In his political predilections our sub- 
ject is a Democrat. In 1878 he was 
elected a member of the county board, 
and was a member of same at the time of 
his election to the county clerkship. He 
served as a justice of the peace many 
years, and, taking him all in all he is one 
of the most popular and useful of Brown 
county's much esteemed citizens. 



WE. FAIRFIELD. M. D., has 
been identitiod with Brown 
county for the past seven years, 
as one of the ablest and most 
successful physicians and surgeons in 
northern Wisconsin, though one of the 
youngest. 

The Doctor is a native of Clarence- 
ville. Province of Quebec, Canada, born 
in 1 861, a son of David and Eliza 
(Mosher) Fairfield, also natives of Can- 
ada. James Fairfield, grandfather of 
subject, was a native of England, whence 
in an early day he emigrated to Canada, 
being among the first settlers in Missisquoi 
county, Lower Canada ("Canada Bas"), 
now known as the Province of Quebec. 
The subject of these lines received his 
elementar\' education at the public schools 
of the neighborhood of his place of birth, 
and in 1882, having matriculated in arts 
in Ontario, commenced reading medicine 
at M(jntreal, Canada. In the same year 
he entered the University of Bishop's 
College, Faculty of Medicine, where he 
graduated with the class of '86. He was 
then appointed house surgeon to the 
Woman's Hospital in Montreal, serving 
in that capacity some eighteen months. 
At the end of that time, in 1887, he came 
to Wisconsin, taking up his residence in 
Scott township, Brown county, where he 
commenced the practice of his profession. 



In July, 1893, he moved to Green Bay, 
and here has since continued in the prac- 
tice of medicine and surgery, having met 
with eminent success. 

In 1889 Dr. Fairfield was married in 
Noyan, Canada, to Miss Winifred Der- 
rick, a native of that country, and a mem- 
ber of the Episcopal Church. The Doctor 
is a "gold medalist" of the Universitj- of 
Bishop's College, Montreal, having re- 
ceived two medals — one for having passed 
the best examination in surgerj', the other 
for having passed the highest e.xamination 
in all the subjects of examination. He is 
a licentiate of the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons of the Province of Quebec; 
a member of the Fox River Valley Medi- 
cal Society, and of the Brown County Medi- 
cal Society; also a member of the Board 
of Pension Examiners. Socially he is a 
member and noble grand of Green Bay 
Lodge No. 19, I. O. O. P". ; politically he 
is a Democrat. 



ALBERT WEISE is a son of Mar- 
tin and Caroline (Lincke) Weise, 
natives of Blankenburg, Schwarz- 
burg-Rudoistadt, Germany. Mar- 
tin Weise, who was a cooper by occupa- 
tion, died of typhoid fever October 15, 
1822, in Blankenburg, when his son, John 
Henry William Albert Weise, our subject, 
was not quite two jears old. His widow 
subsequentl}- married Christoph Frederick 
Straubel, of Blankenburg. ;l blacksmith, 
and in September, 1846, they came to 
Green Bay, Wis., where Mr. Straubel 
followed his trade till his death; Mrs. 
Straubel also died in Green Bay. She 
was the mother of se\en children by her 
last husband, viz. : Dorothea, Wilhel- 
mina and Charley (deceased), a son that 
died in Germany. Ernest, Adolph (de- 
ceased), and August H., who is a wide- 
awake business man of Green Bay, a 
miller b}' occupation. 

.Mbert Weise, our subject, received a 
good common-school education in his 
native country. Before reaching the age 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



435 



of fourteen he was apprenticed to learn 
wagonniaking, and after servinj; a three- 
years' apprenticeship traveled three years 
in Germany, perfecting himself in his 
trade, and visiting the cities of Dresden, 
Leipsic, Hamburg and Bremen. Return- 
ing to his native town in i S40, he was 
sent to the army, and the next year, on 
June 3, 1 841, left his German home and 
embarked on a sailing vessel fiir New 
York, where he arrived August 9. He 
tried to get work in New York Cit\', but, 
failing, went t(.) Newark, N. J., where he 
obtained employment in a carriage fac- 
tory, making carriage wheels, and was 
paid six shillings per day (a "shilling" 
being twelve-and-a-half cents in the East 
in those days), two-thirds of which 
amount he was obliged to spend in the 
company's store, and his board cost 
him eighteen shillings per week. The 
foreman ol the factory received but eight 
shillings a tiay. However, small as these 
wages may seem, they were nnich bet- 
ter than what was paid in Germany, where 
he received but forty cents a week and 
his board, the best wages he could earn 
there, working fourteen hours a day. 
What a lesson this is to the wurkingmen 
of to-day, with their eight hours a day 
and good wages! But these stern exper- 
iences only served to bring out the better 
qualities of the young German lad, who 
steadily worked on, and saved money from 
his meager earnings. In the spring of 
1842, a machine for making s]iokes hav- 
ing been manufactured, he and five others 
were thrown out of employment. Later 
he made a dollar a day, and saved money 
enough to come to Green Bay (also giving 
ten dollars to another man to come here), 
arriving October 4, 1S42. In that spring 
the citizens of the town had raised one 
thousand dollars, with which, and another 
thousand contributed by the Astor Com- 
pany of New York, they sent Hamil- 
ton Arndt to New York to secure emi- 
grants for Green Bay. He advertised 
in the fierman papers of that city, 
one of which fell into Mr. Weise's 



hands, and being promised ten to 
twelve shillings a day and a shop to go to 
work in, he was persuaded to come hither. 
He found neither, but was induced by John 
B. Arndt to commence for himself, and 
Mr. .Arndt furnishing the shop and lumber 
Mr. W'eise, having his own tools, went to 
work. He paid $2.25 for board and shop 
rent, which was taken out in work. Mon- 
ey was not to be seen every day, but 
ne\ertheless Mr. Weise prospered, taking 
his pay in store goods and lumber. Part 
of the time he worked as ship and house 
carpenter at ten shillings a day, store pay or 
trade, working twelve hours a day. He also 
made cradles and other implements, and 
was in all respects a useful man to the 
new community. He was connected with 
railroad enterprises, the first being the 
Lake Shore from Manitowoc to Green 
Bay. The sum of three hundred thousand 
dollars was voted, and grants for tiepot 
secured. In addition to this enterprise, 
he always took an active part in getting 
a railroad to Green Bay. He assisted in 
starting the Green Bay & Madison rail- 
road, for which the city voted seventy- 
five thousand dollars. The citizens of 
Green Bay held a "working bee" to as- 
sist in the building of the road between 
that city and De Pere, and he became a 
ilirector of the road, taking two thousand 
dollars worth of stock; and his enthusiasm 
in the scheme was so great that he was 
very nearly induced to morgage his farm, 
but did not. He worked hard for the 
Green Bay and Minnesota road. 

On July 9, I.S44, Mr. Weise married 
Maria Holtzknecht, a native of Hilar, 
Prussia, on the Mosel, born August 12, 
1823. She was a true type of the thrifty 
German housewife, who couKI turn her 
attention to almost any kind of housework 
successfully, and the young couple com- 
menced keeping house immediately. 
Green Bay being the land office, they 
concluded to keep boarders, charging a 
shilling a meal, and one-half a shilling for 
lodging, thus making some money. Mr. 
Weise, who had his wagon shop and a 



436 



COMiTEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



number of men working (or him, soon be- 
gan to niaiuifacture finer grades of work, 
and called his shop "Weise's Carriage 
Factory." He conducted the business un- 
til 1 S76, meeting with great success, and 
then gave it over to his son, George 
Albert W'eise. Much of his work he 
traded for lumber, brick and stone. In 
1S46 he built a house, which is still stand- 
ing, on which a half dozen carpenters 
labored, each working out a score they 
owed Mr. Weise for work done. Since 
then he has put up many buildings in 
Green Bay. He also owns a table fact- 
ory in Green Bay, which gives employ- 
ment to fifty hands. To Albert and 
Maria Weise were born children as fol- 
lows: Peter E. ; George A.; Mary, wife 
of Rev. G. C. Keim, of La Crosse, Wis. ; 
Carrie, wife of William Snelflohn, of 
Marinette. Wis. : Herman F. ; Charles 
W. ; Augusta, wife of F. .\. Hollman; 
Dorothea, who died at the age of two 
years; Lena, wife of F. K. JefTrex, of 
Leadville, Colo. ; and .Amanda, wife of 
F. H. Straubel; all yet living except Doro- 
thea. The mother of these died Decem- 
ber 3, 1S87. at the age of sixty-three 
years, four months, and for his second 
wife Mr. Weise married, February 16, 
iSSS, .Mrs. Amelia Miller, mother of 
Frank Miller. 

Mr. Weise got his first good start in 

1545, at which time he inherited three 
hundred dollars whicii was sent him from 
Germany. He bought a lot on Cherry 
street on which he built a shop, ant.! from 
this small beginning his large business 
grew. In 1S49 he bought another lot, on 
which he moved his old shop, adding 
thereto a blacksmith and paint shop. His 
stepfather, who came to Green Bay in 

1546, carried on the blacksmithing until 
1 S49, when he too engaged in the wagon 
business. In 1S70 our subject, in part- 
nership with James Poole, embarked in 
the china and crockery business, after one 
year becoming sole proprietor of same, 
which he and his son, Herman F. con- 
ducted for many years, or until the latter 



moved to ^^'inona, Minn., where he also 
carried on a crockery store; he is now in 
the State of Washington. At present Mr. 
Weise's partners are his two sons-in-law, 
F. A. Hollman and Frederick H. Strau- 
bel, the firm, which is known as Weise, 
Hollman (."v: Co. .doing an extensive whole- 
sale and retail business through the north- 
ern part of Wisconsin and Michigan. Mr. 
Weise is president of the Green Bay Carri- 
age Company. He was formerly president 
of the Green Ba\' Savings Bank, and he has 
identified himself with almost every in- 
terest tending to benefit the town; has 
been one of the leading spirits in various 
enterprises, some disastrous to him finan- 
cially, but many of which benefited the 
town, as they furnished employment for 
several men and brought comfort to not a 
few homes. He has been interested in 
starting a furnace, was in the oil business 
in Pennsylvania, and in the iron-mining 
business in northern Micliii^an. He has 
always been enterprising, and even at the 
opening of the Kaukauna plank road, poor 
as he then was, he donated a new wagon, 
thereby showing his public spirit. 

In religious faith he is a member of 
the German Lutiieran Church, in which 
he has always taken an active interest. 
He assisted in the organization of the 
Moravian Society, and helped to erect the 
church building; later on. when a Luth- 
eran missionary came to Green Bay, he 
assisted in the building of the German 
Lutheran Church, and has ' ever since 
contributed liberall}' toward its support. 
He was also actively interested in the or- 
ganization, January i, 1850, of the Ger- 
man Benevolent Society of Green Bay, 
he being one of the original thirteen char- 
ter members, and to-day. with the ex- 
ception of one other, is the only survivor. 
This society, which has been of vast ben- 
efit in German circles, wasstarteil by Mr. 
'. \\'eise and George Oldenburg, the latter 
I of whom was its first treasurer, Mr. Weise 
\ being its president for twenty years from 
' its incipiency. In his political pi;efer- 
I ments he has always been a strong pro- 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPUIC'AL RECOlll). 



437 



tectivc-tarilT Ki'pnhliraii in natii)iial af- 
fairs, l>iit in civic matters he- iisualls' casts 
liis ballot for the man he considers best 
ada])ted to the offlce, whatever it may be. 
He has served on the city conncil boartl, 
and as chairman of the same, as well as 
alderman, havinj,' been elected a^;aiiist his 
will. In fact, there is no more nsefiil 
citizen in (Irc'cn Hay than /Mbert WiMse, 
and he is held in the highest estetMii by all 
wIk) know him. 



DH. CKICNON, jnstice of the 
peace al Green Hay, is a native 
of that city, born February 17, 
1843, a son of i'elei- 1 Bernard aini 
Rachel (Lawe) Grignon. 

Peter Grif,nion was born in Gieen 
Hay, Wis., June 12, 1806, a son of Pierre 
Antoine Cirif^iujn, also a native of Wis- 
consin. He was a son of Pierre Grij^non, 
in the long ago a merchant in Montreal, 
Canada, wlio marrit;d a daughtc^r of 
Charles I)(;Langlade. Together they — 
Mr. and Mrs. (irignon and Mr. DeLang- 
lade — came in an early day to Green Hay, 
being among the lirst settlers of the place. 
Pierre Grignon was engaged in the (ireen 
Bay fur trade, as well as in merchandis- 
ing, and passed tlie rest of his da\s in 
that place. Pierre Antoini' Grignon, 
grandfather of our snbjrct, and the eldest 
son of Pierre Grignon, by his marriage 
with Domitille DeLanglade, continued 
the store business, established by his 
father, for twenty-eight years, that being 
the only store at Green Hay prior to the 
war of 18 1 2. Peter l^ernard Grignon, 
son f)f Pierre Antoine, received his edu- 
cation in Green Hay, and in after life 
filled various public ])ositions of trust, such 
as clerk of the district court; first sheriff of 
Brown coimty; deputy United States mar- 
shal; contractor for carrying the mail 
both on foot and on horseback to Mani- 
towoc, Sheboygan, Milwaukee, Chicago 
and Fort Snclling. Politically he was a 
Democrat. He married Miss Rachel 
Lawe, a daughter of Judge John La we, 



an early pioneer nl Hrown count\, who 
with his wife died in Gieen Hay. To 
this union were born lour children, as 
follows: D. H., subject of this sketch; 
Maria Jane, who died single; Cynthia 
Anna, wife of Jerome; G. \'ieau; and 
Martin L. , who died in 1 S;(i. The 
father was called from earth in |nue, 1888, 
the' mother I'eljruary 16, 1870. Pierre 
A. Grignon owned a considerable amount 
of real estate in Wisconsin, a portion of 
it being whereon the cityol Green liay 
now staiuis. 

I). H. Grignon, the subject projier of 
these lines, received a liberal education 
at the schools of Green Hay. /\fter leav- 
ing school he read law. and in 1866 was 
admitted to the bar. In 1875 he was in- 
stalk.'d in his present position as justice of 
the peace. 

On Octol)er 15, 1870, Mr. (irignon 
was unitc'd in mariiage with Miss Louise 
C. Hamilton, a native of Green Hay, 
daughter of P'inley Fisher and Catherine 
fHoyd) Hamilton, early settlers of Cirecn 
Hay (both now deceased), the latter of 
whom was the daughter of Col. (ieorge 
Hoyd, Indian agent. To tiiis imion have 
l)een born three children, viz. : Rachel 
Maria and Catlu^rine A. (twins), and 
Ouincy, who die<l \ovember I v 1893. 
Rachel M. is a tt'acher in b'reedom. Wis. 
Political!)' Mr. Grignon is ii I)c;inocral; in 
religious faith he is a member of the 
Catholic Church. 



WILLIAM GOW, one of the re- 
spected citizens of I)e Pere, 
Wis., was liorn at Cairney Hill, 
h'ifeshire, Scotland, Septeml>er 
10, 1819. 

His father, William Gow, Sr. , was a 
native of the city of Perth, and his mother, 
Martha (Hrough) Gow, was born in the 
village of Pittencrief, Fifesjiire. William 
Gow, Sr. , was a plasterer by trade, and 
e.xjiired in the city of Glasgow. William 
Gow, the subject proper of this sketch, 
was educated in the parochial schools of 



43S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPEICAL liECOHD. 



his native place, and at the age of sixteen 
began an apprenticeship at wagon mak- 
ing, which apprenticeship was completed 
after a service of four years. The fol- 
lowing three years he acted as foreman of 
the shop, and then for three and a half 
years was employed in a foundry at Ren- 
frew in the manufacture of derricks and 
their erection through Scotland and En- 
gland. On March 12, 1847, at Dumbar- 
ton, near Glasgow, Mr. Gow married Miss 
Mary McKinlej', daughter of Duncan and 
Agnes (Irving) McKinley. The McKin- 
leys were an ancient clan of Highlanders 
from Argyleshire, and the Irvings were of 
an equally ancient family from near Car- 
lisle, on the border of England, where 
numerous members of the family still re- 
side. Three years, three months and 
three days after marriage Mr. Gow set 
sail on the "Three Bells" for Canada, 
and after a voyage, of nine weeks arrived 
at Quebec, whence he soon after went 
about two hundred miles southwest, to the 
village of Metis, Canada, where he pur- 
chased eighty acres of wild land and en- 
gaged in farming: but the farm not 
proving to be a profitable investment, he 
relimiuished its cultivation at the end of 
that period and came to De Pere, Wis., 
arriving the Satunlay before the T'ourth 
of July, 1853. The first work in which 
he here engaged was on a dam across the 
Fo.\ river, but subsequently was emploNcd 
at wagon making by O. W. Kingsley. On 
October 1, 1S55. Mr. Gow bought out 
the business of Mr. Kingsley, and the 
same day his wife, Mrs. Mary (McKinley) 
Gow, reached De Pere from Scotland, 
having landed at New York after a pass- 
age of six weeks from I^i\erpool on a 
sailing vessel. 

Mr. and Mrs. Gow have been devout 
members of the First Presbyterian Church 
of De Pere for the past twenty-live years, 
and enjoy the respect of the entire com- 
munity. ^[rs. Gow has been a faithful 
member of the denomination for fifty-five 
years, having originally united with the 
Wall Park Presbyterian Church, on Lady 



Well street, Glasgow, Scotland, in Oc- 
tober, 1839. Mrs. Gow has always taken 
an active part in Church work and Church 
societies. In politics, Mr. Gow is a Re- 
publican, and has served as member of 
the city council of De Pere for two terms 
and as city assessor for two j'ears. He 
is a member of Lodge No. 85, F. & A. M. 
at De Pere, and also of Brown County 
St. Andrew's Society. .Mthough Mr. 
Gow did not bear arms in the Civil war 
for the integrit}' of the Union, his sympa- 
thies were strongly in favor of the govern- 
ment, which he aided by every means in 
his power, being particularly active in rais- 
ing supplies for the sanitary commission 
and for the support of the army hospitals. 



CHARLES A. COTTON, engineer 
of the Chicago & North Western 
railway, and stationed at Fort 
Howard, was born in Green Bay, 
Wis. (then known as Astoria), in 1845, a 
son of John Winslow and Mary B. (Arndt) 
Cotton, who were among the early set- 
tlers of ISrown county. 

John Winslow Cotton was born in 
iSoo, in Plymouth, Mass., of old Puritan 
stock. He was graduated from the 
United States Military Academy at West 
Point, N. Y., July 4, 1823; commissioned 
second lieutenant Third Infantry, July 
I, 1823, commission signed by James 
Monroe; ]5romoted to first lieutenant 
same regiment, October 4, 1827, signed 
by J- Kl- Adams; promoted to captain 
November 15, 1836, signed by Andrew 
Jack.son. As early as 1824 he was 
stationed at Fort Howard, being after- 
ward transferred to Jefferson Barracks, 
Mo. He was married in Green Bay, in 
1825, to Mary B. Arndt, and on his 
resignation from the regular service lo- 
cated on a farm in .-Mlouez township. 
Brown count}', where he became a promi- 
nent citi/en, serving as town clerk and 
school superintendent of the township. 
He was a Mason, and for a number of 
vears was a leader of the choir in the 



COMMKMORAriVK BIOGHAPIIICAL RECORD. 



439 



Episcopal Church. On the loth ilaj- of 
September, iX/I"-, he passed Iroin Hie, 
leaviiif^ l)eliiiul an hnnoreti and respected 
name. 

Mrs. Mary 1>. Cotton was born in the 
Wyoming N'aile)' tjf Pennsyl\-ania,and was 
a dauf^hter of John P. and Eiizalietli (Car- 
penter) Arndt. The father was a native 
of tlie Keystone State, of Cerman descent, 
was a ship carpenter by trade, and early 
came to Green Bay, where lie iiuiit the 
first vessel on I'^ox ri\er. Ik- was a uiiuli 
respiected gentleman, .and tursonie time 
filled the j)ositioii of judge. He lost his 
wife in i860, and fnllowed lier to the 
grave in 1861. 'l"he ihildrm bcirn to 
John P. and Elizabeth .-\nidt weri'i Mary 
B. (Mrs. Cotton); John Wallace, i>f l)e- 
Pere; Mrs. Elizabeth Eastman, of Benton 
Harbor, Mich. ; Charles, whi> was shot 
and killed l)y James l-i. N'ineyard, o{ 
Grant county, in the Senate chamber at 
Madison, Wis., I'elirnary 11, 1.S42, and 
Hannlton. To [olm Winslow and Mary 
B. Cotton were born fi\e children, as fol- 
lows: John 1\., a native of PK'mouth, 
Mass., and now a resident of Chicago, 
111. ; Elizabeth, wife of Charles 1\. Tyler, 
died in 1 888; Priscilla, the wife of Hon. 
J. H. Howe, died in Allouez township. 
Brown Co., Wis., July 4, 1857; Mary 
Gordon, also marrieti to Hon. J. H. Howe, 
died in Kenosha, W'is., in September 1887, 
and Charles A., our subject. On |uly 6, 
1861, Mrs. Mary 15. Cotton was mustered 
into the service as nurse, at Ivacine, Wis., 
and served one >ear, during which time 
she was stationed in Baltimore, Md. (the 
old " Relay House" ), and Newport News, 
Va. , until the regiment was ordered to 
New Orleans. 

Charles A. Cotton was educated in 
the public schools of Green l^ay, and at 
the early age of sixteen, July d, 1S61, en- 
listed in Company H, Fourth Wis. \'. C,, 
for three years or during the war. He 
was mustered into the service at Kacine, 
Wis., and assigned to duty, at lirst, in 
the Army of the Potomac, and later saw 
active service at New Orleans, Baton 



I'Jougc^ and Port Hudson. La., Vicksburg, 
Miss., and in tlu' \\vi\ l\i\er campaign. 
On L~ebruary y, 18(15. he received an 
honorable discharge at l^aton Kougc, and 
on his return to Green Bay was employed 
by the Chicago cV North Western Railway 
Comjiany, with wliirh he has been ever 
since. At Chicago, December 25, 1867, 
he was married to Miss Mary |. \\'hit- 
lield; his Seconal marriage in 1877, also 
at Chicago, was tn Miss .\lline Kennedy, 
a nati\e of Ireland, wlm bore him four 
children, to wit. : Elizabeth S. ; John 
Ivossiter and |ames \\., both of whom 
weri' drownecl No\cniber 25, 1892, at the 
respective agi-s of twelve and ten years, 
and Priscilla ,\ngus1a. In politics Mr. 
C"otton is a stanch Keiiublicaii, and soci- 
ally he is a member of Washington Eodge, 
No. 21, V. ts. A. M., ,it Green Bay. Mrs. 
Cotton is a ))ioiis lady, a f;iitlifiil .adher- 
ent of the Church of Rome, and is a 
member of St. lolm's Congri.'gation of 
Green Ba\-. 



J.\M1'3S KICRK, editor and |>roprietor 
of tlu' I'ort Howard A'crvVre, was 
born in Montrose, l'"t)rfarshire, Scot- 
land, November 4, 1830, and when 
fi\e years of age came to this country 
with his parents and two brothers, ]\ob- 
ert and .AiKlrew, arrixing in Charleston, 
S. C. The family remained only ;ilH)iit 
two years in that city, whc-n they returned 
to Montrose, Scollan<l. 

Tfie subject of this sketch received a 
common education. During many of his 
spare hours he was fond of visiting one of 
the printing offices in the city of his birth, 
and gained the esteem of the foreman. 
He was a studious lad, and a great reader, 
an<l his ambition was to be a jirinter. To 
this his father was a littU' opposed, but 
found favor with his mother, coiise(piently, 
on Eebruarv 8, 1844, he entered the 
S/d//f/iiri/ printing oftice as an appren- 
tice. He proved to be such an excellent 
"devil" that he was promoted over two 
apprentices who were in the office before 



440 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



him, and ' ' got a case " on the newspaper. 
He became a good compositor, not a fast 
one. but accurate, and always iiad a 
"clean proof." Not having a great 
liking for newspaper work at setting t\pe, 
he during spare hours would be in the 
border case, and even changing lines in 
standing jobs and advertisements. This 
attracted the attention of the foreman, 
and he was promoted to hold the ' ' Adv. 
Case " — or rather he got all the adver- 
tisements to "set up." From this he 
was placed in the job-room, and long be- 
fore his seven-years' apprenticeship was 
finished had charge of the job depart- 
ment. 

During the term of his apprenticeship 
he attended night school, and was also a 
pupil of Isaac Pitman, who was then 
traveling through Scotland, giving lessons 
in /lis "Shorthand." Although not in 
love with newspaper work at the case, he 
nevertheless was local correspondent for 
two outside newspapers, as well as doing 
a little home work, and ultimately be- 
came connected in the management of the 
Montrose Citizen. 

After entering on the last year of his 
apprenticeship, he was offered a position, 
to take charge of a new printing office to 
be started in the city by a Mr. Rodgers. 
The position to a j'oung man not out of 
his apprenticeship was a flattering one, 
as well as a lucrative one, compared to 
the wages of an apprentice in the last 
year of his "time," and as a matter of 
course James accepted the position. 
From Mr. Rodger's office was issued The 
Montrose Citizen, previously spoken of, 
and Mr. Kerr held his position in that 
office up til the time he left for the United 
States. 

The writer of this sketch obtained his 
information from Mr. Kerr, in conversa- 
tion, he nf)t dreaming that it would ever 
appear in "cold type" or printed. He 
also gave some facts in regard to " patent 
insides " now in so general use by news- 
papers in this country. "They talk 
about these 'patent insides' being first 



used in this country; they were in use in 
the old country many years before they 
appeared here. Why, the Montrose Citi- 
zen, with which I was connected," said 
Mr. Kerr, "was printed on so-called 
' patent insides,' and fully illustrated, too; 
and what is more, news plates were fur- 
nished, similar to those now in use — but 
not to such perfection, I allow. I have a 
file of the Montrose Citizen, and proofs 
of the plates in my possession, so you see 
that the bottom is knocked out of the 
claim that the so-called 'patent insides' 
and plates were first used in this coun- 
try." Speaking, also, of all-brass galleys, 
on which Hoe, of New York, claimed a 
patent, Mr. Kerr says: " All-brass galleys 
were in use when I was a boy serving my 
apprenticeship. " 

Mr. Kerr left the "land of heather" 
August 26, 1854, leaving Montrose on 
the sailing vessel "Helen," bound for 
Quebec, Canada. Two days before his 
departure, August 24, he was married by 
Rev. Colin McCulloch, of the Estab- 
li.shed Church of Scotland, to Miss Eliza- 
beth Birnie Dickie, daughter of George 
Dickie, shipbuilder, Mrmtrose, and before 
leaving they were the recipients of valua- 
ble gifts from their many friends. The 
voyage was a tedious and stormy one, 
and their travel by rail was greatly de- 
layed, so that it was the 20th of October 
before they reached the point of their 
destination — Milwaukee, Wis. Here they 
met Andrew Murison, formerly of Mont- 
rose, a schoolmate and a "chum" 
printer of Mr. Kerr's, and who had left 
Scotland some few years before. Mr. 
Kerr's youngest brother, Andrew Brand 
Kerr, was also one of the party which 
left with them August 26, 1854. He 
died (at Milwaukee) April 23, 18S6. He 
was married to Miss Harriet Travcrs, 
daughter of an early partner of the late 
John Plankinton, of Milwaukee. He 
left a widow, two sons and a daughter. 
Robert, the eldest son, is a widower 
with one daughter, who resides with her 
grandmother in New York City; Andrew, 



COMMEMORA Tl VK DWG HA PIIICA L RECORD. 



441 



the other son, is unmarried; the daugliter, 
Henrietta, is married, and resides in Aber- 
deen, Washington. 

Mr. Murison, then in Milwaukee, was 
a member of the firm of Chajiman & 
Murison, job printers. Mr. Chapman, 
the well-known map publisher, being de- 
sirous of selling out his interest in the 
printing office, an arrangement was made 
by which James Kerr purchased his inter- 
est on November 4, his anniversary birth- 
day, and the business firm became Muri- 
son & Kerr. On the following year they 
sold out their printing office, and both 
entered the Daily Ncics office in the job 
department. A short time after Mr. Kerr 
had taken a position in the ^Vcii'.v office, 
he was offered a situation in Port Wash- 
ington, Ozaukee Co., Wis., to take charge 
of the Ozaithcc County Advertiser office, 
which he accepted. C. F. Huntsman, 
who was superintendent of the Xcivs, 
greatly regretted the step he had taken, 
as he desired his services in the job de- 
partment; but Mr. Huntsman informed 
Mr. Kerr that if the position did not suit 
him, or if he desired to return to Mil- 
waukee at any time, he would find a situ- 
ation open for him in the Xcivs office — 
which was ver_v flattering to Mr. Kerr, as 
well as evidence of Mr. Huntsman's ap- 
preciation of his services. 

Tlic Ozankcc County Advii-tiscr was 
owned by R. L. Gove, who was post- 
master, and Mr. Kerr attended to the 
management of the office. During that 
year Seymour G. Wait and Mr. I\err pur- 
chased the office, and enlarged and other- 
wise improved the paper, greatly to the 
satisfaction of the business community. 
But Mr. Gove was ill at ease; the paper 
was not run according to his political 
standard; his editorials were rejected; and 
he found his influence fading. He held 
a chattel mortgage on the office, with an 
"iron-clad" condition, which he ulti- 
mateh' foreclosed without an hour's warn- 
ing. This as a matter of course led to a 
lawsuit. Sheriff Luetfring took possession, 
and Kerr & Wait employed Mr. Blair, an 



able attorney, to look after their interest. 
Many of the business men were indignant 
at the course Mr. Gove had taken, and 
agreed to secure funds enough to start a 
new office and newspaper; but as Mr. 
Wait preferred to go East and Mr. Kerr 
returning to Milwaukee, nothing was done 
toward starting a new paper. Suit was 
commenced in the circuit court, but a 
change of venue was taken to Racine 
county. About one year afterward the 
case of Kerr & Wait vs. Iv. L, Gove came 
for trial at the city of Racine, and it was 
settled by Mr. Gove pa_ying a certain 
amount of damages. 

After leaving Port Washington Mr. 
Kerr again held a position in the Mil- 
leaukcc Nczk.<s office, and remained on that 
paper nearly seven years. During these 
years many were the changes which took 
place in the business and editorial man- 
agement of that paper — Benton, Clason, 
Huntsman, Hon. Beriah Brown, Joseph 
Lathrop, Hon. Jiihn R. Sharpstein, Dr. 
Orton, J. Lyon, Hon. George H. Paul, 
etc. "I must relate to \'ou. Sir," said 
Mr. Kerr, as the writer was making his 
notes, "a circumstance which occurred, 
and which elevated me considerably. It 
was during the Buchanan campaign. Mil- 
waukee was the headquarters, and the 
election tickets were printed in the .\'(Ti'.s- 
office, from where the different points 
were supplied, especially north. These 
tickets were being printed in several dif- 
ferent laui;iiax-es. and there was a small 
room almost filled with tickets, all cut 
and packed ready for shipment. I spoke 
to Mr. Huntsman one day about them, 
stating that they would be worthless, and 
that only tickets printed in the English 
language could be used, no matter where 
the election was held. He said I was a 
good job printer, but a "greenhorn" in 
these matters. However, Mr. Huntsman 
spoke to one or two of the committee 
about what the " green " Scotchman had 
said in a sort of derision; the matter to 
them had a more serious aspect; a com- 
mittee meeting was called at once, and 



442 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the result was that all the ' ' foreign " 
tickets were consigned to the ilames and 
the presses had to run night and day on 
' Buck and Breck ' tickets in order to 
get them out in time for election. " •' To 
this circumstance," continued Mr. Kerr, 
" I owe my elevation — in the iWic'.v office ; 
for, a few weeks afterward, I was given 
the position of foreman of the office and 
my wages considerably increased." 

In the spring of 1856 Mr. Iverr's 
brother, Robert Laing Kerr, and wife 
came to Milwaukee from Montrose, Scot- 
land, and in the fall of the same year his 
parents with three sisters also arrived 
from Scotland in Milwaukee. Robert L. 
Kerr now resides in Monmouth, 111. He 
married Elizabeth Reoch at Brechin, 
Scotland, and has a family of sons and 
daughters — one son and daughter mar- 
ried — Mrs. Frank Foster, of Beloit, Wis., 
and Andrew Kerr, of Duiuth, Minnesota. 

On August 9, 1857, George Dickie 
Kerr, a son of James Kerr, died; and on 
December 25, same year, his sister, Mary, 
died; in the following year, on February 
21, his infant daughter, Margaret Jane 
Kerr, died; and on May 26, i860, his 
mother, Margaret Taylor-Kerr. died. All 
these deaths ocoirred in Milwaukee, and 
the remains interred in the family grounds 
in Forest Home Cemetery. 

In 1863 Mr. Kerr's father and his two 
sisters, Georgianna Allardice Kerr and 
Elizabeth Clark Kerr, returned to Scot- 
land and their native home. 

In the same year Mr. Kerr left the 
Ncivs office, and for a time was in the 
Wisconsin office. In the fall he made 
his mind up to enlist in the army, with 
which intent he went to the mustering and 
disbursing office, desiring, however, to 
enlist in the Twenty-fourth Wis. V. I., 
as manv of his friends were members of 
that regiment, and they were at that time 
filling up the old regiments with new men 
to keep the companies full. The Twenty- 
fourth had lieen tilled up; Mr. Kerr had a 
friend in the mustering office, a Mr. Leach, 
who was chief clerk, and he gave him a 



position in the office. In the fall of the 
following year Gen. Grant issued an order 
for all men who had "soft snaps" at 
home offices to get to the front, and Mr. 
Kerr had "to get." The Forty-sixth 
Wisconsin Regiment was then being 
formed, and a recruiting officer was get- 
ting up a companj- in Milwaukee. This 
company — Company F — Mr. Kerr joined, 
and was appointed first sergeant. The 
regiment rendezvoused at Camp Randall, 
Madison, and was organized under Col. 
Fred S. Lovell. Henry B. \\'illiams was 
captain of Company F. The regiment 
did not leave the State imtil the begin- 
ning of March, when it proceeded to 
Louisville, Ky., and thence to Athens, 
Ala., where it was assigned to guard duty 
against bushwhackers and guerrillas. The 
regiment remained at Athens until called 
to \Msconsin. being mustered out at 
Nashville, Tenn., paid off in Madison, 
and disbanded early in October. 

When the regiment reached Chicago 
Mr. Kerr received the sad intelligence of 
the death of his four-year-old son, Albert 
Edward Kerr, on the 24th of September, 
but a few days before, and after the regi- 
ment disbanded at Madison he made all 
haste to his home of mourning at Milwau- 
kee, which he had left less than a year 
before, with hopes of returning joy and 
happiness. "At the time I enlisted," said 
Mr. Kerr, "I was robust and hearty, and 
weighed 198 pounds; but on my return 
home I only weighed 1 14 pounds! " Dur- 
ing the time Mr. Kerr was in the army he 
wrote some very interesting letters for the 
Wisconsin. 

After remaining at home a short time 
Mr. Kerr accepted a position in Horton 
& Leonard's office in Chicago. He re- 
mained in Chicago about a year, when he 
returned to Milwaukee to accept the 
management of the book department in 
Starr's printing establishment; he also 
became foreman of the job department. 
In Starr's office he remained for several 
years. Mr. Kerr was offered a lucrative 
position in the fonrnal of Commerce 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIIVAL RECORD. 



443 



printing establishment, which he ac- 
cepted. This was a new office, and he 
had the entire management of the con- 
cern until it changed hands in 1^74. Mr. 
Kerr was interested with Mr. Bailej- in 
the publishing of directories in Milwau- 
kee, as well as engaged in publishing sev- 
eral meritorious advertising literature, 
etc. During his long residence in Mil- 
waukee — from 1854 to 1874 — he was 
considered a first-class printer in all de- 
tails, and authority in the settlement of 
any disputes among the craft. He was a 
valuable member of the Typographical 
Union, and for man\' years president of 
the organization, is a member of the In- 
ternational T}'pographical Union, and 
represented Milwaukee at its convention 
in the city of Albany, N. Y. ; was a mein- 
of the I. O. O. F., No. 20; was a charter 
member of Sheridan Post No. 6, G. A. 
R., and was adjutant of the post for sev- 
eral terms and also vice-commander. 

In 1874 the proprietors of the fountai 
of Coiiniicrcc sold out their establishment 
to practical printers, and Mr. Kerr being 
offered a position in Green Bay, to take 
charge of the job department of the State 
Gazette, he at once accepted, and the 
early days of the month of March, i S74, 
found him on duty with Hoskinson 
& Follett, the then proprietors. 
Shortly afterward he assumed the 
duties of local editor, and held that 
position until April, 1S84. During the 
time he was "localizing" on the Daily 
Gazette, he published and managed the 
Fort Howard Review. The history of the 
ups and do\\ns of the lives of newspapers 
in Fort Howard is so remarkable that the 
city was named, by neighboring contem- 
poraries, as the "newspaper cemetery," 
and from an article published on ' ' The 
Press of Brown County — past and pres- 
ent," which appeared in August, 18S6, 
we glean the following facts: 

The first paper published was the Era, 
on 20th April, 1855; the second number 
was never published; the Fort Howard 
Times was the next paper, but the office 



was destroyed by fire October 22, 1872, 
and publication was never resumed. In 
the same year the Fort Howard Monitor 
was started, and after going through many 
changes in its management suspended in 
March, 1877. The J/c////!'/- liad the con- 
tract for city printing, and the proprietor 
turned over the contract to the Revie-w. 
The Review was then printed in Green 
Bay, and ordinances, etc. , had to be pub- 
lished in a paper printed in the city. The 
Fort Howard Herald was then printed in 
Fort Howard, and the proprietor claimed 
the contract ; but Mr. Kerr was sufficient 
for the emergency. ]. H. Tayler had an 
amateur press, and Mr. Kerr had the or- 
dinances ami other official matter "set 
up " in Green Bay and printed the matter 
on tlie small press in Fort Howard, which 
covered the provision of the city charter, 
and satisfied the city council, much to the 
chagrin of the proprietor of the Herald. 
The Herald was established in 1872, but 
had a checkered life; it passed into other 
hands in 1 877, and changed hands in i S78, 
when the name was also changed to the 
Brown County Herald, and published but 
a short time. In 1879 the Fort Howard 
Journal appeared, but lived only a short 
time; then followed the J/c/v/Zw^ Journal, 
and after its demise came the Brown 
County Denioerat. which f(_)llowed the 
/('///•//(//after a short life. In lunc, 1882, 
the Fort Howard Sentinel made its ap- 
pearance, and continued publication until 
February, 1 890, when it followed the fate 
of those gone before. The Fort Howard 
Review was started by David M. Burns 
as an advertising sheet for his own busi- 
ness in September, 1S75, and published 
monthly. It was a small three-column 
four-page publication. In November, 
1876, Mr. Burns turned over the Review 
to James Kerr, who enlarged the paper to 
a five-column folio, and gave attention to 
local matters. It was received by the 
public with so much favor that on the 
following January he commenced publish- 
ing the Review weekly, and enlarged it to 
a si.x-column folio. 



444 



COMMEMORATIVE BJOGIiAPUICAL RECORD. 



When Mr. Kerr left the Green Bay 
Gazette to commence business in Fort 
Howard, his son, Charles Stuart, became 
partner, and shortly afterward the Re- 
vieiv was enlarged to a six-column quarto 
- — the standard size — and has been printed 
and published continuously under their 
management up to the present day. The 
article on "The Press of Brown County," 
previously mentioned, in speaking of the 
Review and its proprietors, says: "Con- 
sidering the sad fate of so many attempts 
at journalism in Fort Howard, and the 
many disadvantages the Revieii) has had 
to contend with, its present position is 
both a matter of pride and gratification to 
its proprietors and originators." 

In September, 1880, Mr. Kerr's 
mother-in-law, Mrs. George Dickie, died, 
and was consigned to the grave on the 
memorable day of the Great Fire in Green 
Bay. After her husband's death in Mil- 
waukee, in i860, Mrs. Dickie became one 
of the family circle, and resided at Mr. 
Kerr's home for nearly twenty years. She 
was a kind-hearted, cheerful and affec- 
tionate woman, and her loss was keenly 
felt by the entire family. 

Mr. Kerr's father died on March 18, 
1 88 1, at Montrose, in his native land, 
after a long illness, where he was attended 
with constant care and devotion, which 
only two loving daughters could give. 
After his death, all tender ties being 
broken — //(■ being the last of the family 
race in Scotland — they left for America, 
coming to Fort Howard in the fall of 
1 88 1, and resided with their brother, 
James Kerr, for over a year, when they 
removed to Milwaukee to make that city 
their home. 

In the same year, and but little over 
three months after the death of Mr. 
Kerr's father, he lost a son. James Tay- 
lor Kerr was aged about seventeen years 
at the time of his death. He was a 
bright and intelligent yoimglad, far above ! 
his years, and gave promise of a brilliant 
and useful life. His death was a heavy 
blow to the parents, and a .'Sorrowful one 



to all his acquaintances and those who 
came in close contact with him. The 
Green Bay Globe of July 13, 1881, in 
speaking of his death, said: 

The unlooked-for death of Jiuiniie Kerr is 
the occasion of profound .sorrow in the printing' 
offices, where he was well known, as it is among- 
all who knew him. He was one of the most gen- 
tlemanly unobtrusive and intelliffent little fel- 
lows we ever met with. It seemed to us, when- 
ever he came to our sanctum, that his kind, 
earnest, serious face was itself a prophecy of a 
life that would expand to yreatness and useful- 
ness as the j'ears grew. But God plucks his 
choicest flowers first. The prophecy may not 
reach its fulfillment, unless the influence of his 
life and aspirations shall inspire his compan- 
ions with higher aims and better purposes. Jim- 
mie was in his seventeenth year. He had been 
suffering since the Fourth with an attack of 
cholera morbus, which was not considered dan- 
gerous; but it took an unfavorable turn on Mon- 
day evening, and he died before midnight. 

On the evening of October 21, 1884, 
Death seemed for a time to hover o'er the 
the family circle, but through the mercy 
of Divine Providence took wings, and the 
threshhold was not passed. But that 
night was a sad and melancholy one with- 
in their home, as well as a dark and dreary 
one outside; the parents frantic with grief 
and sorrowing and kind friends bestowing 
all assistance and sympathy that bleeding 
hearts could offer^ — when the almost life- 
less body of their son, William Lowe 
Kerr, of but fourteen years of age, was 
carried to his home; and as Dr. Brett 
stated to a friend — "it was one of the 
most pitiful sights he ever saw." The 
boy had met with an accident, and been 
run over by the cars on the North West- 
ern road. The accident was one which 
aroused the sympathy of every one, for 
the lad was well known, and was a favor- 
ite with all who knew him. Of the sad 
accident the local papers spoke in the 
most feeling terms, and we make an ex- 
tract from an extended account which ap- 
peared in the Fort Howard Sentinel. 

The unfortunate lad was the carrier of the 
Milirniikti .A(i/;/(</i' for this city. He had gone to 
the Milwaukee & Northern station, in Green 
Bay, as was his custom, and returning boarded 
the C. & N. W. incoming train to ride to the 
lf>wer part of the city, which was not customary 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGHAPUICAL RECORD. 



445 



with him. It is supposed that he jumped from 
the traiu when opposite the fire en,!,^ine house, 
as liis hat and bundle of papers were subse- 
quently found at that point, and had fallen in 
such a manner as to cause one arm and one 
hand to cross the track, and it is probable that 
several wheels passed over them. He bore his 
injuries with remarkable fortitude; after re- 
ceiving- them, he rose and walked to the spot 
where he was afterward discovered lying;, and 
where it is evident he tripped over a projecting: 
board and fell to the ground, he seeniing-ly 
unconscious of the terrible character of his 
injuries. 

Doctors Bartran and Brett were summoned, 
and it was found that it would be necessary to 
amputate the rig-ht ;irm near the shoulder, and 
tlie whole of the left hand, save the upper por- 
tion and the thumb, and the operation was suc- 
cessfully performed. The unfortunate lad is 
doing- as well as possible under the circum- 
stances, but lie will, of course, be helpless for 
life, which is more particularly regretful since 
he was a boy of much energy and activity, and 
gave good promise of a life of much usefulness. 

Contrary to expectation, and not- 
withstandinj,' the severity of his injuries, 
the young man rapidly recovered, and in 
the course of a few weeks was out again 
and attending school as usual, the rapid- 
ity of his recovery from such fearful injur- 
ies being a matter of wonder to the com- 
munity and the medical fraternity. He 
soon learned to hold a pen or pencil with 
his thumb and mutilated left hand, and 
in a short time was enabled to write leg- 
ibly in a flowing hack-handed style of pen- 
manship, which admitted of his keeping 
books, and attending to ordinary matters 
of business apparently without trouble or 
inconvenience. He continued his studies 
until he graduated from the High School, 
with honors heaped upon him, and at the 
" Commencement " was the recipient of 
many valuable gifts from friends. Since 
his graduation he has taught in the public 
schools with satisfactory results to the 
school board and pupils. He has twice 
been elected city clerk, at present hold- 
ing that position; is also secretary-treas- 
urer of the local lodge of the K. O. T. M. 
He is now twenty-four years of age, in 
full and perfect enjoyment of health, and 
every indication points to many years of 
usefulness to the comnuinitv and prosper- 
ity for himself. 



Again the (irim Reaper enters the 
family, and cuts off Mr. Kerr's youngest 
sister. Just as the city bells in Milwau- 
kee were ringing out the hour of noon on 
the 5th day of January, 1895, with a soft 
and almost silent sigh, life tleparted — her 
soul went out to meet the Maker — a ling- 
ering and painful illness of nearly three 
j'ears was ended, endured with true Chris- 
tian patience and fortitude, often deceiving 
her friends by her cheery smile and jocular 
remarks which were assumed to hide her 
intense suffering. Elizabeth Clark Kerr at 
the time of her death was lifty-two years 
of age. She was a true tender-hearted wo- 
man, naturally of a cheerful disposition, 
which served her well during her long sick- 
ness. Her remains were laid to rest along- 
side the grave of her mother, in the family 
grounds at Forest Home. 

Mr. and Mrs. James Kerr reside in a'n 
unpretentious residence on the corner of 
Broadway and Hubbard streets, one of 
the most prominent and pleasant street 
corners in the city; he also owns some 
valuable residence and business property, 
has the most extensive private library in 
the city, and is the possessor of many 
rare and valuable articles of virtu. Their 
surviving family consists of two sons and 
one daughter. 

Charles Stuart, their eldest son, is as- 
sociated with his father in the steam job- 
printing business, and the publishing of the 
Fort Howard A'crv'fTi'. He is a member 
of the Sons of Veterans, Modern Wood- 
men of America, the Knights of the Mac- 
cabees, the Green Lake Quartette — a lo- 
cal musical organization of considerable 
note — besides several social clubs in Fort 
Howard and Green Bay. He is a young 
man of good principle, and a hustler in 
a business way. Socially, he is very 
popular. 

Their daughter, Harriet Ann Taylor, 
is married to D. M. Hagerty, district 
illuminating oil inspector, and an influen- 
tial and prominent citizen of Green Bay. 
She is an accomplished lady and a favorite 
in society. She can set type or take 



446 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



charp;e of the editorial department of a 
newspaper, botli of which she has done in 
her father's office. They have one child, 
Mildred. 

William Lowe, the youngest son of 
the family, I have already spoken of in 
detail. 

Mrs. Kerr is a model wife and mother, 
and possesses an exemplars- Christian 
character. She is a member of the Pres- 
byterian Church, taking an active interest 
in all that pertains to that society. In 
appearance she is petite, of a pleasant 
disposition, extremely social, making 
friends easily, and holding their regard 
and esteem. Slie has three sisters — Mrs. 
Martin Durward (Isabella, twin sister), of 
Milwaukee; Mrs. William S. Lowe (Mary), 
of Spottsylvania, \'a. ; and Mrs. David 
Dickie (Ann), of Dunedin, New Zealand. 
Mrs. Lowe and Miss Isabella Dickie were 
of the party that accompanied Mr. and 
Mrs. Kerr to this countrv in August, 

1854. 

James Kerr is in his si.xty-fifth \ear, 
and though the frosts of many winters have 
limned his head as with a halo, he is still 
as hale and hearty, genial and pleasant, 
as when, forty _\ears ago, he Hrst left the 
land of brown heath and shaggj- woods. 
Time has dealt gently with him, his portly 
form and jovial, expressive face indicat- 
ing a life well spent and the possession of 
a contented mind. He has during his 
residence in Fort Howard been a member 
of the county board of supervisors, and 
an officer in Green Bay Lodge, I. O. O. 
F. , No. 19; is an active and \aluablc 
member of Howard Lodge, A. O. U. W., 
No. 72; and a member of the Grand Lodge 
of the State, having been elected for three 
terms to represent No. 72 in that body, 
and is D. G. M. W. for the district. He 
is also a member of T. O. Howe Post, G. 
A. R. , an inHnential citizen and highly 
respected in the community. He has one 
brother and one sister li\ing, namely: 
Robert Laing Kerr, of Monmouth, 111., 
and Georgianna AUardice Kerr, of Mil- 
waukee. 



Mr. Kerr has resided in Fort Howard 
since the first day of his arrival, and T/ie 
A'lTvVri' has been continuousl}' printed and 
published under his charge. The paper 
is Republican in politics, and being al- 
1 ways watchful for the best interests of the 
' city, and enjoying a large circulation, it 
has naturally a wide influence. The office 
is well equipped with power presses run 
by steam, and all modern material, 
being one of the best appointed in north- 
eastern Wisconsin. — J. W. S. 



Wi:llington b. coffeen, 
M. D. Every profession has its 
prominent men, some made such 
by long membership, others by 
their proticiency in their calling. The 
subject of this sketch is made conspicuous 
among the physicians of Brown county, 
not so much by the length of time he has 
devoted to the calling — for he is as yet a 
young man — as by the eminent success 
he has already made of it. 

He is a native of Wisconsin, born 
August 26, 1858, in Taycheedah, Fond 
du Lac county. The progenitor of the 
family of which he is a member was a 
young Irish lad who boarded a vessel in 
Ireland and worked his passage across the 
ocean, his labor being subsequently sold 
out in Boston to pa\' the rest of his pass- 
age. He prospered, married, and had 
several sons who settled ' in different 
States, one in New York State, probably 
in Watertown, Jefferson county, where 
his dccendants became well-to-do farmers. 
Grandfather David Coffeen, who was a 
farmer of Watertown, N. Y. , was a very 
active man, and in middle life removed 
with his family to Calumet county. Wis., 
where he resided till he was seventy-two 
years of age, when, having always ex- 
pressed a desire to die in his old home at 
Watertown, he removed thither and died 
a few weeks afterward. He was a stanch 
Republican, taking a deep interest in 
local and State politics, was a man of the 



* 




OiA^/B. J&-(r. 




Q//.jO 



COMMEMOIiATJl'E BlOORAl'UtCAJ, RECORD. 



447 



most positive character, and possessed of 
great will power. He married in Water- 
town, and had a family of children named 
respectixely: Curtis, David, Louis, Por- 
ter and Emma. Of these, Louis was born 
in Watertown, and was a young man 
of about sixteen when he came to Wis- 
consin, where he worked for eight dol- 
lars per month until he was enabled to 
buy a piece of land in Fond tlu Lac 
county, afterward accumulating there con- 
siderable property, including several fine 
farms. He now resides in Vassar, Mirh. 
His wife, Lucy (Abneri, died at the 
age of forty-nine years, the mother of 
five children, of whom our subject is the 
second. 

Dr. Coffeen is principally a self-made 
and self-educated man, his earlier educa- 
tion having been limited to the district 
schools of Fond dn Lac county. Wis. At 
the age of eighteen years he entered the 
State Normal School at Oshkosh, paying 
his own way there, and also through the 
medical course, later on. After a two- 
years' course at the Normal, he entered 
the office of Dr. Louis Grasmuck, a well- 
known and successful physician of Men- 
asha, who subsequently removed to Colo- 
rado. At an earl}' age, even in childhood, 
our subject had a great desire to become 
a physician, which desire was probably 
inherited from his mother, who was a 
splendid nurse and a great blessing to the 
sick in her family and neighborhood. She 
had the gentle wa}'s of the Sister of 
Charity, and the hope that springs from 
affection. After studying in the office for 
two years he proceeded to Ann Arbor, 
Mich., and entered the Homeopathic 
Medical Department of the University of 
Michigan, where he labored diligently at 
his books, and took his F'reshman and 
Junior studies in one year. From there 
he went to the Homeopathic Medical 
College, Chicago, III., from which insti- 
tution he graduated Marcii 4. 1884, and 
immediately located at Fort Howard and 
Green Bay, where he has continued to 
practice ever since. In i88y he removed 

25 



his residence to Green Bay, and has built 
up a good practice. 

Dr. Coffeen was married, in Fort 
Howard. September 29, 1886, to Miss 
Nellie Camm, a native of that place, 
daughter of Capt. James M. Camm and 
Dr. Mary Bass Camm, the former of 
whom was an officer in the Florida war, 
Mexican war and the war of the Rebellion. 
In the Mexican war Capt. Camm was 
shot through the neck, the vocal cords 
being severed, but is a hale and hearty 
man to-day, now residing in \'alentine, 
Neb. The mother of Mrs. Dr. Coffeen 
was a well-known Homeojiathic physician, 
with a lucrative practice in Fort Howard 
and Green Bay, where she is held in 
loving and kindly remembrance for her 
many acts of charity and devcjtion to the 
sick and afflicted. She died of pneumonia, 
in March, 1889, at the house of her 
daughter, at the age of fifty-five years. 
Dr. Coi^een has two sons: James How- 
ard and Lew Wallace. The Doctor has 
been a member of the Koyal Arcanum for 
nine \'ears, and was examining physician 
of same for many years; is a past Regent, 
having filled all the offices, and is a mem- 
ber of the Grand Council of the State of 
Wisconsin. He is also a member of the 
Modern Woodmen of America, Green Bay 
Lodge, and is its examining physician; is 
also a member of the Knights of the Mac- 
cabees of the World, is its examining 
physician, and is now its commander. At 
the last biennial session of the State con- 
vention, held in Green Bay, April 3, 1895, 
he was also elected representative to the 
Supreme Tent from this State. He is a 
member of the Brown County Medical 
Association, the State Homeopathic Medi- 
cal Association, and the American Insti- 
tute of Homeopathy. 

Dr. Coffeen is one of those men who 
may be said to have chosen well. Pos- 
sessed of a kind, sympathetic nature, a 
keen sense of discrimitiation, a natural 
taste for the various branches of the medi- 
cal profession, he has made a signal 
success. 



448 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



CA. NEWELL. This gentleman 
lias been a resident of Green Bay 
tor the past quarter of a century, 
during which time he has earned 
the respect of the community, both as a 
private citizen and as a tradesman. 

He is a native of New York State, 
born in Delaware county, in 1825, a son 
of Harry and Jerusha (Foot) Newell, both 
of New York birth. The father was a 
farmer in Delaware county, and on re- 
tiring from active work made his home in 
New York, dying there in 18 — ; his wife 
passed away in 1848. Grandfather Rob- 
ert Newell was a native of New York, a 
sea captain by occupation, and partici- 
pated in the war of the Revolution. 

After his school days were over, 
which were passed in his native count) , 
our subject commenced to learn the trade 
of carpenter, completing same in Wiscon- 
sin, whither he came in 1845, arriving in 
Milwaukee, and locating first in Dodge 
county. After remaining there some 
years engaged closely at his trade, he 
moved to Waupun, Fond du Lac county, 
and from there came in 1 869 to Green Bay 
which has since been his home. This 
was not his first visit, however, to the 
town, for in 1854 we find him working here 
in the shipyards. He was also engaged 
in shipbuilding in Pensaukee and Little 
Sturgeon, and among the vessels he 
helped to build may be mentioned the 
schooner "Fannie Gardner," steamer 
"Union," brig " F. B. Gardner." and 
others, A. Gilson, of Oshkosh, Wis. , his 
brother-in-law, being the master ship- 
builder. Our subject is now engaged chiefly 
in contracting for residence buildings, and 
in Green Bay, alone, there are to be seen 
many evidences of his skill, such as the 
" Kellogg House," the Orphan Asylum, 
the "Albright House," the Pierce resi- 
dence and many others, besides the Court 
House f<ir Ontonagon county, Mich. He 
also owns three lots in Green Bay, and 
has built thereon two residences. In ad- 
dition to his other interests, he carries on 
a cabinet shop, doing desk and fine cabi- 



net work of all kinds, chiefly expert 
work. 

On November 11, 1851, Mr. Newell 
was married in Winneconne, Winnebago 
Co., Wis , to Miss Isabella Hall, daugh- 
ter of Thomas and Isabella Hall, all na- 
tives of Canada, whence they came to 
Wisconsin in 1849. One child, a daugh- 
ter, Imogene, was the result of this union, 
born October 11, 1854, died November 
7, 1855. O" February 26, 1S58, Mr. 
Newell was married in Door county, 
Wis., to Miss Mary Hewlett, a school 
teacher of Sturgeon Bay, daughter of 
James and Alice (Finch) Howlett, all na- 
tives of England, who about the year 1 848 
came to Wisconsin, settling on a farm in 
Fond du Lac county, where the mother 
died, the father subsequently removing 
into the town of Waupaca, where he died 
in 1888. In his political preferences Mr. 
Newell is a Republican, a zealous sup- 
porter of the principles of the party. He 
and his amiable life partner enjoy the 
highest esteem on the part of their many 
friends, and they are useful members of 
societv. 



REV. C H K I S T 1 A N A X T O N 
FREDERICK POPP. Among 
the pioneer ministers of Wi.scon- 
sin, who faithf\illy represented the 
German Lutheran Church, we must men- 
tion Rev. Popp, who was born August 5, 
1825, in Bayreuth, Bavaria, Germany. 

He comes from an old German family 
who, in the time of the Duchess of Bran- 
denburg, resided in Bayreuth, Anspach, 
which was the home of his ancestors for 
many generations. A great many of the 
progenitors of Rev. Popp were teachers. 
His grandfather, Stephen Popp, was a 
soldier in Germany, and musical director 
of the regimental band. In June, 1/77, 
he and three thousand fellow soldiers 
were sold by the Markgrave Casiinir of 
Brandenburg, and when preparations were 
made to ship them to America the regi- 
ment rose in mutiny, at Marktbreit-on- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIIAPUICAL RECORD. 



449, 



the-Main. Markgrave Casiniir, however, 
had received an enormous sum for the 
use of the troops, and he was bound to 
fulfill his contract. He surrounded the 
regiment with his body-guard, disarmed 
the soldiers and put them in chains, nine 
of the leaders being hanged. This inhu- 
man act was witnessed by the remaining 
soldiers of the regiment, who were then 
taken to boats and shipped to Rotterdam, 
Holland, where English frigates were in 
readiness to receive them and bear them to 
America, to swell the army of Lord Corn- 
wallis. Stephen Popp participated in the 
Revolutionary war, and was taken pris- 
oner at Vorktown. After peace was de- 
clared he settled in York, Penn., where 
he married the daughter of a German 
farmer by the name of Baumann, and by 
her had six children, all of whom they 
lost by death. After the war he turned 
his musical talents to account, and, l^ie- 
coming quite a prosperous man, in course 
of time set out to return to Germany 
with a small fortune, but the ship in 
which he tocjk passage was lost together 
with all his valuables, he and his wife 
barely escaping with their lives; and thus 
they reached their home, poor in worldly 
possessions, but rich in faith in God. 
Soon after they settled in Neustadt-on- 
the-Aesch, where a son, Johann George, 
was born November 27, 1796. Thus, 
after many adventures and much tribula- 
tion, a life as varied as a romance, a 
blessing in the birth of a son came to 
them in the evening of life. The mother, 
however, gave up her life in giving birth 
to the son. The father of this child was 
afflicted with blindness during the last 
twenty years of his life, and died in 
Neustadt in 1.S21, at the age of si.\ty-two. 
The son, Johann George Popp, was 
educated in Neustadt, and become a 
teacher in the public schools in Bayreuth, 
where he taught about twenty-five years. 
He died. May 28, 1845, of grief at the 
loss of his beloved wife, Johanna Kather- 
ine (Kroher), whose death occurred Jan- 
uary 22, 1838; she was born April 27, 



1804. The couple were much devoted to 
one another, and lived an ideal married 
life. The marriage was blessed with si.\ 
children, \\z: Christian Anton Frederick 
Popp (our subject); a brother, now super- 
intendent of the Lutheran church at 
Wiesenbroun, Germany; Henrietta, who 
died of croup at the age of four years; 
Franz, deceased, who was procurist (con- 
fidential clerk) in the Rothschild Bank at 
Vienna; Carl, who became a wanderer, 
led an adventurous life, and fought with 
Kossuth in the Turkish service against 
Russia (after peace was declared, he went 
to England, where he married a banker's 
daughter in Birmingham; he served a 
number of years as Imperial German 
Consul); and Elenore, married to a teacher 
named Lindner. 

Rev. C. A. F. Popp studied first in 
Bayreuth, and later in the University of 
Erlangen, where he made a specialty of 
theology from 1841 to 1845. He after- 
ward became a private teacher in the 
family of Baron Reinhardt, of Bavaria, 
in which capacity he served for a year 
and a half, at the end of which time he 
received a call from the Consistory to the 
ministry, which he obeyed. He was or- 
dained May 5, 1S48, and took charge as 
administrator of the church Parochy at 
Marktbenten, at the end of one year be- 
coming assistant pastor at Mistlegau, 
near Bayreuth. Later in the year 1849, 
he emigrated to America (where many of 
his friends and fellow students had pre- 
ceded him), taking with him letters of 
recommendation to the Lutheran Synod 
of Pennsylvania, of which he became a 
member, his membership continuing from 
1850 to i860, during which time he had 
charge of the Lutheran Church at Bir- 
mingham, Penn. In 1855 he moNcd to 
Ouincy, 111., where he preachefl six years, 
and then went to Warsaw, 111., remain- 
ing six years as pastor of a Lutheran 
Church of that place, and his next pas- 
torage was in Bethlehem, 111., where he 
served two years. As a means of build- 
ing up his health which, bj' reason of his- 



450 



COMMEMOHATIVE BIOGEAPUICAL RECORD. 



man}- \ears hard work had become im- 
paired, he in 1868 left Bethlehem for 
Oshkosh, Wis., and in 1870 removed to 
Kenosha. In 1881 he took up his abode 
in Wrightstown, where he assumed charge 
of the Lutheran Church. He has be- 
come well known as an earnest and valu- 
able worker, both in the Church and in 
the parochial schools, which latter, under 
his supervision, are scattered over four 
townships and thirteen school districts, 
and are limited to children from thirteen 
to si.xteen years of age. He is held in 
high esteem by his people, who value him 
as a friend, and where\er he has been he 
is remembered as a pastor who has the 
welfare of his parishioners at heart. He 
is a preacher of the old school, and has 
the mien of a patriarch, his influence over 
the people of his congregation being 
abundantly felt throughout life. Rev. 
Popp was married in Mistlegau. Germany, 
June 16, 1849, to Miss Emeline Wilhel- 
mina Christiana Hagen, who was born 
May 18, 1830, in Neudrossenfeld, daugh- 
ter of Rev. Christian Hagen, a Lutheran 
minister, and fourteen children were born 
to this union, of whom the following are 
now living: Anna Margaretha, Franz 
Johannes, Sophia Maria E., Fred Peter 
August, Godfrey George Ludwig, Rosa- 
linda F. J. A. and Carl Jacob F. A. Of 
these, 

Godfrey G. L. Porr was born May 
28. 1868. in Bethlehem, 111., was edu- 
cated in Kenosha and W'rightstown. stud- 
ied pharmacy at Racine and Baraboo. 
Wis., and in September, 1890, received a 
license from the State of Wisconsin. He 
opened a drug store in \\'rightstovvn in 
the fall of 1889, and has continued in 
same ever since with eminent success. 
He was married November 20, 1890, to 
Miss Emma Rather, a native of Wrights- 
town, daughter nf Albert Rather, a hard- 
ware merchant. Two children have 
blessed this union, Viola Caroline E. and 
Ida Nellie. Mr. and Mrs. Popp are mem- 
bers of the Lutheran Church; politically he 
is identified with the Democratic part\ . 



APTAIN H. W. WEBSTER, ply- 
ing on the lakes between Green 



r 

V ^ Bay and Chicago and intervening 
ports, was born in De Pere, Wis. . 
in 1847, and is a son of Levi and Mary 
P. (Smith) Webster. 

Levi Webster was a nati\e of \'er- 
niont, and in 1833 or 1834 came to Wis- 
consin, locating in Green Bay, and then 
settled at De Pere. and assisted in putting 
in the locks. He later purchased and 
moved to a farm near the city, and made 
it his home till his death, which occurred 
in October, 1862, being followed by his 
wife in February, 1863; both were mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian Church at De- 
Pere, of which she was a charter member. 
They reared a family of four sons, viz. : 
Lewis B., who resides in Rutland, \'t., 
was a three-years' \olunteer in the Fifty- 
eighth 111. V. I., but was discharged on 
account of disability in 1862, probably 
within a year after enlisting; he is now 
employed at the Howe Scale Works. 
Levi H., the second son, enlisted in the 
Twentieth \\'is. \". I. for three years; 
took part in the battle of Pittsburg Land- 



inir, and in the 



fights 



on the 



Gulf; he is 
now a farmer in Minnesota. Edgar E. , 
the third son. served his full three years, 
in the Civil war. in the Fourteenth Wis- 
consin Infantry. 

Capt. H. W. Webster, the fourth son, 
was reared on his father's farm, and edu- 
cated in Lawrence township. Brown 
county. In 1869 he entered on his lake 
life as a fireman on a steamer, and in 1871 
reached a captaincy. He was married, 
at Green Bay, to Miss Sarah N. Lewis, a 
native of Montello, Marquette Co., Wis., 
and a daughter of Thomas and Asenath 
(Buck) Lewis, natives of Ohio. This 
union has been blessed with one child, 
Herbert Lewis \\'ebster. Mr. and Mrs. 
Webster are conscientious members of 
the M'jthodist Episcopal Church ; in poli- 
tics the Captain is a Prohibitionist; social- 
ly he is a member of the Royal Arcanum, 
Lodge No. 546. Grandfather Smith was 
a native of \'ermont, and one of the pio- 



COMMEMORATIVE BKJdKAPHICAL RECORD. 



451 



neers of Green Bay. Of Green Bay the 
Captain has witnessed nnich of the re- 
markable development, as well as of the 
complete growth of Lawrence township. 
His temperate and upright life has won 
for him many sincere friends, as well as 
the respect of his fellow citizens of Brown 
county. 



CHARLES L. DAVIS, farmer and 
stock raiser, and one of the pro- 
gressive, public-spirited citizens 
of Lawrence township. Brown 
county, was born |uly 25, 1S48, in the 
town (.)f I\o\alton, Niagara ci)unt\'. New 
York. 

His father, E. B. Davis, was a native 
of Schenectady county, N. 'S'., where he 
married Polly Schadd, and \\hile living in 
New York they had children as follows: 
John, a member of Company L Third 
Wisconsin Cavalry, who died at Madison, 
Wis.; George, who died in Elyria, Ohio; 
and Charles L. , whose name introduces 
this sketch. Mr. Davis was a farmer in 
New York State, and, in 1849, he removed 
to Lorain county, Ohio, and purchased a 
farm in Carlisle townshij), where he con- 
tinued to follow agricultural pursuits, and 
here he also dealt extensively in lumber, 
principally the purchasing of staves for a 
Buffalo firm. In Lorain county was born 
another child, Jane C, who married 
Bruce Lindsley, and died in Flintville, 
Brown Co., Wis. Mrs. Polly Davis died 
in Lorain county January 17, 1857, and 
was buried in Elyria, same county, and 
Mr. Davis then married Miss Susan Oak- 
ley, who died in Lorain county July 11, 
1858. In 1859 he wedded, in Lockport, 
N. Y. , for his third wife. Miss Mary Bar- 
rett. In r86o, the lumber business hav- 
ing gradually declined with the clearing 
away of the forests, Mr. Davis concluded 
to remove farther west, and brought his 
family to Brown county. Wis., traveling 
by rail to Oshkosh, and from there by 
stage to Wrightstown, Brown count\', 
where they located. Mr. Davis again 



engaged in the stave business, buying 
timber from farmers, and he put consid- 
erable money into circulation here, as his 
trade was an extensive one. He invested 
in a large anmunt of laud in Brown c<junty, 
and pre-empted over three hundred 
acres of government land. He was a 
well-built man, of splendid physitjue, and 
was well-known and highly respected in 
his commimity. At the time of his 
death, which occurred March 11, 1878, 
he was comfortably situated. In his polit- 
ical belief he was a Democrat, and a 
stanch supporter of the party, but was 
not an active politician. He lies buried 
in Wrightstown cemetery. 

Charles L. Davis received his first 
school training in Carlisle township, Lo- 
rain Co.. Ohio. After the death of his 
mother he returned to Niagara county, 
N. Y., and for two years made his home 
with his grandfather, then, in i860, com- 
ing to W'isconsin. In October, 1864, 
then but little over sixteen years of age, 
he enlisted, at Green Bay, Wis. , in Com- 
pany H, Twelfth W'isconsin Infantry, 
was sent South, and, joining the regiment 
at Marietta, Ga., participated in the en- 
tire campaign through the Carolinas. He 
took part in the Grand Review at Wash- 
ington, D. C, was mustered out at 
Louis\ille, Ky. , and received an honorable 
discharge at Madison, Wis. When he 
first came to W^isconsin, the schools were 
very poor, and he did not attend much, 
as he assisted his father in the latter's 
extensive lumber business, becoming 
familiar with the details of same when 
3'et a mere boy. After the war he be- 
came partner with his father in the 
business, and continued to hold an inter- 
est in same until 1879. 

On April 9, 1877, at Wrightstown, 
Wis., by Rev. Father De Wilt, Mr. Davis 
was united in marriage to Miss Ellen 
Sullivan, who was born January 22, 1857, 
in W'inchendon, Worcester Co., Mass., 
eldest child of John and Ellen (Harris) 
Sullivan. For five years previous to her 
marriage, she followed the profession of 



45- 



COM-VKMORATIVE BIOOIiAPHICAL RECORD. 



school teaching, in the meantime having 
her residence in Lawrence. In 1882 Mr. 
Davis purchased his present farm, in 
Lawrence township, and moved thereon, 
at the same time severing completely his 
connection with the lumber business. 
Since that time he has been exclusively 
engaged in general farming and stock 
raising, and he now has a fertile, well- 
improved farm of ninety-nine acres. In 
politics he is one of the leaders of the 
Ueiuocratic party in his section, and for 
three years has been chairman of the 
Democratic committee. He is always 
among the foremost men in the township 
in any enterprise tending to benefit the 
community in general. To him and his 
wife have come children as follows: Jen- 
nie E.. born August 2, 1879; Mamie L., 
born February 4, 1881, died February 7, 
1882; John E", born June 18, 1882; Har- 
riet C, born May 24, 1886, died May 7, 
1887; and Charles F.. born April i, 1889. 



01. B. BKICK. The Kingdom of 
iSelgium has given to the United 
States man\- of her industrious, 
lujal and prosperous citizens, 
among whom may be justly numbered the 
gentleman whose name here appears — a 
name in northern Wisconsin as "familiar 
as household words." 

Mr. Brice has the distinguished honor 
of representing his native land as consul 
for Wisconsin, Minnesota and the two 
Dakotas, his appointment, over the sign- 
manual of the King of the Belgians, dating 
June iG, 1880, the United States being 
at the time under the administration of 
Cicn. K. B. Hayes. In addition to his 
consular duties Mr. Brice carries on e.\ten- 
sive real-estate and insurance businesses, 
and is ticket agent for Ocean steamship 
lines. He was born April 6, 1837, in the 
city of Jodoigne, Pro\ince of Brabant, 
Belgium, a son of John Louis and Mary 
J. (Straele) Brice, also of Belgian nativ- 
ity. They had a family of nine children, 



of whom five died in infancy, and the 
others (four brothers; came to Brown 
county. Wis., viz.: Joseph, who settled 
in the town of Scott, Brown county, in 
1856; Louis and Albert, both house and 
sign painters, and residing in Green Bay; 
and our subject. The father died in Bel- 
gium in 1849; the mother came to Green 
Bay in 1859, and died here in 1861. 

The subject proper of this memoir was 
reared and educated in his native country 
up to the age of eighteen years, at which 
time, in the spring of 1855, he immi- 
grated to the United States, locating at 
first in Milwaukee, where he worked at 
the trade of house and sign painter (which 
he had learned in Belgium). In the fall 
of the same year, he moved to West Troy, 
Walworth Co., Wis., where he worked as 
wagon and carriage painter, and whence, 
in the earlj' part of 1856, he moved to 
Green Bay. His first work, after arriv- 
ing at Green Bay, was on a farm in the 
town of Green Bay, in said county, but 
at the end of nine months he aban- 
doned the plough (the axe and hoe, 
rather) for the counter, engaging as 
clerk in a grocery and provision store in 
Green Bay. For some years thereafter 
he followed his trade of house and sign 
painter. In 1863 he was appointed dep- 
uty sheriff under George Longton; in 1868 
he was elected sheriff, and served in that 
capacity till 1871. In 1871-72 he was 
jailer, and in the fall of 1872 he engaged 
in mercantile business, but on account of 
ill-health sold out the same in 1874. In 
1875 he was elected chief of police. In 
1877 he was elected justice of the peace 
for the term of two years; in 1879 he 
was elected police justice, serving two 
years, at the end of which time he was 
again elected police justice, and again in 
1883. an incumbency he filled up to the 
spring of 1885. The capabilities of Mr. 
Brice were now further substantially rec- 
ognized by his election to the office of 
city clerk, in which he served two years, 
and was immediately re-elected to his old 
position of police justice, holding same 



COMMEMOllATIVE BrOGUAPinCAL liECOliD. 



453 



this time for four years, or up to the spring 
of 1893. 

In 1857 Mr. Brice was united in mar- 
riage in Green Bay with Miss Odile Fon- 
taine, a nati\-e of Belgium, daughter of 
John Remy and Ehzabeth Fontaine, who 
came to Brown county in 1855, where 
they died. To Mr. and Mrs. Brice were 
born four children, of whom one died in 
infancy; the following is a brief record of 
the other three: Jules R. is married, 
and is a stenographer and typewriter in 
the general freight offices of the Chicago, 
Milwaukee & St. Paul railroad at Chi- 
cago; Alfred L. , married, is an attorney- 
at-law'in Minneapolis, Minn. ; Ella D. is 
the wife of Louis Schimel, of Chicago, 
111. The mother of these died in 1876, 
and in 1S79 Mr. Brice married Miss Mar)' 
Rebecca Gray, a Philadelphia lady. They 
attend the services of the Presbyterian 
Church, in the choir of which Mr. Brice's 
fine bass voice is heard each Sabbath of 
the jear. Socially he is a member and 
past chancellor of Pochequette Lodge No. 
26, Knights of Pythias; politically he is a 
pronounced Republican. 



H PORTER CAMPBELL, the well- 
known nurseryman, and the pres- 
ent cit_\- treasurer of Green Bay, 
was born in Scott township. Bay 
Settlement, Brown county. Wis., in 1840, 
and is the son of John and Elizabeth 
(Davenport) Campludl, 

John Campbell, the father, was born 
and reared in Scotland, whence when a 
young man he emigrated to America, lo- 
cating at Mackinac, Mich., later coming 
to Brown county. Wis., where he settled 
on a farm. About the year 1842 he re- 
cei\ed the appointment of government 
blacksmith at Grande Traverse, remain- 
ing there about nineteen years, and then 
returning to Brown county, where his 
death occurred in July, 1864, his wife 
surviving him imtil 1871. The\' were the 
parents of eleven children, as follows: 
Hiram, drowned at Green Bay; Robert, 



died on the old homestead in Scott town- 
ship in 1869; John, still living at Bay 
Settlement, Wis. ; Samuel, died in Michi- 
gan; Sylvester, died at the age of seven; 
\\'illiani, who enlisted, in 1864, in the 
Thirteenth Wis. \' . I., and died in a hos- 
pital in Te.xas; Hannah, died in Michigan; 
Elizabeth and an infant unnamed, also 
died in Michigan; Henry, of Two Rivers, 
Wis., and H. Porter, the subject of this 
sketch. 

H. Porter Campbell was reared among 
the Indians at Grande Traverse, and 
learned the language of the Ottawa tribe, 
living with them when there was only one 
other white family among them, until 
1845. In i860 he returned to Scott 
township. Brown county, and settled on 
a farm. In August, 18G4, he enlisted in 
Company B, Forty-fourth Wis. V. I., and 
was assigned to the Western army. He 
took part in the battle of Nashville, Tenn., 
and was then placed on garrison duty at 
Paducah, Ky. ; served as acting sergeant 
until July 4, 1865, when he was promoted 
to orderly sergeant and was honorably 
discharged at Paducah in September of 
the same year. Returning home, he re- 
sumed farming, which he followed until 
1880, when he removed to Green Bay 
and engaged in the dairy business; later 
opened a restaurant, and finally engageii 
in handling nursery stock. 

Mr. Campbell was married in 1866, in 
\^'innebago county, Wis., to Miss Eliza- 
beth Townsend, a native of that county, 
and a daughter of Lucius B. and Lucy 
(Bowker) Townsend, who came from Ver- 
mont to Racine, Wis., at an earl)' day, 
and in 1846 to Winnebago county. The 
father was a farmer, and 1867 removeti 
to Minnesota, then came to Bay Settle- 
ment, Brown county. Wis., but again 
went to Minnesota, and there died in 
1892; the mother passed away in \\''inne- 
bago county. Wis., in 1874. To the mar- 
riage of H. P. Campbell and wife have 
been born eight children, viz. : Lucius 
T. , of Fort Howard; Maud, living in 
Green Bay; John, of Chicago; Nora, who 



454 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



(lied in infancy; Samuel, in Chicago; 
Frank, in Green Bay; Charles, died at 
the age of one year, and Harry, attend- 
ing school. In politics Mr. Campbell is 
a Republican; while on his. farm he was 
school district clerk in 187X; was also 
elected chairman of the town of Scott, 
and in the spring of 1894 was elected to 
his present po.sition of city trea.surer of 
Green Bay. F"raternally. he is a mem- 
ber of F. O. Howe Post Xo. 124, C A. 
R., being its adjutant. 



F 



j. B. DUCHATEAU. This gen- 
tleman, who is one of the most 
enterprising business men of 
Green Bay, is a native of that 
city, born, in 1867, of French and Belgian 
ancestry. 

His father. .Abelard Uuchateau, by 
birth a typical son of " La Belle France," 
came to the United States in 1856, and 
for some years was engaged in the wine 
and liquor trade as a traveling salesman. 
About 1867 he came to Green Bay, and 
at Shoemaker's Point established a grocery 
and trading business, which he carried on 
until 1870, when he opened in Green Bay 
a wholesale liquor concern. In 1874 he 
and his brother, L. A. K. Duchateau, 
built a commodious business block, two 
st(jries high with basement. In 1888 
the father died, and his widow and son, 
F. J. B., have since conducted the busi- 
ness. Abelard Duchateau was married 
in Green Bay to Miss Felicite Delwiche, 
a lady of Belgian birth, and fi\e children 
have blessed their union, viz. : Heloise, 
wife of W. E. Duncan, of Westboro, 
Wis. ; Arthur H. ; Lizzie, wife of C. D. 
Brower, of Milwaukee, Wis.; F. J. B., 
subject of sketch; and Rose, wife of 
William Hope, with her mother, who is 
still living in Green Bay. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
and educated in his native town, and was 
brought u]i to the business he is engaged 
in. In 1890 he was married in Green 
Bay to Miss Mary Beaiipre. who was born 



in that city, a daughter of Dr. William 
Beaupre, who now resides at Merrill, 
Wis. To this union were born two chil- 
dren, one of whom, Olive Felicite, is liv- 
ing. The mother of these died in 1892, 
and in 1893 Mr. Duchateau wedded Mrs. 
Julia (Lucas) 0'Lcar_\-, daughter of Abe 
Lucas, an early settler of Green Bay. 
In politics our subject is a Republican; 
has served as a member of the council 
two years, and has been elected for two 
more terms. He is associated with the 
K. of P., Vigilant Lodge No. 120, Kewau- 
nee, Wisconsin. 



M 



J. McCORMICK,agent at Green 
Bay for the Lackawanna and the 
Goodrich Transportation lines, 
is a native of Brown county, 
Wis., born in 1854. 

His parents, John and Mary ^Earley) 
McCormick, who were born in Ireland, 
came in 1850 to the United States, first 
locating in New Jersey, but in 1852 moved 
to Wisconsin and settled in Suamico 
township). Brown county, where they 
hewed a farm out of the wilderness. 
John McCormick died in 1865 on the 
home place, and his widow now resides 
in Green Bay. They had born to their 
marriage three children, viz. : Sarah, 
Amelia and M. |.. the two sisters now 
making their home with our subject. 

M. J. McCormick was reared in his 
native township until 1870, when became 
to live in Green Bay. The two years of 
1872 and 1873, however, he passed in 
Escanjiba, in the employ of Daj' & Mc- 
Kenna, a grocery firm, and at the close 
of 1873 returned to Green Bay, where he 
became bookkeeper for the Monitor Iron 
Works, of Fort Howard; later was book- 
keeper with Pres. N. C. Foster, in a lum- 
ber yard until 1 876, when he engaged in 
the grain and feed business, which in 
1885 he relinquished. In 1878 he be- 
came the agent for the Goodrich Trans- 
portation Co., and in 1886 the agent for 
the Lackawanna Co. In the winter of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



455 



1892 he erected the large warehouse, 
84 X 140 feet, at the foot of Pine street, 
and here he conducts his present business. 
Since 1885 he has also been agent for the 
Northwestern Fuel Company. 

In politics Mr. McCormick is a Demo- 
crat, in religion he is a Catholic. He is 
secretary of the Business Men's Associa- 
tion, and has always been ali\e to and 
identified with the promotion of the best 
interests of Green Ba}', of which he has 
so long been a resident, and in which he 
has seen so many changes for the better. 



P.^TRicK Mccormick, ..f the 
firm of McCormick i,\: b'latle}', 
dealers in haj', oats, wood and 
coal. Green Baj-, was born April 3, 
1848, in Ireland, and is a son of John and 
Ann (Dunn) McCormick, who came to 
America aljout 1851, and located in Fond 
du Lac county. Wis. , where the_\- opened 
up a farm in the woods, on which the 
father still resides, and where the mother 
died in 1863. They reared a family of 
eight children, of whom. the following si.\ 
still survive: Patrick, whose name opens 
this sketch; Thomas, of Oregon, Wis.; 
William, of Wausau, Wis. ; Bridget, wife 
of John Mullin, of Fond du Lac county; 
Anna, now Mrs. McCullen, of the same 
county, and Jane, married to Milton Kerr, 
of St. Paul, Minnesota. 

Patrick McCormick was reared in 
Fond du Lac county until sixteen jears 
old, at which early age he enlisted, in 
May, 1864, at Madison, W^is., in Com- 
pany K, Thirty-seventh Wis. \'. I., for 
three years or during the war. He was 
assigned to the army of \'irginia, first met 
the enemy at the battle of Mine Run, 
and from that time on was with his regi- 
ment in all its marches and engagements 
until the close of the war; after passing 
through the Grand Review at \\'ashing- 
ton, D. C, May 23-24, 1S65, he was 
honorably discharged at Madison, Wis., 
in September, 1865, and returned to 
Fond du Lac county. In 1867 he came 



to Green Bay and worked for P. Flatley, 
for four years. His marriage took place 
in Green Bay, in 1872, to Mary Harram, 
a native of Livt'r[)ool, England, and 
daughter of John and Sarah (Flatley) 
Harram, natives of Ireland and pioneers 
of Green Ba\'. To this union have been 
born eleven children, viz; John, William 
(clerk in the Citizens Bank), Mary, Anna, 
Sadie, Edward, Thomas, Jeimie, James, 
Charley and Rosaline. Nlr. McCormick 
started his present business in 1886 — first 
in Paul Fox's block, Washington street, 
Green Bay; in 1890 he bought the 
George Cook dock, and in 1891 f)uilt an 
elevator with a capacity of I 5,000 bushels, 
besides se\eral storage sheds, and has 
been successful from the start. Mr. and 
Mrs. McCormick are de\out members 
of the Catholic Church. In his politics 
he is independent, and gi\es his \ote to 
the best men and for the best measures, 
as his judgment may dictate. He was 
one of the promoters of the Brown 
County Fair & Park Association, and is 
one of the board of directors. 



C.\PT. (^.EOKGE A. GAYLORD, 
keeper of the Tail Point Light- 
house, distant Some se\en miles 
from Green Ba}', Wisconsin, is a 
shrewd, careful, weather-beaten, life-long 
sea-faring man, having commenced sail- 
ing the lakes in boyhood. 

He is a nati\e of Ohio, born in Dela- 
ware county in 1821), a son of Eleazer 
and Anna (Earl) (jaylord, the mother 
born in Clinton county, N. \.. but reared 
in Ohio. The father was born, in 1790, 
in Luzerne county, Penn., a son of 
Eleazer Gaylord, of Connecticut birth, 
who came to Pennsylvania, and in 1800 
moved to Delaware county, Ohio, where 
he passed the rest of his days. Our sub- 
ject's father was h\ trade a miller, which 
he followed in Delaware county, in later 
life moving to Sandusky, Erie coimtv, 
where he died in 1890, his wife in 1887. 
They had a family of seven children. 



45 



6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



namely: George A., subject of sketch; 
Earl, a resident of Livingston county, 
III. (he was a sailor, spending four years 
of his life at sea); William, drowned at 
the age of three jears; James, who died 
in Delaware county, Ohio, when six 
years old; Edwin; William, a physician 
and surgeon, and Catherine, wife of Solon 
Stanley, all three residents of Sandusky, 
Ohio. 

The subject of these lines was reared 
and educated in Delaware county, Ohio, 
and attheageof sixteen jears commenced 
the life of a sailor, making his first trips 
between Sandusky and Buffalo. By close 
application to his duties, and rapidly 
making himself acquainted with the 
science of navigation, he found speedy 
promotion through the various grades up 
to captain in 1852, from which time for- 
ward he had command of vessels till re- 
tiring from the vocation. In 1 866 he 
brought his family to Green Bay, between 
which port and Buffalo he had captained 
the steamer " Rocket" since 1862. In 
1878 he made his last trip, retiring into 
private life after a successful career of 
thirty-five years on the lakes. In the 
spring of 1880 he was appointed to his 
present position, in which, it is almost un- 
necessary to say, he exercises the same 
care and vigilance as he did while a 
mariner, whose motto might well be 
"eternal vigilance is the price of safrtv-" 

In 1855 Capt. Gaylord was married 
to Miss Deborah Landsdowne, who was 
born in Sandusky, Ohio, a daughter of 
Samuel Landsdowne, a native of En- 
gland, who with his wife Rachel emi- 
grated to this country, settling in 
Sandusky, Ohio, where they died. To 
our subject and wife were born four chil- 
dren, viz. : George, single, in the cattle 
busine.ss at Folsom, N. Mex. ; Catherine, 
a teacher in the public schools of Green 
Bay; Marion, at home with her parents: 
and Edith, who died at the ago of twenty- 
three jears. In his political preferences 
Capt. Gaylord is a stanch Republican; 
socially he is a member of W'ashington 



Lodge No. 21, F. & A. M., and of War- 
ren Chapter No. 50; he received his 
initiation in Science Lodge No. 30, San- 
dusky. During the thirty-two years from 
the first day he set foot in Green Bay he 
has seen some marvelous changes in the 
place, and has been identified with it as 
an honored, upright citizen, well-known 
and highly respected. 



WILLI.\M PERRY WAGNER. 
This well-known gentleman, the 
popular and esteemed cashier 
of the Citizens National Bank 
of Green Bay, by virtue of his prominent 
position in the commercial as well as 
social world of northern Wisconsin, is de- 
serving of more than a passing notice in 
the pages of this volume. 

He was born March 5, 1859, in Mount 
Morris, Ogle Co., 111., a son of Reuben 
and Leah (Brubaker) Wagner, natives 
respectively of Washington county, Md., 
and Huntington county, Penn., and de- 
scendants of the early German settlers of 
those States. Reuben Wagner is at pres- 
ent in the stock business in Chicago, a 
member of the firm of Wagner Bros. & 
Co. The mother of our subject died in 
Ogle county. 111., in 1876, aged forty- 
three years. 

William P. W^agner received his edu- 
cation at the schools of Polo, Ogle Co., 
111., and having completed his studies, it 
became necessary for him to select a pro- 
fession, or to decide what occupation he 
would pursue in future life. He was suc- 
cessful in securing employment in the 
Exchange National Bank of Polo, and 
from that time pursued the even tenor of 
his way, confidently anticipating the ar- 
rival of the turning point which always 
attends the promotion due to industry 
and integritj'. In this and other banking 
institutions in that county he remained 
until 1 886, when he went to Chicago, and 
for a short time was employed in the pri- 
vate bank of S. A. Kean & Co., of that 
city. In the summer of the same year, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



457 



his services being sought by R. 1^). Kel- 
logg, he came to Green Bay, and fur the 
following two years was employed in the 
Kellogg National Bank, at the end of 
which time he organized the Citizens 
National Bank of Green Bay with a capi- 
tal of $100,000. That this institution 
has proven a financial success goes with- 
out saying, and the deposit accounts now 
average from $350,000 to -$500, 000. rep- 
resenting about half of the business de- 
posits of the city. A dividend of si.x per 
cent, was declared in 1890, and seven per 
cent, annual dividends have been de- 
clared each year since then, besides accu- 
mulating a surplus of over $20,000, which 
in itself speaks more than well of the 
financial management of the concern. 

In January, 1881, Mr. Wagner was 
married to Miss Emma Whitcomb. of 
Minneapolis, who died in December of 
the same year in Ogle county, 111., leav- 
ing an infant son, named Paul W. On 
October 17, 1888, Mr. Wagner, for his 
second wife, was married in Polo, 111., to 
Miss Anna Shumway, a daughter of R. G. 
Shumwa}', a banker at that place, and to 
this union have come two children; Perry, 
born April 5, 1890. and Eugenia, born 
August 9, 1894. Mr. and Mrs. Wagner 
are members of the Presbyterian Church, 
and of the choir. In social organizations 
he is a member of the Knights of Pythias. 
Still young, and with all the l)uoyancy of 
youth, a host of friends and deserved 
prosperity, he is certainly a man to be 
contented — and to be envied. Politicall}' 
he is a Republican. 



M 



AGNUS JOHNSON. The 
Scandinavian peninsula has sent 
thousands of its sons and 
daughters to the United States, 
where they have become substantial, 
thrifty and public-spirited citizens. The 
gentleman for whom this sketch has been 
prepared was born in 1837 in Gotten- 
borg, Sweden, being one of a family of 
four children reared by Johan Magnuson 



and Angeline (Nelson), both natives of 
the same country. The father died in 
1868, the mother in 1872. Of their chil- 
dren, Andrew yet resides in Sweden; John 
lives in Colorado, and Loue in Minne- 
sota. 

Magnus Johnson was educated in the 
schools of his native countr\', relying up- 
on his own efforts to store his mind with 
practical knowledge, of usefulness to a 
man battling with the grave problems of 
life. He early learned the trade of ship 
carpenter, and was so proficient as to be 
made foreman at the age of nineteen. 
For twelve years he sailed the Atlantic, 
between Sweden and the West Indies, 
the Cape of Good Hope, Brazil and the 
principal European ports, his knowledge 
of ship carpentry more than once being 
the means of saving his vessel. In 
1858 his fortunes were united with those 
of Miss Anna Helen Johnson, also of 
Swedish parentage and nativit}'. Her 
parents, John Bergenson and wife, lived 
and died among the scenes of their nativ- 
ity. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are the par- 
ents of children as follows: Angeline, 
who died at Green Bay aged twenty 
years; Charlotte, residing in Green Bay; 
Maly, who married Allie Britton, and 
died in Green Bay when but nineteen 
years of age; John, a resident also of 
Green Bay; Tene, now Mrs. Williams, of 
Milwaukee; Henry, Laura and Jennie, at 
home; another child, named Charlotte, 
died young. 

In 1866 Mr. Johnson immigrated with 
his family to Green Bay, and for about 
sixteen years was employed at the blast 
furnace, working also for some years at 
his old trade of ship carpenter. For the 
past eight years he has been engaged in 
the line of contracting and building, and 
at the present time emplo\s about twenty 
men. Many of the city's residences and 
business houses have been erected under 
his supervision. He holds the position of 
city plumber and inspector, and is super- 
visor of the Fourth ward, which he also 
represented one term in the city council. 



458 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



In politics Mr. Johnson is a Repnblican. 
Both he and his wife are members of 
Christ Church. He is a prominent Odd 
Fellow, having passed through the chairs 
of both the Subordinate Lodge and En- 
campiment. For several years he has 
been chairman of the board of trustees of 
Green Bay Lodge, No. 19, I. O. O. F., 
and has also served the local branch of 
the Royal Arcanum as a trustee. That 
such a man should be ranked among the 
stanch citi^tens of Green Bay is but just 
in the light of his honorable record. 



H.\. \V OTTER, M. D. This 
L;cntleman, one of the leading 
physicians and surgeons of north- 
ern Wisconsin, is a native of the 
State, born August 21, 1S55, in Green- 
ville township, Outagamie county. 

Frederick and Helen (Schaefer) Wot- 
ter. parents of our subject, natives of 
Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Germany, immi- 
grated to the United States in 1855, set- 
ling on a farm in Greenville township, 
Outagamie Co., Wis. Here the father 
died in 1891; he was a Democrat in his 
political associations, and held various 
township offices. The mother is now a 
resident of Appleton, Wis. Their family 
numbered eight children, all residents of 
Appleton except the Doctor, as follows: 
B. C. is a dealer in farm machinery, 
hardware, etc. ; H. A. is the subject of 
this sketch; Frederick: Henry is a cigar 
manufacturer; Otto; Dora is the wife of 
J. L. Pringle; Lotta is the wife of Julius 
Waite, and Helen is the wife of George 
Hanchett. 

H. A. Wotter was reared on his fath- 
er's farm tip to the age of si.xteen, receiv- 
ing his earlier education at the common 
schools of the neighborhood, after which 
he attended the high school at Appleton. 
He then for a time taught school in Outa- 
gamie county, in the evenings reading 
medicine with Dr. Charles \'on Hiddeson, 
of Appleton, after which, in 1878, he en- 
tered Rush Medical College, Chicago, 



where he graduated in the class of 'Si. 
Dr. Wotter commenced the practice of his 
profession in Fountain City, Wis. ; from 
there moved to Oconto, same State, thence 
in 1 89 1 coming to Green Bay, where he 
has since been engaged in regular practice, 
meeting with the most gratifying success. 
In 1S84 he took a post-graduate course at 
the College of Physicians and Surgeons, 
New York. 

Dr. Wotter is a member of the Fox 
River Medical Society ; socially he is 
affiliated with the I. O" O. F., and of the 
Iron Gate Council, Royal Arcanum. He 
is interested in the G. B. Hess Co. flour- 
ing-mill, built in 1893. having a capacity 
of 200 barrels per day, and he is recog- 
nized as a useful, wide-awake, loyal 
citizen. 



Ri:V. W ILLIAM FRANCIS VAN- 
ROOS.MALEN, pastor of St. Wil- 
librord's Catholic Church at Green 
Bay, is a native of Holland, born 
February 13, 1857, in 's Hertogenbosch, 
where his paternal ancestry had resided 
for many generations. 

The city of 's Hertogenbosch was 
built in 1 1 13, and the old house erected 
by the Duke of Brabant is still standing. 
As far bdfck as 1600 mention is made in 
the Church records of the \'an Roosmalen 
family, who were then residents of that 
city; they were descendants of a noble 
house, and held offices of trust in 's 
Hertogenbosch. Christianus \"an Roos- 
malen. paternal great-grandfather of the 
subject of this sketch, was a merchant, 
as was also the grandfather, whose busi- 
ness is known to have been that of a 
grocer. James Van Roosmalen, son of 
the latter, and who still resides in Hol- 
land, is an architect and contractor, 
highly esteemed and beloved by many. 
He married Miss .Adriana Van de \'en. 
who was born at Cromvoirt. Holland, 
and is still living, the mother of two chil- 
dren, William Francis (our subject), and 
Mary 1 wife of Henry Kitzlaar). 



COMMEMiUlA Tl \'E BIOUHAI'HICAL llHCOlil). 



459 



The subject proper of these hues at- 
tended the schools of his native town, 
later the g\ninasiutn at Geniert, whence 
after two years he proceeded to Hrufj;es, 
Belgium, where for four years he read in 
the classical course; the main object of 
his going there, however, being to be- 
come more familiar with the French lan- 
guage, which the citizens of Belgium 
speak almost exclusively. On linishiiig 
his course he returned to Holland, and 
from there, after a sojourn of ten months, 
emigrated to the United States with the 
view of preparing himself for the priest- 
hood in this countr}-. Arriving in New- 
York Decend)iM- i, iSSi, he proceeded to 
Notre Dame, Ind., where he studied 
philosophy under lve\'. b'ather Fitt until 
June l6, 1883, during which time he also 
acted as assistant professor of tlic Latin 
and I'-fench languages in the university. 
On September ", 1883, he moved to Mil- 
waukee, and at St. Francis Theological 
Seminary completed his course in 
theology. ( )ii |ime _'4, I 886, he was or- 
dained a jnicst li\- the late Archbishop 
Michael Heiss, and innnediately after- 
ward was ap|)ointed pastor of the Holy 
Cross Church in Mishicot, Manitowoc 
Co., \\'is., of which he had charge three 
years and five months. The congrega- 
tion being composed of Cermans and 
French, and the children having no o]:)- 
portunity to learn those languages, be 
found himself obliged to preach in three 
different languages — German, French and 
English. On February 12, 1890, be was 
appointed, b}' Bishop Katzer, to his pres- 
ent charge of St. Willibrord's Church, 
Green Bay, where he has ever since been 
a faithful and earnest pastor, all his tem- 
p!)ral as well as spiritual relations having 
been conducted in a meritorious maimer. 
The old church was presided over by the 
Ke\'. Father Bongers, who laid the 
foundation stone of the new church 
building, the completion of which Bishop 
Katzer entrusted to Father Van Roos- 
malen. On May i, 1891, the first brick 
was laid, and the church was completed 



December 12, 1893; its dimensions are 
136x50 feet, the steeple being 240 feet 
high antl containing one of the Howard 
clocks and bell wt'ighing 4,000 pounds. 
The entire building will forex'er be a 
inoiunnent to I'"atlier Roosmalen's in- 
tegrity, and will speak of him when he is 
no longer numbered amcjng the living. 
His people have come to understand bis 
good intentions, anil are aiding him in 
every way possible. His life is like a 
poem in its far-rc-acbing benelits. He 
has a spmpathy for all afflictions and a 
kind and encouraging word for those who 
are downcast and careworn — in a word, 
he represents the true she|)herd that 
guards well liis Hock. 



DR. COLONliL ORMAN GAGF, 
who is successfully engaged in the 
])ractice of dentistry in Green Bay, 
is one of the native sons of Wis- 
consin, ha\ing been born near b'onil du 
Lac, June 11, 1861. 

The Gage family is one of English 
origin. The Doctor's father, Capt. 
Nathaniel Gage, wlio was a native of 
Rome, N. Y., was one of a fanulyof nine 
children. He there obtained his educa- 
tion, and afterward owned a packet and 
passenger boat on the Erie canal, con- 
tinuing bis residenct! in the Empire State 
until 1840, when with his family he emi- 
grated westward, taking uj) his residence 
in Dodge county. Wis. There he en- 
gaged in dealing in real estate, also buy- 
ing and selling line horses. He became 
a well-known and prominent citizen of 
Dodge county, a leader in jiolitical circles, 
and was frequently called to positions of 
honor and trust, serving for many years 
as chairman of the board of supervisors 
and in various other (offices. He was an 
active and earnest Repul)lican, and dur- 
ing the Rebellion strongly supported all 
war measures; but on account of impaired 
health was unable to enter service in the 
field, so had to content himself with his 



460 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



labors at home in behalf of the army. He 
induced many to enter the service, acted 
as enrolling master in Dodge county, and 
helped to raise the quota of troops. 
He became well and favorably known 
throughout this part of the State, and 
wherever he went won friends who held 
him in high regard. His death occurred 
in October, 1 866. Capt. Gage was mar- 
ried in Utica, N. Y., to Miss Lodoska 
Rose, daughter of Elisha Rose, and she 
still survives her husband. In the family 
were twelve children, five of whom are 
yet living: Walter M., who is now a 
resident of California; Jasper D., a dental 
surgeon; Colonel Onnan, subject of this 
sketch; Mrs. Hattie Jones, of Seattle, 
Wash. ; and Mrs. Nellie Gage, of De- 
Pere, Wisconsin. 

Dr. C. O. Gage, whose name opens 
this sketch, obtained his primary ed- 
ucation in the schools of his native 
city, later pursuing his studies in De- 
lavan. Wis., and subsequently in the 
Episcopal Parish School of Fond du Lac. 
His first independent effort in life was in 
the line of railroad work, he entering the 
employ of the Milwaukee & St. Paul Rail- 
road Company; but his active mind soon 
tiring of tliis, he sought a wider field of 
usefulness. At the age of twenty he took 
up the study of medicine in the office of 
Dr. R. L. Moore, of Spring \'alley, Minn., 
and after a year's preparation, went to 
Austin, Minn., where he began the study 
of dentistry in the office of Dr. H. A. 
Avery, a well-known dentist of that place. 
Having fitted himself for practice, he then 
opened an office in Waupun, Wis., in the 
.spring of 1.S83, and soon had all the busi- 
ness that he could well attend to, for his 
merit and ability were recognized. Com- 
ing to Green Bay, he was alike successful 
in this place, in a very short period build- 
ing up a fine business. He is especially 
<iua]ified to take up the constitutional 
treatment of his patients, and has been 
very successful in that line. The fine 
quality of his work is indicated by his 
constantly increasing patronage, and in 



the hieh reputation which he bears among 
his professional brethren. 

On the 1 6th of June, 1886, at Oak- 
field, Wis., Dr. Gage was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Hattie R. Smith, daugh- 
ter of L. S. Smith, and their union has 
been blessed with one child, Bessie Ruth. 
The Doctor and his wife are members of 
the First Presbyterian Church; fraternally 
he is connected with the Knights of Pyth- 
ias, in politics, with the Republican party, 
the principles of which he warmly advo- 
cates. In social circles he and his wife 
hold an enviable position, and their home 
is noted for its hospitality. 



PJ. VAN DEUREN, engaged as a 
general merchant at Green Bay, 
Wis. , w as born in the Province of 
Brabant, Belgium, in 1850, a son 
of G. J. and Mary i Avant) \'an Deuren, 
also natives of Belgium, who left that 
country in 1857, locating for a year in 
Bellevue township. Brown county, and 
then settled in Green Bay. 

Here the father followed his trade of 
tailoring until 1865, when he engaged in 
the clothing business in partnership with 
H. J. Bush until 1869, at which time the 
latter sold his interest to H. Watermolen, 
the style of the firm being changed to 
\'an Deuren & Watermolen, the firm 
name so continuing until 1871, when Mr. 
Van Deuren bought the entire interest, 
and conducted the establishment under 
his exclusive name until 1880, in which 
year his son, P. J., was admitted to a part- 
nership. Van Deuren & Son carried on 
the business until January i, 1894, when 
the son assumed the entire charge, the 
father retiring in comfort. G. J. Van- 
Deuren was twice married, first time to 
Miss Mary Avant, by whom he had chil- 
dren as follows: Elizabeth, widow of 
Joseph Heyrman; P. J., our subject; 
Henry, city treasurer; John B., a cigar 
manufacturer, and August. The mother 
of these died in 1866, and in 1868 Mr. 
\'an Deuren married Miss Caroline De- 



COMMEMORATIVE niOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



461 



Graff, a native of Belgium (daughter of 
Anton DeGraff), who came to Brown 
county, Wis., in 1852, and died some 
years ago. 

P. J. Van Ueuren, who was but seven 
years of age when he came to America, 
received his education in Green Bay, and 
his first employment was one year at the 
tailoring business. He then carried a 
general stock of goods on Adams street, 
in 1873 erecting a two-story brick build- 
ing, 22 X 80 feet, which he carried on until 
he united in business with his father; in ad- 
dition to this he also carries on an insur- 
ance business. He was married in Green 
Bay in 1875, to Adeline Motto, a native 
of France, whose father was a pioneer of 
Brown county, Wis., and an early hard- 
ware merchant. The union of Mr. and 
Mrs. Van Deuren has been blessed with 
seven children, viz.: W. L. , Caroline, 
Emma, Mary, Lizzie, Mark and Lenore. 
The family are devout members of St. 
Willibrord's Catholic Church, and their 
position in society is a most enviable one. 
In politics Mr. Van Deuren is a thorough- 
going Democrat, and has three times 
served as alderman from the Third ward; 
fraternally he is a member of the Modern 
Woodmen. He is one of the old-time 
business men of Green Bay, one worthy 
of being intrusted with the management 
of the city's public affairs 



EDWARD ENGELS, of the firm 
of Engels & Mohr, boot and shoe 
dealers of Green Bay, was born 
in the Province of Liege, Belgium, 
September 28, 1839, a son of John B. 
and Gertrude (Serron) Engels. 

John B. Engels, who was a tailor, 
brought his family to America in 1856, 
sailing from Antwerp, and after a voyage 
of forty-six days landed at Quebec, from 
which point they reached Green Bay, 
having in their possession only eighteen 
Belgian francs. In the fall of 1856 Mr. 
Engels purchased 120 acres in Humboldt 
township, Brown county, of which twenty 



acres were cleared, and began the manu- 
facture of .shingles. Here the mother 
died April 26, 1878, and the husband in 

1887, having cleared sixty acres of the 
original one hundred and twenty, and 
left a well-improved farm to his heirs. 
The parents were pious Catholics, and 
contributed to the erection of four differ- 
ent church edifices in Brown county. 
They reared a family of seven children, 
viz.: Edward, subject of sketch; Peter, 
who was in the lumber liusiness in Brown 
and Oconto counties, but went to W'ash- 
ington in 1874; Henry, on the homestead 
in Humboldt township; William, proprie- 
tor of the " Champion Hotel," Green Bay; 
Rosa, who was married to a Mr. Koenen 
in Belgium, but became a widow and re- 
married, coming to i\\c United States in 
1882, the wife of Gcrhart Schuurmans, 
and now residing in Oconto county. Wis. ; 
Julius, still in Belgium, on the maternal 
homestead; and Nicholas, born in the 
town of Humboldt, in 1859, and now re- 
siding in Fort Howard, Wisconsin. 

Edward Engels was educated in r>el- 
gium, and on coming to Wisconsin assist- 
ed in clearing up the fartn, etc.. until 
1867, and in cutting timber in IJrown and 
Oconto counties. In 1867 he married, 
in Brown county, Mary V. \'incent, a 
native of Belgium and daughter of John 
B. and Anna (Bredaal) Vincent, who set- 
tled in Humboldt township. Brown 
county, in 1856, on a farm, but in 1869 
moved to Green Bay and engaged in the 
furniture business — owning two stores on 
Main street. His death occurred in 

1888. In 1867 Mr. Engels came to 
Green Bay, erected a brick building on 
Main street, carried on a grocery and 
saloon business until 1889, and then en- 
gaged in the boot and shoe trade on 
Washington street, in which he has be- 
come most popular and prosperous. In 
politics he is a stanch Democrat, and in 
1882 was a member of the city council; 
he was city weighmaster for five or six 
years, and in 1890 was city treasurer. 

In 1885 Mr. Engels was deprived by 



462 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



death of his wife, who had borne him ten 
children, viz.: John B. ; Henry; Wilhain, 
a tailor of Ashland, Wis., of the firm of 
Welch & Engels; Louis, a clerk: Edward 
and August, attending school: Louis J., 
who died in 1S74: Angeline, who died in 
1S.S4; Rosa, who died in 1883; and Anna, 
who died in 1885 at the age of ten 
months. Mr. Engels is a member of St. 
Willibrord's Church, of which he was 
treasurer nine years. He is a member of 
the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin, and 
in 1894 a delegate to the State conven- 
tion of that Order; he is also a member 
of the St. Joseph Society. He is a self- 
made man, having begun business on aver}' 
small capital, but he has never ceased his 
contributions to the worthy public aid of 
Green Bay and Brown county. 



FRANK B. SEYMOUR, superin- 
tendent of the Green Bay, Winona 
& St. Paul, and the Kewaunee, 
Green Bay & Western railroads, 
has a reputation second to none as a care- 
ful, painstaking and vigilant railroad of- 
ficial. He came to Green Bay in 1872, 
and was engaged as brakeman on the 
Green Bay & Lake Pepin railroad, first 
on freights, later on passenger trains, and 
from May, 1874, to August, 1878, as 
freight conductor. At the latter date he 
was promoted to passenger conductor, run- 
ning passenger trains till January 18, 1887, 
when he was appointed assistant superin- 
tendent of the roads of which he has been 
superintendent since November i, 1890. 
Born in Jefferson county, N. '\'. , in 
1856, Mr. Seymour is yet young, and has 
in all human probability the best and 
most important j'ears of his life yet to 
come. He is a son of Gilbert and Mary 
(McDonald) Seymour, natives, the father 
of France, the mother of Comity Clare, 
Ireland, (albert Seymour immigrated to 
this country with his father, who was also 
of French birth, and about 1832 they 
located in Plattsburg, N. Y., where grand- 
father Seymour died. Gilbert there mar- 



ried Miss Mary McDonald, and in the fall 
of 1863 they came to New London, Outa- 
gamie Co., W'is. In August, 1864. he 
joined Company A, Fort\'-second Regi- 
ment Wis. v. I., and after the close of 
the war worked at the carpenter trade 
until 1S83, when the family moved to 
Green Bay to make their home with their 
son, Frank B. Here the father died 
July 23, 1892, and here the mother yet 
resides. They had a family of five child- 
ren, of whom the following is a brief 
record: Frederick is a clerk in a railroad 
freight office at Ft. Howard; Frank B. is 
the subject of this sketch; William H. 
and Albert were both killed while in the 
employ of the Chicago & Northwestern 
railroad, William in December, 1879, at 
St. Peter, Minn., and Albert in August, 
1883, at Utica, Minn.; John J. is a pass- 
enger conductor on the Green Bay, Win- 
ona & St. Paul railroad, with residence 
at Ft. Howard. 

Frank B. Seymour, the subject proper 
of these lines, was about seven years of 
age when the family moved to New Lon- 
don, and he here received his education. 
In May, 1871, he commenced work, as a 
day laborer, grading on the Green Bay. 
Winona & St. Paul railroad, then laying 
iron, after which he was a brakeman on 
a construction train, e.xtra conductor on 
freight, and finallj' as conductor on way 
freight and passenger train until January 
18, 1887, the date of promotion, as al- 
ready related. Mr. Seymour was mar- 
ried at La Crosse, Wis., to Miss Delia 
M. Vincent, a native of that town, daugh- 
ter of James Vincent, an early pioneer of 
La Crosse and well-known lumber dealer. 
By this union there is one child, Ida M. 
A Republican in politics, our subject is 
active in the interests of that party. He 
is a member of Washington Lodge No. 
21, F. & A. M., of Warren Chapter No. 
8, of Palestine Commandery No. 20, and 
of the Wisconsin Consistory; is also a 
member of the K. of P., No. 26, Green 
Bay, and is a charter member of the 
Lodge at La Crosse. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RKCOUD. 



463 



'OODMAN CLARK HAMIL- 



TON. To a student of biog- 



« W raphy there is nothing more in- 
teresting than to examine the 
life history of a self-made man, and dis- 
cover the reasons that enable one man in 
the battle of life to surpass man)' of his 
boyhood friends who were more ad\'an- 
tageously endowed at the outset of their 
career. The subject of this biography has 
reached an honorable position among the 
representative men of the Northwest 
through his own exertions, and justly de- 
ser\'es that nuicJi abused title — ' ' self-made 
man. " 

He was born in Lyme, N. H., Febru- 
ary 22, 1834. His father, Irenus Hamil- 
ton, was a miller and farmer, a man of 
prominence in the community, and served 
his fellow citizens in the Senate of his 
State. His ancestors, of Scottish origin, 
were among the early settlers of Connecti- 
cut. He died in Lyme, N. H., in 1876, 
aged sixty-eight years. The mother of 
our subject, Mary Esther Hamilton {lu-c 
Kittridge), was a memberof a family prom- 
inent in matters of jurisprudence, her 
brothers occupying high positions on the 
bench or at the bar of New Hampshire and 
Massachusetts. She died in 1849. 

After obtaining a preliminary educa- 
tion in the district school, joung Hamil- 
ton attended an academy at Thetford, V't., 
and completed his education at the cele- 
brated St. Johnsbury Academy. At nine- 
teen he entered upon his business career 
becoming an emploj'e of the firm of Fair- 
banks & Company, scale manufacturers, 
of New York City. For two years he 
acted as bookkeeper and salesman in the 
establishment of that firm, making him- 
self a valuable employe and deserving and 
receiving promotion. Reaching man's 
estate, he became desirous of entering busi- 
ness on his own account and decided to 
come West. Arriving in Wisconsin in 
1855, and perceiving the future value of 
the great tracts of timber land and the con- 
sequent prosperity of the lumber business 
in the State, he determined to enter busi- 

26 



ness here. In association with his brother, 
Irenus K. Hamilton, he began business 
in Fond du Lac under the lirm name of 
I. K. & W. C. Hamilton. They pur- 
chased pine lands, built a sawmill and 
began to manufacture lumber, taking the 
timber from the stump. They conducted 
their affairs upon sound business princi- 
ples, devoting their time and ability to 
assure success to their enterprise, and 
their efforts were fittingly rewarded. In 
1866 Mr. Haniilton and his brother, I. 
K., formed a [lartnership with A. C. Mer- 
rjinan, under the name of Hamilton, Mer- 
ryman & Co., fur the purpose of purchas- 
ing pine lands and establishing a lumber 
manufacturing plant at the mouth of 
the Menominee river. They purchased 
sixty odd thousand acres of timber land 
in northern Wisconsin and Michigan, 
tributary to the Menominee river and its 
branches, and began operating a mill at 
Marinette. They have from time to time 
increased their holdings of timber lands, 
and have since been constantly nianufac- 
turing lumber. As the business increased 
in magnitude, thev deemed it advisable 
to incorporate themselves as a stock com- 
pany, and accordingly the Hamilton & 
Merryman Company was organized with 
a capital stock of three hundred and fifty 
thousand dollars. Its officers are: I. K. 
Hamilton, president; W. C. Hamilton, 
vice-president; audi A. C. Merryman, sec- 
retary. The company is one of the 
largest and most successful of the im- 
mense lumber manufacturing establish- 
ments along the Menominee river. From 
thirty to forty millions of pine is annually 
turned from timber (jn the stump to finished 
lumber at its mills. The product is car- 
ried b\- the c(.>m[)any's vessels to Chicas^o, 
where its large distributing yards are lo- 
cated. 

In 1 891 Mr. Hamilton became inter- 
ested in the Marinette and Menominee 
Paper Company. He was elected presi- 
dent of the corporation, and immediately 
laid plans to enlarge its business. The 
capital stock was increased from $175,000 



464 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



to $750,000, and a new and modern mill, 
known as the " Park Mill," was erected. 
The plant has a capacit}' of sixty tons a 
day, including print, book and manilla 
papers, and ground wood and sulphite 
pulp, manufactured from spruce wood 
tioated down the Menominee river. Mr. 
Hamilton devotes himself almost entirely 
to the management of this business, and 
its success is largely due to the care with 
which he supervises its affairs. 

In addition to the business connections 
cited above, he is president of the Hamil- 
ton & Mcrryman Mining Company, which 
owns the Hamilton mine, located at Iron 
Mountain, Mich., and has interests in 
pine lands in Louisiana. He is also a 
director in the Milwaukee Harvester Com- 
pany, and holds a like position in a Chi- 
cago Bank. Politically, he affiliates with 
the Republican party, and, although in no 
sense a politician, lends his aid as a citi- 
zen to advance the success of Republican 
principles. He has always taken a deep 
interest in educational matters, and has 
served as president of the board of Educa- 
tion in Fond du Lac, and as president of 
the board of Public Works, also acted 
as a member of the board of Aldermen of 
that city. He is a member of the Con- 
gregational Church, and has always been 
active in Church matters. For the past 
twelve years he has served as president of 
the board of Trustees of his Church, and 
is now vice-president of Ripon College. 
He is also a director of the Chicago Theo- 
logical Seminary. In i8gi he was a dele- 
gate from Wisconsin to the International 
Council of Congregational Churches, 
held in London, England. After the 
council adjourned, he visited F"rance, 
Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, 
Austria and Holland, and returning to 
Great Britain traveled over England, Scot- 
land, Ireland and Wales. He has also 
visited most sections of the United States, 
excepting the extreme western portions. 
In 1 858 he married Mary Taylor Weed, 
daughter of William H. Weed, a New 
York merchant. Six sons have blessed 



this marriage: William Irenus is engaged 
in farming in Fond du Lac county; Charles 
Woodman is secretary and treasurer of the 
Milwaukee Harvester Company; Stephen 
Dolson died, aged four and a half years, 
in Januar}', 1S68; Herbert Weed is em- 
ployed by the Marinette & Menominee Pa- 
per Company at Park Mills; Edgar Lock- 
wood is secretary of the Marinette & Me- 
nominee Paper Company; and Arthur Lit- 
tle is a student in Phillips Acadamy at 
Andover, Mass. Mrs. Hamilton is active 
in Church affairs, and is interested in char- 
itable and benevolent work. 

Mr. Hamilton's career illustrates most 
forcibly what can be accomplished by 
steady application to business, sobriety 
and integrity. He has devoted his time 
to business without stint, and has always 
endeavored to lead a consistent Christian 
life. His success proves most forcibly that 
constant effort in one direction will suc- 
ceed if combined with steady habits and 
economy, and to the young man entering 
upon the highway of life a perusal of his 
biography should serve as an inspiration, 
and should direct him to the straight path 
which alone leads to success in life. 



EDGAR LOCKWOOD HAMIL- 
TON, secretary of the Marinette 
I.S: Menominee Paper Company, 
and one of the prominent young 
business men of Marinette, is a native of 
Wisconsin, born in P'ond du Lac, Decem- 
ber 15, 1867, of distinguished Scottish 
ancestry. 

Woodman Clark Hamilton, his father, 
was born at Lyme, N. H., whence, in 
1855, he came west to Wisconsin, settling 
in Fond du Lac, where, in partnership 
with his brother I. K., under the firm 
name of I. K. & W. C. Hamilton, he en- 
gaged in the lumber business, in which 
line he has ever since continued, being at 
present a member of the firm of Hamil- 
ton & Merryman, of Marinette, though 
he is still a resident of Fond du Lac. In 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



465 



1858 he married Miss Mary Taylor, a na- 
tive of Darien, Conn., and tliey had a 
family of six sons, a brief record of whom 
is as follows: William I. is engaged in 
farming near Fond du Lac; Charles W. 
is secretary and treasurer of the Milwau- 
kee Harvester Co. , of Milwaukee ; 
Stephen Dolson died in early boyhood; 
Herbert W. resides in Marinette, and is 
connected with the paper mills; Edgar L. 
is the subject proper of this sketch, and 
Arthur L. is attending college at An- 
dover, Massachusetts. 

Edgar L. Hamilton received his ele- 
mentary education at the public schools 
of his native place, in 1884 entered col- 
lege, at Andover, Mass., where he re- 
mained until t886, and then attended the 
Massachusetts Institute of Technolog}', of 
Boston, Mass., graduating from there 
with the class of '91. Immediately after- 
ward he came to Marinette, Wis., where 
he has since continued to reside. Here, 
in 1893, he was married to Miss Ellen 
Siddall Payne, who was born in Mari- 
nette, a daughter of Theodore S. and 
Elizabeth (Siddall) Payne, of that city, 
wliere the father is editor of the Moioiiii- 
iicf Enterprise. To Mr. and Mrs. Ham- 
ilton has been born one child, Woodman 
Clark. In his political relations our sub- 
ject is a Republican ; in religious faith he 
and his wife are members of the Pioneer 
Presbyterian Church. 

The Marinette & Menominee Paper 
Company, of which Mr. Hamilton is sec- 
retary, was organized in 1S78 as the Mari- 
nette Paper Company, and was incorpor- 
ated October 23, 1882, as the Marinette 
& Menominee Paper Company, with C. 
M. Smith, president; J. W. French, vice- 
president; N. H. Brokaw. secretary, and 
C. M. Smith, treasurer. The first mill was 
a pulp mill, which was erected on the 
Michigan side of Green Bay. What is 
now known as No. 2 Paper-mill was then 
built; in 1882 the No. i Paper-mill was 
erected, and in 1891 the Park mill was 
built. Including paper-mills, sulphite and 
pulp mills, the entire plant includes three 



paper and three pulp mills, and gives em- 
ployment in all to 240 hands. The pres- 
ent officers are i^ugust Spies, president; A. 
C. Merryman, vice-president; F. A. Sill- 
man, treasurer; and E. L. Hamilton, sec- 
re tar}'. 

The mills are among the most noted 
in the State. At present the product is 
confined to manilla paper, but it is con- 
templated to introduce the manufacture 
of book paper and news paper, the mills 
being specially fitted for that purpose. 
The manufactured product will compare 
very favorably with any other make. The 
present capacity is seventy tons daily, and 
two shifts of men are emplo3'ed day and 
night. The manufacture of ground wood 
pulp and sulphite is extensive, eight tons 
of sulphite and twenty-two tons of ground 
wood pulp being produced daily. The 
plant is located on the Menominee river, 
and its railroad facilities, which include the 
Chicago & North Western, Chicago, Mil- 
waukee & St. Paul, Toledo, Ann Arbor, 
& Northern Michigan, and the Wisconsin 
& Michigan railroads, are unequalled by 
any mills in the State. They have water 
connection east by water and canal to the 
seaboard. For securing of raw material, 
their facilities are also unequaled. By 
the river route they secure spruce timber 
for the manufacture of pulp. With such 
unrivalled shipping facilities and means 
of securing raw material, it is not to be 
wondered that the mills have been suc- 
cessful. Although a young man, Mr. 
Hamilton has developed superior business 
ability, which has been recognized by the 
corporation with which he is connected, 
and, as secretary of the company, much of 
the credit is due to him for its prosperity. 



GEORGE W. T.WLOR, present 
member of the Wisconsin State 
Assembly, representing Marinette 
and Marinette comity, is in that 
capacity looking after the interests of his 
constituency in a manner most satisfactory 



466 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



to them and most creditable to himsclt. 
He is a public-spirited citizen, possessed of 
strong convictions on all questions of pub- 
lic moment, and who tempers the expres- 
sion of his opinions and the exercise of his 
legislative franchise by a ripe judgment 
ripened from a trained business education 
of flattering success. In other words, he 
possesses great energy of character, well 
directed through proper control. 

Mr. Taylor was born in Wenham, 
Mass., March 31, 1855, and is the son of 
Rev. Jeremiah and Elizabeth (Pride) Tay- 
lor. Rev. Taylor was also of Massachu- 
setts birth, and a descendant of an early 
Colonial family. He is a prominent New 
England Congregational clergyman, who 
has earnestly devoted a lifetime to minis- 
terial labors in Massachusetts, Connecti- 
cut and Rhode Island. He now resides 
in Boston, Mass. , and is secretary of the 
American Tract Society. His wife, Eliz- 
abeth Pride, was born in the Choctaw Na- 
tion, Miss., and is the daughter of Rev. 
Dr. William W. Pride, who was born in 
Penns}lvania, and was sent in 1807 as a 
missionary to the Choctaw Nation. He 
labored there for many years, and then 
returned to Connecticut, where he died. 
His father, William W. Pride, Sr. , was 
an ensign in the American Revolution, his 
commission, bearing date March 4, 1775, 
being signed by John Hancock. Mr. Tay- 
lor is a direct descendant of John Alden, 
and is the only member of the family in 
whom the name has not been preserved. 
The family of Rev. Jeremiah and Elizabeth 
Taylor consisted of five children, three of 
whom survive, viz. : Mary Cleveland (now 
Mrs. Floyd), of Boston, Mass. ; George 
W., and Mrs. Burbank, of Providence, 
Rhode Island. 

George W. Taylor received his educa- 
tion in the schools of Connecticut, and 
early in life gave evidence of a strong busi- 
ness aptitude. He was but seventeen 
years of age when, in 1872, he embarked 
in the lumber business at Providence, R. 
I. He was actively so engaged for four 
3ears. The West seeming to offer great- 



er opportunities in the lumbering world, 
Mr. Taylor m 1876, then scarcely of age, 
removed to Chicago and at once became 
prominently identified with its great lum- 
ber industry. He remained in Chicago 
until 1890, and his interests then drew 
him to Wisconsin, the source of produc- 
tion. For a year Mr. Taylor lived at 
Oconto, then in 1891 he located perma- 
nently in Marinette. He is a member of 
the firm of Case & Taylor, which is 
largely engaged in buying pine logs, in 
contract sawing, and in doing an extensive 
and flourishing jobbing business. 

In 1 882 Mr. Taylor was united in mar- 
riage, at Chicago, to Miss Ella Frances 
Case, and to them have been born two 
children, George Irving Taylor, who died 
at the age of eight months, and John Case 
Taylor, living. In politics Mr. Taylor is 
an active Republican, and on the ticket 
of that party he was elected, in 1894, to 
the Assembly. He has the honor of be- 
ing, in duration of residence in Wisconsin, 
the youngest member of the Assembly. 
In his legislative capacity Mr. Taylor is 
a member of the committees on Railroads, 
Lumber and Mining. In the social world 
he is a member of a Masonic Lodge, at 
Chicago, and is a charter member and 
prominent in Oconto Lodge, K. of P. 
Mr. Taylor is a thoroughly represent- 
ative citizen of Marinette, and of Mar- 
inette county, active in all things that per- 
tain to their welfare. Through the pub- 
lic spirit which he has thus demonstrated, 
he has become even during his brief resi- 
dence in the State one of its most popu- 
lar and honored business men. 



HON. ISAAC STEPHENSON. In 
the first half of the nineteenth 
century the conditions of life 
among the people of the northern 
States of this vast country were ver\' dif- 
ferent from those now existing. Daily 
toil, bread earneil by the sweat of their 
brow by unflinching application of the 




^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



467 



phj'sical or mental faculties, or both, 
from youth to age, has always been the 
lot of the great majority. But the toilers 
in shops, on farms, or factories of to-day 
live in the daily enjoyment of comforts 
which were unattainable luxuries or en- 
tirely unknown to their predecessors of a 
half a century ago. Yet to them, in their 
generation, the conditions which would 
seem to us hard, caused no more discon- 
tent than attends the lot of men any- 
where, who can see a hope of prospective 
opportunities for bettering their condi- 
tion, and are spurred on by such discon- 
tent as they do feel to make the best they 
may of the opportunities they have. 

Everywhere, in our own land, are 
found men who have worked their own 
way from lowly and humble beginnings 
to places of leadership in the commerce, 
the great productive industries, and man- 
agement of the veins and arteries of the 
traffic and exchanges of the country. 
Not infrecpiently they are found among 
the trusted leaders and representatives in 
the councils of the State and Nation. 

It is one of the glories of our country 
that this is so. It should be the strong- 
est incentive and encouragement to the 
youth of the country that it is so. Prom- 
inent, and in some respects exceptional, 
among the self-made representative men 
of Wisconsin is the subject of this sketch 
— a man honored, respected and esteemed 
wherever known, and most of all where 
he is best known. The biography of 
such a man, however briefly told, should 
trace the causes of his successful career. 

Isaac Stephenson was born in York 
county, near Fredericton, N. B., June 
18, 1829. His father, Isaac Stephen- 
son, was of Scotch-Irish extraction; his 
mother, Elizabeth («(r Watson) was a na- 
tive of London, England. His father was 
a lumberman and farmer, and the boy 
passed his early boyhood on the farm, as- 
sisting his father to the best of his ability. 
He attended the public schools for a short 
time, but most of his education has been 
obtained by observation and in the school 



of experience. When fourteen }ears of 
age he moved to Bangor, Maine; but about 
a year and a half later accompanied Jef- 
ferson Sinclair, as a member of his family, 
westward, and located at Milwaukee, Wis., 
where he arrived November 15, 1845. 
There the boy resumed his studies in the 
common schools; but about the first of 
April, 1846, he accompanied Mr. Sinclair 
to an undeveloped farm, located fi\'e miles 
south of Janesville, Wis., where, during 
that spring and summer, he broke 1 30 
acres of land, and helped to put in 400 
acres of wheat. The following year they 
also put the same numl)er of acres in 
wheat, but both crops were failures — the 
first being winter killed and the next ru- 
ined by rust. 

Mr. Sinclair, having become financially 
interested with Daniel Wells, Jr. , in lands 
in northern Michigan, around Escanaba, 
the youth transferred the scene of his la- 
bors to that section. He early in life dis- 
played executive ability, and even at this 
early age, reliance was placed upon his 
sound judgment and sterling integrity. 
He worked hard and faithfully, and dur- 
ing the first season drove a six-ox team 
Yankee fashion, with a goad-stick; hauled 
whole trees, and. incidentally, i 50 spars 
that were shipped to Chicago and Milwau- 
kee. At that time there were no boats 
large enough to load these spars, and they 
were lashed to the sides of tfie vessels. 
In 1847-49 lie was placet! in charge of the 
lumber camps, and in 1850 began taking 
contracts, on his own account, for putting 
in logs. His life at this time was full of 
hard and perilous work. E\'en at the 
present time logging is far from a pleasant 
occupation, but in those earls' days, when 
facilities were poor, it was far more diffi- 
cult and hazardous. Frequently has our 
subject been up to his armpits in an icy 
stream, and, with water rushing about 
him, dashing spray over his head and 
beard, forming ice wherever it lighted, di- 
rected the course of logs to the boom. 
The summer months, at this time, he oc- 
cupied by sailing on Lake Michigan, and, 



468 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



during the warm seasons of 1849, 1830 
and 1 85 1, he sailed on vessels carrying 
freight from Chicago and Milwaukee to 
Escanaba; and. before he was twenty-one 
years of age, he owned the controlling in- 
terest in the schooner • ' Cleopatra, " which, 
in 1853, was lost about a mile south of 
Chicago. During the summer of 1848 he 
attended school in Milwaukee. 

He naturally became a good judge of 
the value of timber lands, and explored 
large sections in the upper peninsula of 
Michigan, locating the more valuable 
tracts. In July, 1848, the first land 
office was opened in northern Michigan, at 
Sault de Ste. Marie, and, accompanied 
by Daniel Wells, Jr., and Jefferson Sin- 
clair, he attended the first sale, and as- 
sisted in purchasing large tracts of valu- 
able timber land on the Escanaba, Ford 
river and Sturgeon river on Big Bay de 
Noquet. In 1852 it was decided to build 
breakwaters along the shore of Lake 
Michigan in Chicago, and Mr. Stephen- 
son, associated with N. Ludington & 
Company, cut and delivered, during the 
years 1852-53 54-55, the timber that 
was used in constructing the first break- 
waters built. In 1857 Mr. Stephenson 
discontinued contracting logs, and in 1858 
purchased a quarter interest in the pro- 
perty and mill owned by N. Ludington & 
Company. Of this business he at once 
became the managerial head and control- 
ling spirit, and succeeded in placing it up- 
on a prosperous footing. In 1868 it was 
decided to incorporate the busine.ss as a 
stock company, and, being desirous of re- 
taining the prestige of the old firm name, 
Mr. Stephenson decided to call the cor- 
poration the N. Ludington Company. 
This is the first instance that a firm name 
was continued in a succeeding corpora- 
tion. The N. Ludington Company is 
capitalized for $700,000, of which Mr. 
Stcjihenson owns a controlling interest. 
He acted as vice-president from the time 
of its incorporation until 1883. Since 
then he has served continuously as presi- 
dent. In 1867 he became interested in 



the Peshtigo Company, of which W. B. 
Ogden, Chicago's first mayor, was the 
largest stockholder. Of this corporation, 
capitalized for $1,500,000, Mr. Stephen- 
son became vice-president. The com- 
pany built the largest woodenware factory 
in the world, and conducted a large and 
satisfactory business in lumber and wood- 
enware, until October 8, 1871, when its 
plant in Peshtigo was destroyed by fire, 
on the same day that the great conflagra- 
tion in Chicago devoured its retail yards. 
A loss of nearly two million dollars was 
entailed by these disastrous fires. The 
mill and village were immediatel\' recon- 
structed. At the time Mr. Stephenson 
became interested in the Peshtigo Com- 
pany he became convinced that it was 
feasible to tow barges on Lake Michigan, 
although most of the men who under- 
stood the condition of that treacherous 
body of water deemed it impracticable. 
Mr. Stephenson proved that his theory 
was correct, and started the first tugs on 
the upper lakes. The Stephenson Trans- 
portation Company, operating thesteam- 
I er " Boscobel " and six barges, resulted 
from his experiments in that direction. 
Mr. Stephenson was also instrumental in 
organizing the Sturgeon Bay & Lake 
Michigan Ship Canal & Harbor Company, 
which constructed a canal from Sturgeon 
bay to lake Michigan. The construction 
of this canal was immediately under the 
supervision of Mr. Stephenson, Jesse 
Spalding and the late William E. Strong. 
The canal was sold to the government, 
and has been of material advantage to 
all of the Green Bay section. 

Mr. Stephenson is the parent of the 
Menominee River & Boom Company. 
This corporation handles more logs than 
any other boom company in the world. 
In 1867 Mr. Stephenson was requested 
by the lumbermen of the Menominee 
river to devise plans for a main boom on 
the Menominee river. This he did, and 
superintended its design and construction 
from start to finish, improving it yearly. 
He is president of the company, which is 



COMMEMORA TI VE BIO OR A PUICA L 11 E CORD. 



469 



capitalized at one and a quarter million 
dollars. It controls some forty dams on 
the river and its tributaries, and drives 
all logs on the main river with its sj'stem 
of dams. An idea of the immense quan- 
tity of logs handled by the company can 
be obtained from the fact that in one year 
six hundred and seventy-live millions of 
feet of logs were divided through the 
boom, ^''ery few men ha\e as many 
large business interests as Mr. Stephen- 
son posesses. He has, in addition to 
those mentioned above, large financial 
investments in the following: The I. 
Stephenson Company, of Escanaba, 
Mich., organized about 1886, is capital- 
ized for $600,000, and claims him as 
president and manager. This company 
owns one of the largest, if not the larg- 
est, of the retail yards in Chicago. In 
1873 he organized the Stephenson Bank- 
ing Company as a State bank, and in 
1888 merged that into the Stephenson 
National Bank, which he then organized 
with $100,000 capital, and now acts as 
its president. Associated with Daniel 
Wells, Jr., and Charles Ray, of Milwau- 
kee, he purchased for $700,000 the plant 
and property of the Peshtigo Company, 
and reorganized as the Peshtigo Lumber 
Company. Of this he is also president. 
He was also one of the organizers of the 
Marinette & Menominee Paper Company, 
which is capitalized for $750,000. and of 
which he owns a one-seventh interest. 
This company's plant consists of three 
mills, and is one of the finest in the West. 
Mr. Stephenson is also president of the 
Stephenson Manufacturing Company, 
which cuts about fifteen million feet of 
lumber yearly, and is capitalized for $50,- 
000. He has large interests in pine land 
in the Northwest and in Louisiana. The 
Peshtigo Lumber Company, of which he 
is president, and has one-third interest 
in, owns one hundred and thirty-si.x thou- 
sand acres of land. The N. Ludington 
Company, of which he has a controlling 
interest, and is also president, owns one 
hundred and thirty thousand acres; and 



in Louisiana he and his associates own one 
hundred and twenty-five thousand acres of 
pine land. Mr. Stephenson is interested in 
farming on a large scale. He owns a farm 
of nine hundred acres five miles west of 
Kenosha, Wis. On this farm he has one 
hundred horses, twelve hundred sheep, 
one hundred and twenty-five cows, be- 
sides other cattle. This is considered one 
of the best-equipped farms in the State. 
He is interested in a creamery near there 
that makes three hundred pounds of but- 
ter per day. He also owns a farm in the 
city of Marinette, where he is raising fast- 
trotting horses. Mr. Stephenson has 
been enterprising in every direction, and 
in a great many instances was the pioneer 
of certain industries. He placed the first 
steamboats on the Menominee and its 
tributaries. The tug " Morgan L. Martin" 
was placed on the Menominee river by 
him. He took the first steamboat into 
Cedar river; the first into Ford river; 
the first into White P^ish river, at the 
head of the Little Bay de Noquet. and 
the second steamiioat into the Escanaba 
river. 

Politically. Mr. Stephenson was for- 
merly a Whig, but upon the organization 
of the Republican party, in 1856. joined 
its ranks, and has since then been one of 
the stanchest advocates of the doctrines 
of true Republicanism. In 1856 he stood 
on the courthouse steps in Chicago, and 
peddled tickets for John C. Fremont and 
other Republican candidates. He has 
been honored by his fellow citizens, with 
their political preference, and in 1 866 
and 1868 served in the Wisconsin Gen- 
eral Assembly. In 1882 he was elected 
to Congress, and. after serving three 
terms of two years each, declined a re- 
nomination, owing to the stress of 
his business affairs. In Congress he 
served on the committees on Agri- 
culture, Public Lands and River and 
Harbors, in addition to other minor com- 
mittees. In 1 880 he was a delegate to the 
Republican National Convention, which 
nominated Garfield. For thirty-three bal- 



47': 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



lots he cast his vote for Blaine, then, 
believing that the old commander was the 
strongest candidate, he twice voted for 
Grant, but on the final ballot cast his 
vote for Garfield. In 1892 he was a del- 
egate-at-large to the Minneapolis conven- 
tion, that renominated Harrison. Prob- 
abl\- no man in the Northwest is more 
thoroughly conversant with the affairs of 
state, or is more intimate!)' acquainted 
with the acknowledged political leaders 
than Mr. Stephenson. Reed, McKinle)' 
and others of prominence are honored 
with his friendship. The hero of Win- 
chester, "Little Phil," as his soldiers 
delighted to call him, passed many de- 
lightful hours in the society of Mr. Ste- 
phenson, and, to the day of his death, 
valued his friendship ver}' highly. 

Mr. Stephenson has been married 
thrice, first time in 1852, to Margaret 
Stephenson, and four children, now living, 
resulted from this union. In 1873 he 
was joined in wedlock to Augusta Ander- 
son; three children survived their mother. 
In 1884 he wedded Elizabeth Burns; one 
son is the issue of this marriage. 

Mr. Stephenson stands as the perfect 
t\pe of generous, symmetrical manhood. 
AH his life has been an exemplification of 
of all that is best, in the human heart and 
soul. To the thoughtful stuilent there is 
much to inspire with the lire of emulation. 
He is courteous and unostentatious in a 
marked degree. None is so poor as to be 
refused a kindly word from him. He is 
proud of his earl)' labors, and delights to 
recall the days when, with a broad-axe. 
he, shoulder to shoulder with his men, 
attacked the virgin forests. He has now 
in his possession an axe-handle made by 
him in 1S48, and which he used occasion- 
all)' until 1877. Although possessed of 
great wealth, he never has indulged in 
outside show, but has preferred to live as 
"a man amongst men." As an illustra- 
tion of his (]uiet, unostentatious manner, 
the following extract from a letter written 
to a friend by Hon. John D. Long, three 
times elected governor of Massachusetts, 



is quoted. Governor Long refutes an as- 
sertion that congressmen were spending 
money with prodigality and lived only for 
ostentatious show, cites instances that 
proved the assertion false, and, continuing, 
writes: " Walking out with Mrs. Long 
at sundown last evening, we passed a 
modest doorstep, on which, with his 
young children playing about him, sat a 
member ■who pointed to a plain suite of 
rooms as his lodging, and whose dress and 
manner of living are as unostentatious as 
those of a Plymouth county farmer, and 
yet he is a Western lumberman, wise and 
broad-headed, and not ashamed, but 
proud of the goad-stick which he wielded 
in his youth, and with which he pricked 
his way to fortune." 

Such is the biography of one of the 
most successful men of the Northwest. 
He carved his way to fame and fortune 
unaided and alone, by constant applica- 
tion and hardwork. Gifted by nature 
with a strong and rugged constitution, he 
led his men into icy streams and through 
unexplored forests, without injury. Blessed 
with a logical mind, and possessing a most 
remarkable memory, he was enabled to 
conduct large enterprises successfully, and 
his success is entirely attributable to hard 
and i^aticnt work, combined with a natu- 
rallv well-balanced mind. 



ANDREW CURTIS MERRVMAN. 
A citizen of whom any State may 
be proud, a man whose presence 
would benefit any community, 
and whose name would reflect honor 
upon any office or station, there is none 
more worth)' whose memory should be 
preserved in this volume than the gentle- 
man of whom we now write. 

Mr. Merr\'man is a native of Maine, 
born December 22, 1831, at Bowdoin, a 
son of Bailey and Mary (Wilson) Merry- 
man, both also natives of the Pine Tree 
State, and who had a family of seven 
children, our subject being second in the 







-■.S2= 




■iMK^ 




/) ^ .{/J 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAFUICAL RECORD. 



471 



order of birth. They were typical New 
England people, industrious and frugal, 
bringing their children \i\> in the paths 
they themselves were trcatling. The 
father was a fanner b\' occupation, and 
it was natural that the son should be 
reared to the same pursuits, while at the 
same time he attended the public schools 
of the neighborhood of his home. His 
school days, however, ended with his 
early boyho(jd, the bent of the lad's mind 
being more in the direction of mechanics 
than book lore. In those dajs, half a 
century ago, shipbuilding was one of the 
leading industries in the State of Maine, 
her rugged coast being studded with busy 
shipyards, the timber of her almost inex- 
haustible forests being converted by the 
skill of man into noble ships. Attracted 
at the age of seventeen from the farm to 
the shipyard, and possessed of a desire to 
rise by industry and diligence above the 
conditions which surrounded his boyhood, 
young Merrj'inan apprenticed himself to 
a shij) l)uilder at Middle Bay, near Port- 
land, feeing intelligent and energetic 
above the average, he soon became a 
competent, practical shipwright. In 1855, 
at Pittston, Maine, he built and launched 
the brig " A. C. Merryman"; but a sud- 
den depression in the shipbuilding indus- 
try along the Atlantic coast caused him 
to abandon that line of business and seek 
" some pastures new." 

Turning his eyes in the direction of 
the then "Far West," Mr. Merryman 
came to Wisconsin, to engage in the busi- 
ness of supplying material for the homes 
of the settlers who were then pouring into 
the State and other portions of the North- 
west. The wonderful timber resources, 
and the consequent prosperity of the lum- 
ber business, in Wisconsin, so impressed 
him that he was not long in arriving at 
the decision to remain here and embark 
in business. Associating himself with 
Haynes Hunter, and his brother, R. W. 
Merryman, the firm being known as 
Merryman & Co., he established a saw- 
mill at Fond du Lac, and in the winter 



of 1855-56 took a trip to Maine in order 
to dispose of his interests in that State. 
Returning to Wisconsin in the following 
spring, he and his partners invested all 
their available means in pine lands, and 
not long thereafter our subject and his 
brother became associated in business 
with John S. and Ale.xander McDonald 
(both also Eastern men, and conspicuous 
among the pioneer lumbermen of Wis- 
consin), and, under the firm name of Mc- 
Donald, Merryman & Co., a prosperous 
lumber manufacturing business was carried 
on. Later, in 1866, in company with 
Irenus K. and Woodman C. Hamilton, 
Mr. Merryman moved something over a 
hundred miles northwest tcj the mouth of 
the Menominee river, where they estab- 
lished the mills which were operated un- 
der the firm name of Hamilton, Merry- 
man & Co., the firm having purchased at 
an opportune moment some 62,000 acres 
of government land. From time tcj time 
they have added to this purchase, and 
have constantly been engaged in the 
manufacture of lumber. For many years 
they have turned out from thirty million 
to fifty million feet of luuiber annually, 
shipping liy their own vessels this vast 
quantity of lumber from the mills to their 
distributing yards at Chicago. Some 
years since the original partnership was 
for prudential reasons converted into a 
joint-stock company, known as the Ham- 
ilton & Merryman Co., with a capital of 
three hundred and fifty thousand dollars. 
The management of the manufactur- 
ing branch of this vast concern has, ever 
since it was established, been under the 
immediate personal supervision of Mr. 
Merryman himself, and that its success, 
which has brought both fame and fortune 
to its owners, is due to his sagacity and 
business ability, goes without saying. In 
addition to his interests in the Hamilton 
& Merryman Co., Mr. Merryman is a 
large shareholder in the Marinette & 
Menominee Paper Co., the Menominee 
River Boom Co., of which he is treas- 
urer; the Kaukauna Fibre Co.; the Falls 



472 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



Manufacturing Co., of Oconto Falls, and 
the Hamilton Iron Co., of Iron Mount- 
ain. He is also a director of the Steph- 
enson National Bank, of Marinette, antl 
a stockholder in the American Exchange 
National Bank of Chicago, and the First 
National Bank of Englewood. Some 
years since his attention was attracted to 
the rich and productive Salt River Val- 
ley of Arizona, and becoming to some ex- 
tent interested in the development of 
that region, he became a stockholder in 
the Maricopa Loan & Trust Co., of 
Phoenix, Arizona, as well as owner of 
Arizona lands, so well adapted to fruit 
growing. 

Mr. Merrynian in liis political predi- 
lections is a pronounced Prohibitionist, 
and has been nominated by that part}' 
for high positions of honor and trust. In 
1892 he was the candidate of that party 
for the State treasurership, and previ- 
ously was their candidate for Congress- 
man for the District. In his abhorrence 
of intemperance he is fearless and out- 
spoken, and unceasingly wars against the 
evil by raising his voice and using his 
ballot for its suppression and extinction. 
He is a zealous member of the Good 
Templars and Temple of Honor, and by 
precept and example has always sought 
to promote temperance and sobriety 
among all classes, especially among the 
young. 

Mr. Merry man has been a resilient of 
Marinette for some thirty years, and has 
been closely identified with its growth 
and development, and materially aided 
in its transformation from a mere lumber 
camp into a thrifty and prosperous city. 
He has been twice married, first time to 
Miss Frances Colbourn, ami one son, R. 
C. Mcrryman, a prominent business man 
of Marinette, is the surviving issue of 
that marriage. In 1870, for his second 
wife, he married Miss Louise Brown, a 
native of Fort Ann, N. Y., by which 
union three daughters — Bertha, Amy 
and Louise — and one son — Andrew C. — 
were born. 



ROBERT W. MERRYMAN (de- 
ceased), an elder brother of An- 
drew C. Merrjinan, was for many 
\ears prominentlj' identified with 
the lumber manufacturing interests of 
northern Wisconsin. 

He was a native of Maine, born May 
2, 1829, at Bowdoin, a son of Bailey and 
Mary (Wilson) Merryman, respectable 
and well-to-do farming people of that 
State. He was reared to agricultural 
pursuits, and attended the connnon schools 
of Bowdoin a few weeks during the win- 
ter seasons; but at an early age he laid 
aside his books and commenced the active 
business of life. His brother Andrew C. 
and himself having taken np the ship- 
building industry, our subject learned the 
trade, and worked in the shipyards at 
Pittston, on the Kennebec river. This 
was in 1855. at which time Eastern lum- 
bermen were being strongly attracted to 
the pine forests of Wisconsin, and Mr. 
Merryman came to the State, first locat- 
ing at Fond du Lac, where he became 
associated with his brother and Haynes 
Hunter, under the firm name of Merry- 
man & Co. , lumber manufacturers. Later, 
also at Fond du Lac, the two brothers 
associated themselves with John S. and 
Alexander McDonald, also Maine lumber- 
men, and pioneer manufacturers of Wis- 
consin. At Fond du Lac our subject con- 
tinued until 1873, in which year he came 
to Marinette and founded the R. W. Mer- 
ryman Lumber Co., with which he was 
connected as its official head up to his 
death, April 21, 1894. For several years 
prior to that event, however, the manage- 
ment thereof was intrusted for the most 
part to his nephew, R. C. Merryman, 
who has since continued its conduct and 
management. 

In 1858, Robert W. Merryman was 
married to Miss Carrie A. Colbourn, 
daughter of Capt. Reuben Colbourn. for 
many years a seafaring man of Pittston, 
Maine, but no children blessed their 
union. Mr. Merrynian, however, enter- 
tained a paternal fondness for his nephew. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIKJAL RECORD. 



473 



R. C. Merryiiian, the early days of whose 
hfe, much of the time, were passed at 
the home of his uncle where he was 
treated as a member of the family. For 
some years prior to his death our subject 
and his wife traveled considerably, not 
infret]uently accompanied by friends in 
the capacity of guests, and it was while 
returning from a trip through Florida and 
other Southern States that Mr. Merry- 
man was seized with an illness that ter- 
minated fatally at Lookout Nhnmtain, 
Tenti. His remains were brought back 
to Marinette, and his widcnv is still mak- 
ing her home in that city, where she is 
held in the highest respect. He was a 
shrewd and thrifty man. kind-hearted 
and generous to a fault, greatly beloveii 
by his family and employes, and widely 
esteemed for his unswerving integrity, 
strict honesty and admirable business 
methods. 

During his long and successful liusi- 
ness career in Nhirinette, in the building 
up of which city he so substantially aidi;d, 
he accumulated a comfortable compe- 
tence, mainly by extensive investments 
in timber lauds, and ]")nilitHble luiiiiufac- 
turing operations. In religious views he 
was originrdly a Baptist, but with ad- 
vancing years his ideas in this regard 
trended in their course intn I'niversalism, 
in which faith he died. In jiolitical affil- 
iations he was always a Republican, ever 
loyal to the party, but never at any time 
an office-seeker. 



RFUBEN C. MERKYMAN, manu- 
facturer, was born in Fond dii 
l,ac, Wis., October S, 1.S64. son 
of Antlrew (". and Francis (('ol- 
bourn) Merryman. Both of his parents 
were born in Maine, the father in Bowdoin, 
the mother in Pittston; the latter died in 
Fond du Lac in 1866. Andrew C. Merr\'- 
man, of whom an extended mention has 
just been given in these ])ages, has long 
been widely known throughout the North- 
west as one of the large lumber manufac- 



turers of northern Wisconsin, and the son 
was lirought \\\> to the business in which 
he has engaged successfully in later years. 

After the dt>ath of his mother, Mr. 
Merryman spent a portion of bis early boy- 
hood at the home of his grandparents in 
Pittston, Maine, and while there worked 
on the old farm on which his mother had 
been l)rought up, and attended the village 
schools. He was also educated in part 
in the public schools of h'ond du Lac, and 
completeii the course of study, which was 
to lit him for a business career, in the 
Marinette High School, from which insti- 
tution he wasgraduated in the class of '83. 
When he left the high school, his father 
said to him that he could either enter upon 
a collegiate course or g(j to work, leaving 
iiim free to decide which he would do. 
While he was not without an ambition to 
obtain a (inishecl education, the bent of 
his mind was toward business jiin'suits, 
and he decided to turn his attention in that 
direction, regretting somewhat, at a later 
date, his haste to engage in the active busi- 
ness of life. Ha\ing mai.le this decision, 
he was given an o|i]iortunit v to familiari/c 
himself with the details of the business 
which he expected to follow, and spent the 
winter of 1884 85 in the ])ine woods, 
working for the Hamilton & Merryman 
Lumber Com|)any as a "scaler". The 
following spring he associate'd himself with 
his uncle, R. W. Merryman, and organ- 
ized the lumber company now known as 
the R. W. Mi-rryman c\: C'ompany. in 
1886 the elder Merryman retire<l from the 
numagement of the compan\', and since 
that time \\. (-. Merryman has had full 
charge of all its business operations, suc- 
! ceeding his uncle as official head of the 
com])any, after the hitter's death, and be- 
coming also the administrator of his estate. 

Natural cajxicity for the conduct of 
affairs, sagacity and good judgment came 
to Mr. Merryman as a legitimate iniierit- 
ance, and the energy and thrift of indus- 
trious and hard-working ancestors have 
been transmitted to him unimpaired. 
His economic ami industrial training was 



474 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



in line with that which his father had re- 
ceived in New England, broadened to cor- 
respond with the spirit of progress and 
enterprise which has pervaded the West, 
and contributed so largely to its marvel- 
ous development. At the outset of his 
business career he became prominent 
among the younger business men of Mari- 
nette, and has ever since continued to 
strengthen his hold upon the confidence 
and esteem of those brought into contact 
with him in business affairs, and to com- 
mend himself to the general public as a 
man of high character, warmly interested 
in the general welfare of the community. 
Projects for the improvement of the city 
have received his hearty support, and as 
a member of the Board of Supervisors of 
Marinette county he has been an active 
promoter of public improvements in all 
parts of the county. He first served as 
a member of the county board in 1S89, 
and again in 1893, '^^94 3-nd 1895, being 
made chairman of the board in 1894. 

With other enterprising citizens of 
Marinette, he organized the Marinette 
Hotel Company, which in 1895 erected a 
well-equipped modern hotel building, an 
improvement which adds greatly to the 
attractiveness of the city, and places it 
on a level with other leading cities of 
Wisconsin in the matter of hotel accom- 
modations. 

A Presbyterian in his Church affilia- 
tions, Mr. NIerryman has interested him- 
self especially in the work of the Young 
Men's Christian Association, recognized 
by all right-thinking men as one of the 
most potent agencies for the improvement 
of public morals and the de\elopment of 
worthy manhood. He was one of the or- 
ganizers of the Marinette branch of the 
association, now domiciled in a handsome 
building, of which a complete gymnasium, 
and library, lecture and club-rootns, are 
conspicuous features. He is a I'iepublican 
in his political faith, and has been active 
and influential in local party manage- 
ment. 

Mr. Merryman was married, in 1894, 



to Miss Phcebe A. Woodhull — daughter of 
Rev. George E. Woodhull, of East Sagi- 
naw, Mich. — who died in 1S89. He was 
married again, in 1891, to Miss Agnes 
Hathaway, daughter of Mr. O. C. Hath- 
away, of Green Ba}', Wisconsin. 



M 



.\jOR EDWARD SCOFIELD. 
\\ hose name, in connection with 
the lumbering interests and pro- 
gressive enterprises of northern 
Wisconsin, is "familiar as household 
words," is a native of Pennsylvania, born 
March 28, 1842, at Clearfield, Clearfield 
county. 

Isaac Scofield. his father, was a native 
of Virginia, descended of English colon- 
ists, and in early life moved to Clearfield, 
Penn., where he combined the occupa- 
tions of lumbering and farming. He mar- 
ried Miss Jane Collins, a lady of Pennsyl- 
vania birth, and nine children were born 
to them, five of whom are yet living: 
Julia, wife of J. R. Arnold, of Colorado 
Springs, Colo. : James, Henry C. and F. 
Iv. , all three in Clearfield, Penn.; and 
Edward. The father died in 1873. the 
mother in 1885. 

Our subject passed his boyhood days 
on his fathers farm, during the winter 
months attending the district school, later 
taking a course at an academy at Clear- 
field. In 1855. at the age of thirteen, he 
entered the ofiice of the Democrat news- 
paper, at Indiana, Indiana Co., Penn., 
in the capacity of printer's "devil," and 
here not only learned the "art preserva- 
tive of all arts, "but had ample opportu- 
nit)' of familiarizing himself with a consid- 
erable amount of general knowledge he 
failed to imbibe in his limited school ex- 
perience. For three years he remained 
in the office of the Indiana Doiioiial, in 
return for his labor receiving his board 
and clothing. In 1858 he secured a posi- 
tion on the Jifftisoiiian, a journal pub- 
lished at Brookville, Penn., his salary 
being one hundred dollars per annum and 
his board. 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



475 



On that paper he worked until April, 
1 86 1, when in response to President Lin- 
coln's call (or 75,000 men he patriotically 
tendered his services for the preservation 
of the Union, and enlisted in the Eleventh 
Regiment Pennsylvania Reserves, which 
at that time was encamped at Pittsburg. 
As soon as the battle of Bull l\ini was 
fought the regiment was ordereil to Wash- 
ington, arriving in time to assist in checking 
the advance of the Confederates on the cap- 
ital. Here the members of the Eleventh P. 
R. were svviirn into service for three years, 
or during the war, immediately becoming 
a part of the army of the Potomac, and 
young Scofield participated in all the en- 
gagements of that army up to and includ- 
ing the battle of the Wilderness. The 
same traits of character that have made 
Mr. Scofield a successful man of business 
were displayed in him as a private in the 
ranks, and he soon earned and received 
promotion. After the battle of F"reder- 
icksburg he was promoted to first lieu- 
tenant; upon the field of Gettysburg he 
distinguished himself, and shortly there- 
after was commissioned cajitain of Com- 
pany K, Eleventh P. R. "for meritorious 
conduct upon the field." At the battle of 
the Wilderness, May 5, 1864, within a 
few days of the expiration of his term of 
enlistment, he was captured by the enemy, 
and was held a prisoner of war some ten 
months, during which time he was incar- 
cerated in twelve prisons, to wit: Lynch- 
burg, Danville, Goldsboro, Columbia, 
Andersonville, Macon, Savannah, Charles- 
ton, then back to Columbia and Goldsboro, 
thence to Raleigh, whence he was paroled 
and liberated March 5, 1S65, about nine 
miles north of Wilmington, N. C, a few 
days after the capture of that city by 
Gen. Schofield. During his ten-months' 
prison experience Major Scofield suffered 
terribly, and his life tcnvard the last hung 
almost on a thread, for when paroled he 
resembled a parchment-bound skeleton 
more than a living being. In Wilmington 
he joined Gen. Schofield, and was at once 
sent to hospital at Annapolis, Md., where 



he remained until sufficiently recuperated 
to return to his home, at Brookville, 
Penn. On his arrival there he was 
pleasantly surprised liy being handed a 
commission from the government pro- 
moting him to the rank of major '• for 
gallant conduct at the battle of the Wil- 
derness." 

The close of the war found .Major 
Scofield a young man of twenty-three 
sunnners, and, through his ability and 
worth, risen to the rank of major. After 
his return to Clearfield he re-enlisted, in 
response to the last call, reporting for 
duty, but the regiment was not called into 
further actix'e service. Truly his army 
record is one of which he may lie, and is, 
justly proud. On resuming the voca- 
tions of peace, he first engaged himself 
as an assistant to a corps of civil engin- 
eers, who were surveying for the low- 
grade division of the Allegheny \'alle3- 
railroad between Pittsburg and Drift- 
wood, Penn., and after remaining with 
them in various capacities — from chain- 
man to transit-man — for a couple of 
years, he came west, in the fall of 1868, 
to Chicago. There he formed the ac- 
quaintance of Finn Hall, who had lum- 
ber interests in Oconto, Wis. , and ac- 
cepted the position o{ foreman in his 
mill there, in which capacity he con- 
tinued to act for eight years, during 
which time he mastered all the details of 
the lumber-manufacturing business. In- 
dustrious, shrewd and economical, he 
saved enough of his earnings to enable 
him to commence business on his own 
account, and leasing a mill on contract, 
at Oconto, he operated it from 1876 to 
1881. 

Major Scofield first came to Mari- 
nette as superintendent of the lumber 
business of William McCartney, which 
industry after two years was incorporated 
under the name of the Marinette Sawmill 
Co. In 1890 he and George R. Arnold 
formed a partnership under the firm name 
of Edward Scofield & Co., which busi- 
ness was, in 1894, incorporated as the 



476 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPnWAL RECORD. 



Scofield & Arnold Lumber Co., of Mari- 
nette, with Major Scotield as president; 
George I. Scolield (his son), as vice- 
president; and George R. Arnold, as sec- 
retary and treasurer. The mills furnish 
employment to about 140 men, and, 
manufacture from twenty-five million to 
thirty million feet of finished lumber an- 
nually. The Major is also interested in 
the lumber firm of McElwer & Co., and, 
having been connected with the lumber 
business from his youth, he is one of the 
best informed men on all matters per- 
taining to that industry anywhere. 

In Oconto, Wis., in 1870, Major Sco- 
field was married to Miss Agnes Potter, a 
native of Pennsylvania, daughter of John 
Potter, who died in Clarion county, Penn. , 
some years ago. To this union have been 
born three children — George I., vice- 
president of the Scofield & .Arnold Lumber 
Co., married and residing in Oconto; 
Paul D.. a student at Amherst College; 
and Julia A., who died at the age of five 
years. Mrs. Scofield is a member of the 
Presbyterian Cluirch at Oconto. 

Politically, the Major is a stanch ad- 
herent of the Republican party, and a 
zealous advocate of the principles embod- 
ied in its platform. He has never sought 
political preferment, nevertheless in 1 887 
he was elecied to the State Senate from 
the First District of Wisconsin, serving 
in that incumbency from 1888 to 1892. 
In 1894 he was the choice of a great 
many Republicans for the position of 
governor, another evidence of his popu- 
larity as a man of executive ability. For 
several years he was a member of the 
board of supervisors of Oconto, in that as 
in all other capacities proving himself to 
be a hard and honest worker for the good 
of his city, county, and State. Socially, 
he is affiliated with E. A. Ramsey Post, 
G. A. R., at Oconto, and of Wisconsin 
Commandery of the military order. Loyal 
Legion. In business matters he is a man 
of sound judgment and uncjuestioncd in- 
tegrity, and in the discharge of his duties of 
citizenship he has been as prompt and true 



as when he followed the old flag on South- 



ern battlefields, while his private 
public life are alike above reproach. 



and 



EF. PARAMORE, M. D., the old- 
est phjsician in Oconto county, 
has been actively identified with 
its interests since 1857, and has 
witnessed its development and the won- 
derful changes which have been wrought 
during that period. 

Dr. William C. Paramore, father of 
our subject, was born in Leicestershire, 
England, was reared in his native coun- 
try, and received his education in medi- 
cine and surgery at the University of 
Edinburgh. He became connected, in 
his professional capacity, with the British 
army, and was stationed at Fort George, 
Scotland. Here he married Margaret 
Tovey, who was born in Fort George, 
and the couple subsequently crossed the 
Atlantic, landing at Quebec, Canada, 
whence they removed to Kno.x county, 
Ohio. Here Mrs. Paramore died in 1845, 
and the Doctor afterward wedded Eliza 
Ellis, a native of New York State, who 
passed away in \'alparaiso, Ind., whither 
they had removed ; the Doctor also died 
in Valparaiso, in 1882. He was contin- 
uously engaged in the active practice of 
his profession. By the first marriage 
there were three children : E. F. , whose 
name introduces this sketch ; John Wes- 
ley, who was accidentally killed in 1892 
in Fort Wayne, Ind., and Charles Will- 
iam H. H., residing in Muskingum county, 
Ohio. To the second union were also 
born three children — one son and two 
daughters — namely : Mrs. Patrick, of 
Valparaiso, Ind. ; William, a resident of 
Zanesvillc, Ohio, and Mrs. Doyle, of 
Valparaiso, Indiana. 

Dr. E. F. Paramore was born in 1830 
in Kno.K county, Ohio, was reared in his 
native State, and acquired his education 
in her conmion schools. He commenced 
the study of medicine under his father, 
in 1854 entering the Medical College of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



477 



Ohio. Cincinnati, from which he was 
graduated with the class of 1856. The 
year of his graduation he removed to Val- 
paraiso, Ind., thence in the spring of 
1857 migrating to the then new region of 
Oconto county, Wis., where he has made 
his home almost continuously since. On 
coming here Dr. Paramore engaged in 
lumbering, in which he continued until 
the outbreak of the Civil war. On May 
16, 1 86 1, he enlisted in the Union army 
for three years, becoming a member of 
Company H, Fourth Wis. V. I., bet- 
ter known as the " Oconto County River 
Drivers." The command, which was as- 
signed to service with the army of the 
East, took part in the Peninsular cam- 
paign, and in i8Gj reported at Newport 
News, under Gen. Butler, subsequently 
going to Ship Island, where they remained 
until the advance on New Orleans. From 
that cit}' they came up to Young's Point 
with Gen. Williams. In 1862 they were 
six weeks before Vicksburg, going thence 
to Baton Rouge, where they fought in 
the battle of Baton Rouge, after the l)at- 
tle leaving that city for New Orleans, 
where they passed the winter of 1862-;;. 
In the spring of 1863 they again went to 
Baton Rouge, and, joining the army of 
the Gulf, were sent to Brazier City and 
thence to Bayou Tesche. They next par- 
ticipated in the battle of Fort Bisland, 
La., after which they were engaged in 
the capture of Opelousas, La., from which 
point they proceeded to Alexandria. Fol- 
lowing this was the Red River campaign, 
after which the regiment went to Sims- 
port, La., and down the Mississippi. 
Marching to Port Hudson, where, during 
the siege, it was under fire for forty-eight 
days, and from there to Clinton, they 
were engaged in the battle at the last 
named place, and thence down to Baton 
Rouge. They were actively engaged in 
scouting and skirmishing throughout Ala- 
bama, Louisiana, Mississippi and part of 
Georgia until the summer of 1864, at 
which time our subject was sent to Mor- 
ganza Bend, La., where he did various 



kinds of service until his discharge there 
in August, 1864. He was paid off at 
New Orleans, returning thence to his 
home in Oconto county, which he reached 
in September, 1864. During that winter 
he went to Valparaiso, Ind., and there 
remained two years in the practice of his 
profession, in which he also engaged on 
his return to Oconto county. In 1881 he 
received the commission of physician and 
surgeon at the Menominee Agency fGreen 
Bay Agency), and remained there over 
three years, again returning to Oconto 
and resuming practice here. 

In i860, at Oconto, Wis , Dr. Para- 
more wedded Miss Frances E. Patterson, 
who was born in Jefferson county, N. Y., 
daughter of M. W. and Lucinda M. 
( Hubbard ) Patterson, who came to 
Oconto, Wis., in 1856, when it was a 
mere hamlet. Mr. Patterson was one of 
the early merchants of Oconto, where he 
made a permanent home, dying there in 
1887. Mrs. Patterson died in 1864. Our 
subject is a charter member of E. A. 
Ramsey Post, No. 74, G. A. R., in the 
affairs of which he has been both promi- 
nent and active, at piresent serving as 
post commander ; he also for two terms 
tilled the office of aide-de-camp to the 
department commander. In social con- 
nection he affiliates with the F. & A. M. ; 
politically he is a Republican. Dr. Para- 
more has served a number of years as 
health officer of Oconto. 



LESLIE C. HARVEY, register of 
deeds, for Oconto county, is a na- 
tive of this section of Wisconsin, 
born in 1869 in Wrightstown, 
Brown count)-. His parents, John S. and 
Martha (Dickeyj Harvey, were born in 
Belchertown, Mass., and Malone, N. Y. 
respectively, the , father being a son of 
Nathaniel Harvey. Nathaniel Harvey 
came to Wisconsin in an early day, farm- 
ing for some years in Weyauwega, W^au- 
paca county, and thence removing to Mar- 
tin county, Minn., where he now resides. 



47 S 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPIIIVAL RECORD. 



John S. Harvey came with his parents 
to W'aiipaca countj', Wis. He was mar- 
ried in Berlin, Green Lake county, and was 
for a time employed in the mills of that 
place. In 1S64 he enlisted at Berlin in 
Company I, Forty-third Wis. V. I., served 
under Gen. Thomas, and was honor- 
ably discharged in June, 1865. After bis 
return from the armj' he returned to 
Wrightstown, Brown county, where he 
opened up a farm, living there until 1873, 
when he came to what is now Chase 
township, Oconto county, and there 
opened up another farm. He also assisted 
in opening up the first road, also erect- 
ing the first sawmill in the locality, and he 
and his faithful wife still make their home 
on their farm. They reared a family of 
three children: Leslie C. ; W^ilterA., who 
resides on the farm; and Bessie May, who 
is still at home. 

Leslie C. Harvey was reared in Chase 
township, and received his primarj' edu- 
cation in the public schools there, attend- 
ing up to the age of fourteen. From that 
time until he was nineteen j'ears old he 
assisted his father on the farm, but by 
diligent private study he added to his 
school learning, and securing a teacher's 
certificate took up that vocation, teach- 
ing the home school several terms. Prior 
to this, however, he had met with an ac- 
cident, being injured by a log rolling over 
him, and while yet on crutches he began 
teaching his first school. After teaching 
this same school a little more than a year, 
he entered the Indiana Normal School at 
Valparaiso, Ind. Here he graduated from 
the connnercial course of study. In April, 
1893, he became a Columbian Guard, 
continuing as such during the World's 
Fair, or until December 5, after which he 
returned t(j the school above mentioned, 
and took up shorthand, as well as differ- 
ent studies in the scientific course, remain- 
ing in Valparaiso until August, 1894. Re- 
turning to Chase township, Oconto county, 
he was engaged as principal of the Abrams 
School, remaining in that capacity from 
September, 1894, to Januar}', 1895, when 



he entered upon the duties of his pres- 
ent incumbency, having been elected to 
the office in November, 1894. 

In political connection, Mr. Harvey 
is a Republican. He is well known in 
fraternal circles here, being a member of 
Oconto Camp, Modern Woodmen of 
America; of Oconto Lodge, Knights of 
Pythias;of Pine Lodge, No. 188, F.&A.M. 
Oconto, Wis. ; of Warren Chapter, No. 8, 
Warren Council, No. 13, and Palestine 
Commandery, No. 20, of Green Ba\'; and 
of the Milwaukee Consistory, 32d degree. 

Mr. Harve\' is a young man of excel- 
lent habits, full of energy and ambition. 
He has made himself what he is. Like 
a good many other farmer boys, his par- 
ents were unable to furnish him the nec- 
essary means to give him an education, 
but by hard work and perseverance he has 
brought himself to the front, and at the 
present time he is one of the most active 
of the younger men in public life, in 
Oconto county, and bids fair to win a 
prominent place for himself in the ranks 
of her energetic public-spirited citizens. 



BEN K. HALL, surveyor, Mari- 
nette, was born in what was then 
known as Menominee City, now 
Marinette, in 1848, and is the son 
of Dr. J. C. and Lydia A. (.Andrus) Hall, 
the former a native of Tioga county, N. 
Y. , the latter of Orange county, in the 
same State. 

In his boyhood Dr. J. C. Hall re- 
moved from Tioga county to Orange 
county, N. Y., where he grew to man- 
hood and received his literary educa- 
tion. After graduating in medicine he 
married, and in 1843 came west, settling 
in what is now Marinette, Wis., which 
had at that time one small water mill, 
owned by S. H. Farnsworth. He pur- 
chased the mill and operated it for some 
years, and then took up his chosen pro- 
fession. For some time he was the only 
physician on the west shore of Green 
Bay. in Wisconsin, and consequently his 



COMMEMOHA TIVB BIOORAPIIICAL IlKCOHD. 



479 



services were in demand for many miles in 
every direction. No man in all this re- 
gion was better known than Dr. Hall. 
For some years he was a member of the 
board of supervisors of the county, which 
was then known as Oconto county; he 
was also a member of the General Assem- 
bly for several terms. In i860 he took 
the census of Oconto county, which duty 
he faithfully performed in addition to his 
regular duties as a physician. He was 
also a justice of tiie peace of Marinette. 
His death occurred in 1S73, when he was 
aged si.xty-three years. His excellent 
wife survived him one year. 

Dr. Hall was a Master Mascjn, and 
to(_)k a great interest in Masonic matters. 
In his political views he was a War Dem- 
ocrat and subsequontlj' was a Republican. 
In his religious views he was a I'resl)y- 
terian, and for many.years was a member 
of that church in Marinette. His wife 
was also a memlierof the same body, and 
both took an active interest in church work. 
His acquaintance throughout the State was 
very extensive, being active not onlj' in his 
profession, but in political affairs as well. 
Dr. and Mrs. Mall were actixe in every 
good word ami work, and were held in 
the highest estc;em. Their family con- 
sisted of the following: K. L. , who mar- 
ried and located in Oconto, where he en- 
gaged in surveying until his death in 1 S92 ; 
he left a widow and fcmr suns, who }'et 
reside in that city. .Mary, born in New 
York, became the wife of Henry Bentley, 
and died in 1S77, her husband passing 
away in 1890, at Marinette; he came to 
Peshtigo in an early day, and had charge 
of a mill, but lati.r mo\ed to Marinette, 
where he engaged in the lumber and log- 
ging business; they left five chiliiren - 
Nellie, Jessie, Charley, Anna (wife of G. 
W. Holmes, of Marinette, who is likewise 
engaged in the lunil)er business), and 
Hattie, their last born. Charley is with 
Dr. Sherman as ck-rk. lsad(jre died in 
1 S46, at Marinette. Ben K. is the subject 
of these lines. 

Ben K. Hall was reared in Marinette, 

27 



and attended its pidilic schools. Later 
he attended school ;it N(jrmal, III., and 
Chicago. After leaving school he engaged 
in surveying, which occupation he has 
followed all his life. No man is i)etter 
acfjuainted with the northern part of Wis- 
consin and that part of Michig.-m adjoin- 
ing. He has sur\eyed pine land and 
worked for Ludington, Wells iS: \'an- 
Schaick Company for ten ^ears, and has 
been in the employ of all the luiid>er com- 
panies operating in this region. He has 
always made his home in Marimitte. and 
is the only one of the name now residing 
here. He was married at Oshkosh, 
W"is. , in I 880, ti) Miss Ma I.illii', born in 
Ohio. 

In politics Mr. Hall is a Kepuhlican, 
and has voted the party ticket since at- 
taining his majority. ]!orn in this place 
when it was but a \'illage of three or four 
hundred inhabitants,^li(.' has witnessed its 
growth until it now has a population td 
17,000 inhabitants, and all parts of the 
county well des'eloped. His mother was, 
one (jf the tirst public-school teachers in 
Marinette, the school being held in the 
home of Ins j^arents. Mr. Hall has been 
prosperous, and he is greatly respected 
throughout the entire county. 



J 



OHN JETHKO SHERMAN, M. D , 

is a medical practitioner of consider- 
;ible ])ronuni-nci' in Marinette ami 
surrounding countrv, one wIki. out- 
side of the esteem in which he is held for 
his professional attaimnents, enjoys the 
admiration and respect of all for his kind- 
liness of disposition and amiability of 
he'art. He may also hi; truly calleil a pio- 
ne-er of .Marinette, forover forty years ago. 
in 1833, he settled at the i)lace when there 
was not so mucli as a wagon road to be 
seen. 

Dr. Sherman is a iiatixe of Dutchess 
county. N. ^'., born March \^. i8j;o. in 
the town of l^eeknian, a son of Henry 
Sherman, who was a son of |ethro Sher- 
man, of the same count\'. formerlv of 



4So 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Connecticut. Henry, father of our sub- 
ject, was a blacksmith by trade, at which 
he worked in Beekman till moving, in 1833. 
to Steuben county, N. Y. . where, in the 
city of Hammondsport, he continued the 
trade till 1836, in which year he com- 
menced farming at Tyre, Seneca county, 
same State. After ten years passed there 
in agricultural pursuits he, in 1846, 
moved to Wayne, Dupage county. 111., 
and there made his home till [852, when 
he went to California, from which State 
he kept up a correspondence with friends 
until 1838, his last letter stating that he 
had accumulated some eight thousand dol- 
lars, and was coming home. Since then 
he has never been heard from, and from 
subsequent information it is supposed that 
he was robbed and murdered. His wife, 
Elizabeth (Bentley), also a native of 
Dutchess county, N. Y., died in that State 
when our subject was fourteen years old. 
John J. Sherman, whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, received a liberal com- 
mon-school education in New York State, 
and in 1848 came to Winnebago county, 
Wis., where he also attended winter 
school, working on the farm during the 
summer of 1851, in the following year be- 
coming assistant teacher of mathematics 
in a seminary in Dupage county, 111., in 
the meantime studying other branches. 
In the fall of 1853 he returned to Wiscon- 
sin, and since then has been a permanent 
resident of what is now the thriving city of 
Marinette, Marinette county. Here until 
1856 he worked in the woods, in the 
summer of that year proceeding to Chica- 
go, where he attended Digby V. Bell's 
(now Bryant & Strattoii's) Commercial 
College, in the fall of the same year re- 
turning to Marinette, where he became 
connected with the lumbering business and 
land-office work, making abstracts, etc. 
Ill 1857, in association with his uncle, 
Henry Bentley, he took a contract to get 
out three million feet of lumber, but this 
deal becoming in a measure unsuccessful 
our subject turned his interest over to his 
uncle, and, at the solicitation of the peo- 



ple of the place, opened a private school, 
it being the first educational institution 
Marinette e\'er saw, and it had an attend- 
ance of thirty-five scholars at one dollar 
each. Subsequently, and prior to 1861, 
he taught district school some six or seven 
terms. At the suggestion of Dr. J. Cory 
Hall, he commenced the study of medicine 
in his office, and in 1863-64 was a student 
at Rush Medical College, Chicago, from 
which institution he graduated M. D., in 
1 88 1. In 1864 he had commenced the 
practice of his profession in partnership 
with Dr. Hall, which arrangement contin- 
ued until 1868, since when Dr. Sherman 
has practiced alone to the present time, 
and has been uniformly successful. He 
also conducts a flour and feed store in 
Marinette. 

In 1857 our subject was married at 
Chicago, 111., to Mise Emeline A. Porter, 
a native of Kennebec county. Me. , daugh- 
ter of James and Ruby Porter, and four 
children were the result of this union, a 
brief record of whom is as follows: Carrie 
F., born June 17, 1859, was married to 
Edgerton B. Williams, of Ironwood, 
Mich.; Major F., born July 28, 1862, died 
in 1878; Kathryn L., born November 5, 
1869, is now a teacher in the schools of 
Marinette; Annie, born January 16, 1873, 
died January 25, 1879. 

Dr. Sherman has been an elder of the 
Presbyterian Church of Marinette for the 
past thirty-two years, and his wife a mem- 
ber for thirty years. He took an active 
part in the organization of the county, 
township and city; served as township 
clerk, assessor, treasurer and in many other 
offices, such as member of the school 
board for sixteen years, and he may be 
said to have been the organizer of the 
school system of both township and city. 
In political affairs he has always been act- 
ive and outspoken, formerly, and until 
1S89, as a Whig and Republican, since 
which date he has been a zealous adher- 
ent and pronounced champion of the Pro- 
hibition party, who in 1895 nominated 
him as a candidate for representative, con- 



C0MMEM0UA7 IVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



4S1 



gressman and mayor of Marinette, in run- 
ning for wfiich latter office became in 600 
ahead of his ticket, and within 69 votes of 
success. In matters of rehgion he has 
also all his life exhibited much zeal and in- 
terest, and on three different occasions he 
was a member of the General Assembly 
of the Presbyterian Church of the United 
States. In early times, when there was 
no minister at hand. Dr. Sherman fre- 
quently conducted funerals, giving out the 
hymn and offering up prayer. In 1864 
he took a ten-weeks' trip south, visiting 
Natchez, Miss., and had a rather un- 
pleasant experience, being taken for and 
arrested as Lycurgus Sherman, who was 
" wanted " by the government. He was 
held in custody some twelve hours, when, 
his papers having been examined, he was 
discharged, and afterward treated with 
many marks of respect at the hands of both 
the general in command and the provost- 
marshal. The Doctor had gone to Natchez 
for the purpose of taking charge of a con- 
fiscated plantation for Dr. Hall, of Marin- 
ette, and while there practiced medicine. 
At the end of about four weeks he was 
taken sick, which necessitated his return 
north. 

In connection with his general prac- 
tice the Doctor has attended several hun- 
dred cases of smallpox, in which he had 
some experience in his student days in Chi- 
cago, and has met with remarkable suc- 
cess in combatting that loathsome disease. 
During the war of the Rebellion he was a 
firm adherent of the Union cause, giving 
patrioticall}' of both his means and influ- 
ence, and his entire life has been one of 
beneficence, loyalty and honor. 



JOHN J. ANDREW, Mayor of Marin- 
ette, has resided in that cit}' since 
1879, at which time he entered the 
employ of the Marinette Iron Works 
as bookkeeper and cashier, which position 
he still occupies. 

Mr. Andrew was born in Quebec, 
Canada, February 20, 1850. Four years 



later Mr. Andrew's father and mother 
removed to Montreal, where the latter, 
now a widow, still resides. His father. 
Mr. Joseph Andrew, was a government 
contractor and builder. Several public 
buildings still remain in Montreal as testi- 
monies of his work. 

The subject of this sketch was brought 
up and received his education in Mon- 
treal. In 1875 he was married to Miss 
Christina Blair. After his father's death 
in 1879, as already stated, he removed to 
Marinette, where he entered the employ 
of the Marinette Iron W'orks Co. 

In his political affiliations Mr. Andrew 
is a stanch Republican, and has co-op- 
erated with that part}' ever since coming 
to the States. In 1S90 he was elected 
alderman from the Third ward, and in 
1893 chairman of the Board of County 
Supervisors. In 1894 he was elected 
Mayor, and again in 1895 ^^'^^ returned 
to the same office, whose duties, his re- 
election shows, he discharged in a most 
acceptable manner. 

Mr. Andrew is a member of Marinette 
Lodge No. 182, F. & A. M., and Chapter 
No. 57, R. A. M., the Royal Arcanum and 
Modern Woodmen. FJoth Mr. Andrew 
and his wife are members ol the Episcopal 
Church. 



CW. STOELTING, M. D., who 
for the past several years has en- 
gaged in the practice of his pro- 
fession in Oconto, Oconto count}', 
is a native of Indianapolis, Ind., born in 
1853, and is a member of a pioneer family 
of Sheboygan count}', Wisconsin. 

Christian William Stoelting, father of 
our subject, was born in German}' in 
1823, and came to this countr}' about the 
year 1840, first locating in Indianapolis, 
Ind., where he married Franciska Louisa 
Schmidt, who was born in 1S35, also in 
the Fatherland, coming to the United 
States in 1837. About the year i854the 
family came to Wisconsin, settling in the 
woods of Sheboygan count}', which was 



4S2 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



then thinly settled, and here the father 
opened up a farm which had been partly 
cleared. They made a permanent home 
on this tract, and here both parents still 
reside, having lived to witness many re- 
markable changes in the country around 
them. They had a large famil)-, consist- 
ing of sixteen children, as follows: Dr. 
C. W. ; Ferdinand L. , a tinner and hard- 
ware merchant at Storm Lake, Iowa; 
Paulina, who married Herman Martin, 
and died in 1888, at Storm Lake, Iowa; 
Edward, a carpenter, residing at Schaller, 
Iowa; Conrad, who died, in 1879, at She- 
boygan, W'is. ; Dina Louisa (who married 
Herman Martin, the husband of her sister 
Paulina, deceased), of Storm Lake, Iowa; 
Anna Margaretha (Mrs. Adolph Rehm), 
who resides in Sheboygan county. Wis. ; 
Christian (twin of Anna Margaretha), 
deceased in infancy; Matilda (Mrs. John 
Kuttercr), of St. Louis, Mo.; Amelia 
Barbara, of St. Louis, Mo. ; Meta Char- 
lotte, also of St. Louis, Mo. ; August 
Theodor Albert, married and has his 
home in Sheboygan. Wis. ; Lydia Helena, 
of Storm Lake, Iowa; Sarah (Mrs. John 
Hemiingi. of Sheboygan, Wis. ; Benjamin, 
studying for the ministr\- at the " Missions 
Haus," a German Seminary in that coun- 
ty; and Otto Walter, living with his 
brother, Ur. C. W. 

C. W. Stoelting was reared to agricul- 
tural life in Sheboygan count}', where he 
received his primary education. For two 
years he attcndetl the Germany Seminary 
in that county, after which he took up 
teaching, following that profession in 
Shcbojgan and Manitowoc counties for 
some years, and then commenced the 
studv nf medicine, .\fter reading for a 
time in the office of Dr. Carl Muth, of 
Sheboygan, he in 1877 entered the Med- 
ical Department of Wooster University, 
Cleveland, Ohio, where he remained one 
year. Reading medicine and teaching for 
another year, he then, in 1879, entered 
Rush Medical College, Chicago, and at- 
tended the medical courses until the spring 
of 18.S1, when he graduated, and in the 



same year commenced the practice of his 
profession, in ' Centerville, Sheboygan 
county. Here he continued to practice 
nearly two years, spending the ne.xt three 
years in practice at Kiel, Manitowoc 
countj', after which he took a trip to 
Europe, devoting a year to study in 
\'ienna and Berlin. On his return he 
located at Appleton, Outagamie county, 
where he engaged in active professional 
work until 1889, since which time he has 
resided at Oconto. Here by his skill he 
has succeeded in building up a good gen- 
eral practice, his personal worth being no 
less a factor in his popularity than his pro- 
fessional ability. He is thoroughly de- 
voted to his profession, and has as fine a 
library as can be found in his section. 

In 18S3 Dr. Stoelting was married, in 
Manitowoc. Wis., to Miss Emma Teitgen, 
a native of that county, and two sons 
have blessed this union — Roland and 
Hugo. Mrs. Stocking's parents, August 
and Rosalia Teitgen, were born in Ger- 
many, and coming to this countrj' settled 
in Manitowoc county. Wis., in pioneer 
days, opening up a farm there. The 
father passed from earth some years ago, 
at the age of sixtj'-five years; the mother 
still makes her home in Manitowoc county. 
Dr. Stoelting is a member of the Fox 
River \'alley Medical Society, of the 
Marinette and Menominee Medical So- 
ciety, and of the American Medical Asso- 
ciation. In fraternal affiliation he is 
connected with Pine Lodge No. 118, F. 
& A. M., Oconto Lodge No. 94, K. of P., 
and with the Royal Arcanum, in which 
latter he is medical examiner for the local 
lodge. In political faith he is a Repub- 
lican. 



DLANE R. HOCKRIDGE, a lead- 
ing representative citizen of Mar- 
inette, was born in Madison 
county, N. Y. , March 2, 1S45, 
and is a son of John D. and Hester A. 
(Rogers; Hockridge. who were also natives 
of that countv. 



COMMEMOIIA rrVE niOCrI!Al'IIICAL RECORD. 



483 



By occupation John D. Hockridgewas 
a farmer, and carried on agricultural pur- 
suits in New York State until called to 
the home beyond, Januar}' 5, 1S67, at the 
age of sixty-five 3'ears. His wife died in 
Morrisville. Madison Co., N. V., Febru- 
ary 13, 1S78, aged si.\t_\--ninc j'ears. 
They had a family of six children, who 
reached mature years, as follows: Charles 
T. , who died in Madison, N. Y., Septem- 
ber I, 1S89, aged sixty years; James M., 
who enlisted in Madison comity as a 
member of the One Hundred and Seven- 
t3'-sixtli N. Y. V. I., served for more than 
a year, and is now living in Oneida county, 
N. Y. ; George W., who was a member of 
the same regiment lor the same length of 
time, has large real-estate mterests near 
and in Morrisville, ^fadison Co., N. Y., 
where he now resides; Sarah 1)., wife of 
Joseph \V. Sladc (they were married in 
Marinette, and now reside in I'ostoria, 
Ohio); Wesley N., who for more than a 
year served in the One Hundred and Sev- 
enty-sixth X. Y. \'. I., and dietl in Mor- 
risville. Madison county, N. Y., Decem- 
ber 9, 1895, aged fifty-two years (he had 
long been a faithful member of the G. A. 
R.); and our subji;ct. 

Duane R. Hockridge was reared in che 
county of his nativity, acciuired his liter- 
ary education in the puldic schools, and 
at the old Oneida (now Central) M. \i. 
Conference Seminar}', located at Caze- 
novia, N. Y., and from earl\' life was 
familiar with farm labor, beginning work 
in the fields as soon as old enough to han- 
dle the plow. But not wishing to carry 
on that lousiness throughout his career, he 
learned the carpenter's trade. In June, 
1 88 1, he arrived in Marinette, where he 
followed his chosen calling for about three 
years, and then engaged in contracting 
and building until 1890. In the spring of 
1882 he was appointed agent of the Bangs 
Estate, then owned by Celestia B. Gil- 
bert, of Washington count}', Minn., a 
cousin of Mrs. Hockridge, and daughter 
of Reuben H. Bangs, of Onondaga county, 
N. Y., which included a valuable property 



in the city of Marinette, portions of which 
ha\e from time to time, as the growth of 
the city has required, been laid out into 
city lots, there ha\'ing been added thereto 
five additions and three sub-di\-isions. 
Since 1882 he has had the entire hand- 
ling of this large estate in Marinette 
count}'. On the death of Mrs. Gilbert, 
which occurred December 31, 1892, he 
was appointed administrator and settled 
the estate to the entire satisfaction of all 
concerned, and is now acting as agent for 
the two daughters, Alice G. Jackso?i and 
Caroline G. Currie, of St. Paul, Minn., 
\vho are the sole heirs to the estate. His 
fourteen-years' connectiim with this busi- 
ness indicates in no uncertain manner his 
fidelity to the trust reposed in him (as he 
has never been asked to give any security), 
and his sujierior biisiness and executive 
ability. 

Mr. Hockridge in the sjiring of 1S95, 
thinking the time had come to put into 
operation a plan that he long had on his 
mind, the introducing of a s\stem of 
walks in Marinette that would supercede 
and excell in man}' ways the old system 
of plank, spent se\'eral weeks in travel 
for the purpose oi obtaining information 
from experts in thai line in the larger 
cities of Wisconsin and Illinois, and in 
correspondence with large manufacturers 
in the East. Several weeks were also 
spent by him in experimenting and put- 
ting the knowledge, thus obtained, into 
practical use. and he then ccjinpleted 
what is known as "concrete comj)Osi- 
tion" or " as|)halt walks," and in the fall 
of 1895 he laid in the cit}' of Marinette, 
over seven thousand feet, nearl}' one-half 
of which was for Marinette count}' on the 
court-house propert}'. It is genc;rally 
believeci that in the near future there will 
be a large amoimt of this walk laid in 
Marinette. In the smnmer of 1881 Mr. 
Hockridge erected a good residence at 
No. 617 South Raymond street, corner 
of Marinette avenue and Gilbert street, 
which was destroved by fire Januar}' 26, 
1882, but rebuilt the following spring, 



4S4 



COyritEilORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and here he has since resided. He also 
has a fine two-story residence at No. 
2615 Hall avenue, which was erected in 
1 89 1. Presiding over his home with 
grace and hospitality is his estimable 
wife, whom he married in Minneapolis, 
Minn., in iSSi, and who in her maiden- 
hood was Miss Hattie E. Lowell, a native 
of Oneida county, N. Y. Their union 
has been blessed with one daughter, 
Gertie R. The parents are faithful and 
devout members of the Methodist Epi- 
pal Church, in which Mr. Hockridge was 
serving as steward at the time of the 
erection of the present house of worship. 
He has always, when favorable oppor- 
tunity afforded, exercised his right of 
franchise in support of the temperance 
cause, and is deeply interested in its 
success. Socially he is affiliated with 
the Temple of Honor. His daughter is a 
member of and an earnest worker in the 
Junior Epvvorth League. Mr. Hockridge 
has made three trips to his old home in 
New York since coming west, first time 
in 1885; second time in the fall of 1889, 
accompanied by his family, soon after 
the death of his brother Charles T. ; the 
third time in December, 1895, to attend 
the funeral of his brother Wesley N. 
The family occupy an enviable position 
in social circles. 



JOHN BIGELOW FAIKCHILD. 
This gentleman, who is distinguished 
as one of the ablest members of the 
legal profession in Marinette county, 
as a thorough scholar and close student, 
as well as a jurist of unblemished integ- 
rity, is a native of the State of Indiana, 
born March 30, 1841. in Newtown. Foun- 
tain county. 

John Fairchild. his father, was a min- 
ister of the Presbyterian Church, and an 
organi/er of the pioneer congregation at 
Marinette, where he preached from 1 863 
to 1S82. He died there April 29, 1885, 
aged eight-one years, leaving a widow, 
whose maiden name was Laura P. Bige- 



low, who died December 15, 1895, at 
the ripe old age of eighty-five years. 

Our subject received his primary edu- 
cation at a private school, and was pre- 
pared for college chiefly under the tuition 
of his father and aunt. Catherine Fair- 
child, a maiden lady, the former of whom 
was a fine mathematician and good lin- 
guist. In September, 1858, John B. 
Fairchild entered Wabash College, an edu- 
cational institution at Crawfordsville.Ind., 
'iiducted under the auspices of the 
I'resbvterian Church, and there con- 
tinued his studies until 1863, when he 
was graduated A. B., a few years la- 
ter receiving his degree of M. A. at his 
Alma Mater. After leaving college he 
entered the employ of R. L. Hall, of 
Oconto, Wis., the county treasurer and 
county surveyor of Oconto county, as- 
sisting him in his work in both offices, 
chiefly in surveying and looking after the 
lands of non-residents, also, during the 
winter of 1864-65, taught school in Mari- 
nette, one term. About this time he 
commenced the study of law in private, 
and afterward continued the study in the 
officeof Judge Levi Hubbell.at Milwaukee, 
assisting occasionally in the office of Fran- 
cis Bloodgood, who for many years has 
been a commissioner in the United States 
Court at Milwaukee. On July 17, 1866, 
he was admitted to the bar of Milwaukee 
county, and a short time thereafter he 
commenced practice at Oconto, Wis., in 
partnership with R. W. Hubbell, son of 
Levi Hubbell, under the firm name of 
HubbelliN; Fairchild, which copartnership 
existed about one year. Mr. Fairchild 
then commenced for his own account at 
the same place, and subsequently, early 
in 1872, formed a partnership with W. 
V. .-Mien, now United States Senator from 
Nebraska, which arrangement continued 
some eighteen months, at the end of 
which time he resumed practice alone. 
On March 9, 1874, he moved to Mari- 
nette and entered into a copartnership 
with his brother Hiram O. Fairchild, 
which was dissolved about December 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



4S5 



10, 1894, since when he has once more 
continued the business alone. Prior to 
this last partnership Mr. Fairchild con- 
ducted a general practice, but shortly 
after its formation drew out of the trial 
of litigated suits, and gave more than 
usual attention to probate and corpora- 
tion law, and for years he has been the 
consulting lawyer for various corpora- 
tions and leading business firms of his 
section. 

On March 6, 1S69, Mr. Fairchild was 
married, in Oconto, Wis., to Miss Nancy 
J. Turner, daughter of Anson and Susan 
H. Turner, and five children were born 
to them, a brief record of them being as 
follows: Albert T., born in 1S73, gradu- 
ated at the Wisconsin State University at 
Madison, summer of i S95 ; Fanny \'., born 
in 1875, graduated at La Salle Seminary, 
Auburndale, Mass., about the same time; 
Jessie A., born in 1879; Martha E., born 
in 1882, and John M., born in 1888; the 
children are all at home. The family at- 
tend the services of the Presbyterian 
Church, of which Mrs. Fairchild is an act- 
ive member. Independent in politics, 
our subject has occasionally held public 
positions of honor and trust, but has never 
been an office-seeker. While a resident 
of Oconto, he was district attorney two 
terms, or four years — from 1868 till 1872 — 
and gave eminent satisfaction. At the 
head of his profession as an able and safe 
counsellor, with the reputation of being 
second to none in all the make-up of a first- 
class jurist, Mr. Fairchild enjoys the con- 
fidence of a wide and respectable clientele, 
and the respect and esteem of the com- 
munity at large. 



CR. JOHNSTON, vice-president 
of the Stephenson National 
l>ank, and one of the most prom- 
inent business men of Marinette, 
has been a resident of the county since 
1 868, when he located at Peshtigo, 
where he was employed as assistant 
bookkeeper of the Peshtigo Company. 



At that time Marinette county was a 
part of Oconto county. He remained 
with the Peshtigo Company until August, 
1 87 1, when he engaged in the mercan- 
tile business at that place. He was 
there during the great fire of 1871, and 
remained in the city during the night, 
saving his life l)y going into the river. 
After the Peshtigo fire he removed to 
Marinette, where in May, 1872, he again 
engaged in nierchantlising. Since that 
time he has been actively engaged in 
business, and success has crowned his 
efforts. He continued in the store until 
July, 1 891, when he entered the bank 
with which he has since been connected. 

Mr. Johnston is a native of Leeds 
County, Canada, born in 1846 f)f Irish 
ancestry, and is a son of Samuel and 
Jane (Rath) Johnston. The Johnston 
family were early settlers of Leeds 
county, Canada, Henry Johnston, the 
grandfather of our subject, being a jiio- 
neer of that locality. Samuel Johnston, 
the father, always resided in his native 
country, and in early manhood was con- 
nected with the militia. His death oc- 
curred in 1847. His wife, who survived 
him, subsefjuently married Edward Web- 
ster and removed to New York, later 
to \'ermont, where she died in 1890, at 
the age of seventy-si.\ years. By the 
first union were two children: C. R. and 
S. H., the latter being the junior mem- 
ber of the firm of Johnston Brothers. By 
the second union there were two children: 
Edward, who resides in Morrisville, \'t., 
and Mrs. Elmer Wade, of the same place. 

The subject of this sketch grew to 
manhood in Leeds county, Canada, and 
was there educated in the public schools. 
On leaving school he was employed as a 
clerk until his removal to Wisconsin in 
I 868. As already stated, since coming to 
this State, he has been actively engaged 
in business, and has been (]uite successful. 
In 1876 he returned to his native coun- 
try and there married Mary Rogers, of 
Gananoque, Leeds county, daughter of 
Samuel and Agnes (Nelson) Rogers, who 



4S6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



were numbered among the pioneers of that 
place. Her father was engaged in mer- 
chandising, and it was at his store that 
our subject first began his business 
career. Both Mr. and Mrs. Rogers are 
now deceased. By this union three chil- 
dren were born: Agnes Louise, Belle and 
Gertrude. Mrs. Johnston died in Jan- 
uary, iS86, and Mr. Johnston remained a 
widower until October, 1 894, when he 
wedded Mary Boyd, of Brockville, Leeds 
Co., Canada, daughter of John and Jane 
(Redmond) Boyd, the former of whom 
was one of the earl\- merchants of Brock- 
ville; he died in 1889; Mrs. Boyd is still 
living. 

■ Notwithstanding his extensive busi- 
ness, Mr. Johnston takes an active interest 
in the political affairs of the State and 
Nation, and his views coincide with those 
of the Republican party. He was the 
first treasurer of Marinette county, ap- 
pointed in 1879. and served three years. 
He has been town clerk, a member of the 
school board, and has filled other local 
positions. Fraternall)' he is a member 
of Olive Branch Lodge. A. F. & A. M.; 
he is also a member of the Business Men's 
Association of Marinette, and of the Mar- 
inette Land Company. As a business 
man he is progressive, aud has ever taken 
an active part in everything that would 
advance the interests of his adopted city 
and country. He is one of the oldest 
merchants in the city of Marinette, and 
his word is as good as his bond. In the 
development of the count)' no man has 
been more actively engaged, and none 
have contributed more largely to its suc- 
cess. Genial and courteous in his man- 
ner, he wins the co.nfidence and the good 
will of all with whom he is brought in 
contact. 



ORACK KDWIN MANN, M. D., 
one of the most enterprising and 



M 

I I useful citizens of Marinette, Mari- 
nette county, by virtue of his 
prominent position as a successful and 



popular physician, is deserving of special 
notice in the pages of this \'olume. 

He is a native of \'crmont, born April 
23, 1844, son of Elisha Mann, Jr.. of 
Braintree, Orange county, descended from 
Richard Mann, whose name appears in the 
Colonial records as one of the thirty-two 
persons who'took the "oath of fidelity" 
at Scituate, Mass., in 1644, and as one of 
twentj'-six persons who received from 
Timothy Hatherly, the Conihasset grant 
of land in 1646. The Doctor belongs to 
the eighth generation of the decendants 
of Richard. Representatives of the fam- 
ily are found in all parts of the United 
States, many of them distinguished, and 
holding honorable positions of trust and 
responsibility — Dr. James Mann, a sur- 
geon in the Revolutionary army; Hon. 
Horace Mann, who succeeded John Ouincy 
Adams in Congress, and later President of 
Antioch College; Cyrus Mann, eminent 
as a New England clergyman; and Hon. 
Abijah Mann, member of Congress dur- 
ing Andrew Jackson's term as Presi- 
dent, have been among the most dis- 
tinguished members of the family. The 
first mention of the Manns in English 
history is of Sir Horace Mann, as Em- 
bassador to the Court of France, un- 
der Oueen Elizabeth. The father of 
the Doctor died when Horace was ten 
years old, leaving his mother and only 
brother, two years \ounger, in ver}' desti- 
tute circumstances. Having two brothers 
of his father in W'isconsin, she, with her 
two boys, left her old home in \'ermont, 
and came to the then " Far West," where 
her late husband's brothers had already 
settled, and located at Fonddu Lac in 1856. 
Here she struggled and worked to give her 
boys an education, which she did until our 
subject was sixteen years of age. She is 
now living with her son at Marinette, en- 
joying a well-earned and beautiful home, 
and a blissful old age which she so richly 
earned by her heroic struggles of earlier 
life. 

The subject of this sketch is one of 
the typical self-made men of the great 




/ 



A 




COMMEMOBA TIVE BIOORAPJUCAL llECOBD. 



4S7 



Northwest, he having by his own unaided 
efforts gained a commanding position in 
life. He received a Hberal education up 
to the age of sixteen, as above stated, at 
which time he received the appointment 
of cleri'; in the Fond dii Lac post office, 
and there remained until 1862. In that 
year the spirit of patriotism being para- 
mount with the young man to all other 
sentiments, and, the war of the Rebellion 
demanding fresh troops, he enlisted in 
Company H, Thirty-second Wis. \'. I., 
with which regiment he saw a considera- 
ble amount of active service. His first 
campaign was in Mississippi under Gen. 
Grant, after which the regiment was de- 
tached on provost duty, our subject 
being assigned to the proN-ost-marshal's 
office at Memphis, Teun., there remain- 
ing till after the capture of Atlanta, when 
he rejoined his regiment and took part in 
Sherman's march to the sea. On the ar- 
ri\al of the " Thirty-secnnd " at Beaufort, 
S. C"., in December. i.S()4, Private Mann 
was conmiissioned adjutant, with rank of 
first lieutenant, of the First Mississippi 
Mounted Rifles, by special order of the 
Secretary of War, in which position he 
served till the close of the war, and was 
mustered out in July, 1S65, having served 
some three years, during which period he 
encountered many hardships, and parti- 
cipated in all the engagements around 
Savannah. During his entire service he 
enjoyed fair health, being incapacitated 
for duty only two weeks, and for discipline 
in the discharge of his duty no soldier 
of the Union army l)ore a better record. 
After receix'ing an honorable discharge 
Lieut. Mann returned to Fond du Lac, 
and during part of the years 1865-66 
found employment under an uncle in the 
hmiber woods; then conducted a hotel, 
"The Angier House," at New London 
on behalf of the owner, a Mrs. Lutsey. 
This was in 1S66, and same year he 
bought and operated a meat market, 
which he continued until some time in the 
following }ear, when he was again offered 
and accepted a position in the Fond du 



Lac post office. It was about this time 
(1868) that he C(jnnnenced the study of 
medicine in tlie office of Dr. T. F. May- 
ham, in Fond du Lac, umler whose pre- 
ceptorshi]:) he remained fi\e years, at the 
end of which time he entered Rush Med- 
ical College, Chicago, graduating; in 1874 
at Long Island Hospital Medical College, 
same }'ear connnencing regular practice 
in Marinette, Wis., where he has since 
remained. In 1883 the Doctor estab- 
lished the Menominee River Hospital, 
Drs. Stuart and Mariner becoming his 
})artners in the enterprise; in 18S9 the 
institution was reorganized an<j a st^ck 
comjiany formed. The hospital, which is 
situated on Main street, has thirt}- beds, 
and the average number of [latieiits is 
;il)out eighteen. 

In |une, i86y. Dr. Mann was mar- 
ried to Miss Flora A. Tracy, of Fond du 
Lac, and four children were born to them, 
\\'/.. : Fred Fugene, now in the employ of 
the Chicago Street Railway .\d\'ertising 
Co., Chicago: \N'illiam H., at present a 
student at the \\'isconsin State Uni\er- 
sily, Madison W'is. ; a son that died when 
fdiM' months old; and Ida I'lura, who 
died at the age of five 3'ears. In his po- 
litical preferences the Doctor is a Repub- 
lic.'in. casting his first \(_>te in 1864 for 
Abraham Lincoln in Atlanta, Ga., and 
at the time of the orgamzation of Mari- 
nette county he served as county superin- 
tendent of schools three years; was ald- 
erman of the city three years, and was 
president of the common council during 
his term of office; lu; has also been a 
member of the Republican State Central 
Committee two years. Socially the 
Doctor has been affiliated with the F. & 
A. M. since 1886, and is a Knight Temp- 
lar; was master of his Lodge three \ears, 
high priest of the Royal Arch Cliapter 
three _\ears, and grand high priest of the 
Grand Chapter one ^ear; he is also a 
member of the Knights of Pythias, and 
was first chancellor commander of the 
Lodge, one year; he is identified with the 
i G. A. R., and member of the Loj'al Le- 



4SS 



COMMEMORA TfVK BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



gion and with various insurance organiza- 
tions. In religious faith he is affiHated 
with the Episcopal Church at Marinette, 
and since taking up his residence in the 
city ho has always taken a decided stand 
in favor of education, as well as all enter- 
prises tending to the advancement and 
prosperity of the community at large of a 
city that, at the time of his coming here, 
numbered but fifteen hundred souls, and 
has now a population of sixteen thousand. 
Dr. Mann has not only seen the rise and 
progress of Marinette, but has also ma- 
terially assisted it in its phenomenal 
growth; and, individually, has built him- 
self up an enviable record not only as a 
physician, but also as a useful, loyal and 
highly-esteemed citizen. 



CH.MvLES D. POST. Among the 
county officials of Oconto county 
none are more faithful in the per- 
formance of duty, or more worthy 
of the trust reposed in them, than this 
gentleman, who is serving as clerk of the 
court and register of probate. He is one 
of Wisconsin's native sons, his birth 
having occurred in Rock county in 1.S56. 
His father, Isaiah Post, was a native 
of New York, and on leaving that State 
took up his residence in Ohio, whence he 
came to Wisconsin. Taking up his resi- 
dence in Kock county, he there married 
Miss Susan Cheflings. a native of Eng- 
land. He gave his attention to the 
milling business until 1S55, when became 
to Oconto, and here entered the lumber 
trade. In the following year he was 
joined by his family, and he continued 
his residence in Oconto until 1S63, when 
he located in Appleton, and purchased a 
farm, upon which he lived until 1871. 
He then began the develo|iment of a 
farm in Maple X'alley township, Oconto 
county, whereon he continueti his resi- 
dence until his death in 1891. He took 
quite an active interest in politics, sup- 
porting the Democracy, and during the 
Civil war he joined a Wisconsin regiment. 



in 1 864, for the one-hundred-days' service. 
His wife passed away on the homstead 
farm in 1887. In their family were the 
following children: Charles D. ; George 
W., who resides in Duluth, Minn., and 
Mrs. Etta A. Mills, of Maple Valley 
township. 

Mr. Post, the subject proper of this 
review, was reared in Oconto and Apple- 
ton, and obtained his education in the 
public schools of those places. With the 
family he located in Maple \'alley town- 
ship among its early settlers, and aided 
in the development of a good farm. He 
has always been connected more or less 
with agricultural interests, and is now 
the owner of a highly-improved tract of 
lanti in that te>wnship. He also carried 
on lumbering, and his carefully managed 
interests have brought to him a comfort- 
able competence, which he justly merits. 
He has witnessed almost the entire 
growth of his section of the State, and 
takes a commendable pride in its ad- 
vancement and progress, while in the 
work he has been an important factor. 

Mr. Post was married in Maple X'alley 
township, in 1880, to Mi.ss Hattie John- 
son, a native of Oconto county, and a 
daughter of Richard and Ellen Johnson. 
Her father was born in Ohio, and cast 
his lot with the pioneer settlers of Oconto 
county at an early da\'. During the Civil 
war he served as a member of the Union 
army; his death occurred in 1882. His 
wife was a resident of Oconto Falls. Mr. 
and Mrs. Post have a family of seven 
children, namely: Florence, Clarence, 
Mertic, Everett, Clinton, Nellie and 
Harry. 

In his social relations, Mr. Post is 
connected with (~)conto Lodge, No. 94, 
K. P., and with the Modern Woodmen 
of .America. His political support is un- 
swervingly given to the Republican party, 
and for five years he served as a member 
of the school board, the cause of educa- 
tion finding in him a warm friend. In 
1893 and 1894 he was elected chairman 
of Maple \'ailey township, but resigned 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAriUCAL ni-X'OHD. 



489 



to enter upon his duties as clerk of the 
court of Oconto county, in January. 1895. 
In Aufjust, following, he was ap[)ointed 
register of probeite, and has most accept- 
ably filled these positions. 



P.ATKICK CIJFFORl), deputy col- 
lector (if internal revenue at Mar- 
inette, has acceptably tilk'd that 
jiosition since July, 1893, and is a 
valued citi/en, ever true to a trust, 
whether public or private. He was horn 
in Columbus, Ohio, December |i), 1854, 
and is a son of Martin and Margaret 
(McNutley) C'lil'ford, both natives of the 
l''.nierald Isle. When a j-oung man the 
father located in ()iiiii .in<l was married 
in Chillicothe, that State. In 1857 he 
arrived in Wisconsin, locating in Dodge 
county, near W'atertown, and secured 
employment with the Chicago, Milwau- 
kee & St. Paul Railroad Co. H(> was 
not long permitted toenjov his new home 
for his death occurred in 1S58. His 
widow still resides in |uneau. Dodge 
counts . 

Mr. Clifford of this review was only 
three j'ears of age when brought by his 
parents to the l^adger State. He was 
reared in Dodge county, and became 
familiar with the conniion h'nglish 
branches of learning in the schools of 
Clymore. lie came to Marmette in 1872 
when a \'oung man of cightecMi years, and 
entered the employ of the II. Whitbeck 
Lumber Company, with which he was 
connected for niui- years. A long con- 
tinued service well indicates fidelity to 
duty and faithful work, and this Mr. 
Clifford rendered his employers. On 
leaving that comjjany he secured a posi- 
tion with the Milwaukee cS: Northern 
railroad as foreman, and abandoned his 
work in that tlirection on his election to 
the office of sheriff of Marinette county. 
His political support is stanch, living to 
the Democracy, and by that party he was 
elected in the fall of 1888 to the Cieneral 
Asseuibly for a term of two years. He 



was afterward elected chief of police for 
one year and is now devoting his time 
and energies to the labors that devolve 
upon him as internal revenue collector. 
In 1879 in Dodge county, was con- 
sunnnated the marriage of Mr. Clifford and 
Mary Ann O'Coimor, a native of that 
county, and a daughter of James and 
Ellen (Duffy) O'Connor, who were na- 
tives of Ireland, and pioneers of Dodge 
comity, where they opened up a farm. 
There the mother still makes her home, 
but the father has departed this lifi'. Mr. 
and Mrs. Clifford have four idiildren — 
Martin, Pat. l)a\id and Mar}-. The par- 
ents are members of the Roman Catholic 
Church, and Mr. Clifford belongs to the 
Catholic Knights, I'lranch N(j. 5. He 
has been prtiminenlly connected with the 
political history of Marinette county, and 
now i)residcs over a district that includes 
Door, Brown, Kewaunee, Oconto, Mar- 
inette ,uid h'lorencc. He is one t)f the 
well-known men of this section of the 
State, and \ery popular with all. 



DJ. Me.XLLISTER, superintend- 
ent of the N. Ludington Wood 
business, ;nul president of the 
1 Wown-George Lumber Co. (or- 
gani/e<! in 1892), is a gentleman of great 
piomineuce in lumber circles in Wiscon- 
sin. He came to Marinette in 1868, and 
commenced work in the woods for the 
N. Ludington Co. Part of the first two 
years he drcne a team, but, his employers 
being (piick to note and reward merit and 
abilit}', he was made a foreman in the 
woods before the two years had expired, a 
position he held for several years. He 
then took charge of similar work for the 
T. W. Harver Lumber Co., for ti\e jears, 
leaving that concern to accept the general 
superintendency of the work in the woods 
for his first employers, the N. Ludington 
Co. He has from one hundred to three 
hundred men under his charge. 

Mr. McAllister came to Marinette 
from New Brunswick, Canada. He was 



49° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



born in 1847, in Kilmarnock, Scotland, 
son of Donald and Flora (McKilvj) Mc- 
Allister, who were natives of the Island 
of Arran. The father was reared and 
married in Scotland, and in an earh" day 
•emigrated to New Brunswick, settling on 
and developing a farm. After a residence 
in that province for a number of years 
both parents came to Marinette, Wis., 
where the father died February 12, 1892, 
and the mother May 20, 1S88. They 
reared a family of six children, as follows: 
Archibald, residing in Marinette; John, in 
Tacoma, Wash.; D. J., subject of this 
sketch; Willie, Peter (a merchant) and 
Mary, all three residents of Marinette. 

D. J. McAllister was reared and edu- 
cated in New Brunswick. At the age of 
twenty-two he came to Wisconsin, and 
with the exception of the five years noted 
above has been with the Ludington Co. 
ever since. At the time he came to the 
West there were no railroads in operation, 
and towns of 500 or 1,000 inhabitants 
were regarded as large and llourishing 
places. Telegraphs and electricity, as 
necessary adjuncts to civilisation and mod- 
ern progress, were entirely unknown. In 
1878 he was married, at Marinette, to 
Miss Elizabeth Stitt, who was born in 
Ottawa, Canada, daughter of James and 
Catherine (Oakcsj Stitt. Grandfather 
and Grandmother Oakes were both born 
in England, whence they emigrated to 
Canada, where he died in 1868. In 1871 
Mrs. Stitt came to Marinette, in 1880 
moving to Portland, Oregon. To Mr. 
and Mrs. D. J. McAllister four children 
were born — Flora, Catherine Eva, James 
Archibald and John. 

.-\s might be reasonably expected from 
a man of his character and "push," Mr. 
McAllister takes a lively interest in all po- 
litical matters, and is an active worker for 
the success of the Republican party. He 
is a member of Marinette Lodge No. 182, 
F. & A. M., and of Marinette Command- 
ery No. 26. Both he and his wife are 
members of the Presbjterian Church. In 
■connection with the superintendency of 



theN. Ludington Co., Mr. McAllister 
does an extensive logging business for him- 
self. He is a bright and genial self-made 
man, whom every one likes, and has been 
prosperous in his business career, having 
amassed a comfortable competency. 



ILLIAM A. ELLIS, superin- 



tendent and general manager of 



y V the Peshtigo Lumber Co., es- 
tablished in Peshtigo, Marinette 
county, in 1856, as the " Peshtigo Co. ," 
has been a resident of that cit)' fornearh' 
forty years. 

Mr. Ellis is a native of the Stale of 
Maine, where it is said they "raise men" 
in preference to other crops, he having 
been born April 23, 1828, in Topsham, 
Sagadahoc county, a son of William and 
Miranda (Pattee) Ellis, also natives of the 
" Pine Tree State." In 1875 the parents 
came to Peshtigo — some eighteen years 
after the son-;— where the father, who was 
a blacksmith by trade, died in 1884, the 
mother following him to the grave nine 
years later. They reared a family of five 
children, to wit: James T. , residing in 
Canada; William A., our subject; Robert, 
who died in Oconto, Wis.; Charles J., a 
resident of Marinette; and Oakman, who 
is in the emplo)' of the Oconto Lumber Co., 
at Oconto. 

Our subject received a liberal educa- 
tion in the public schools of Maine, and 
prior to coming to the then "Far West" 
was engaged principally in mercantile 
business in the village of Stillwater (Old- 
town township), Maine, whither his parents 
had removed. In 1S57 he came to Wis- 
consin (the journey from Chicago to Pesh- 
tigo occupying thirteen days), and at once 
took up his home in Peshtigo, being given 
charge of the store and books of the Pesh- 
tigo Co., m which connection he continued 
up to 1868, in that year being entrusted 
with the general management of the en- 
tire business. When Mr. Ellis first be- 
came connected with the concern Thomas 
H. Beebe, of Chicago, was president, and 




"^.MlA 



4 



COMMEMOUATIVK niOQUAPUICAL llECOUD. 



■+9'' 



a large sawmill had been built during the 
winter of 1H57-58, operations tluu'ein 
being coinnicnced in 1S5S. In the winter 
of I iSf)" this mill was destroycil liy tire, 
and the same season the eompany bmlt a 
steam-mill at Peshtigo Harbor, the largest 
mill of any kind in that section. This 
was started np in |S()8, and is still cutting , 
lumber; a small mill was also erected at 
Peshtigo, which was burned in the liie ol 
1 87 1, as was also the store and e\cry 
other building in Peshtigo \illaL;e, The 
company's jiresent store v\'as at onct- built 
on the foundation of tlii' old one. and 
the ])resent mill was erected without 
an\' delay — in fact the same year. With 
an enterprise wortlu' of the coni|)aii\' 
and their tnanager, and a]t(i;;ellu'r un- 
aided b}' the ("lovernment. the)' built a 
harbor aiul wharves for the loading and 
unloading of vessels, and were the lirst tn 
adopt the barge system of transportation, 
e\-entually becoming owners of a ]iower- 
ful steam-tug and six barges, tin; ax'erage 
"tow" being one million feet of lumber, 
and The Peshtigo Co. sold its entire 
" cut " in their own vard at Chicago. An 
average of ti\'e hundred nu'n arc employed 
In' the Pesliti,L;o I^umber Co. , a lact in 
itself testifying to the e.xtent of the in- 
dustry. 

In addition to his responsible duties as 
general manager of a concern of such 
magnitude, Mr. lillis also deals ami has 
considerable interest in jiine lands; and 
taken all in all he is one of the busiest of 
business leaders in his part of the State. 
Like most of the substantial men of this 
section, he came early and has renuained 
to see his former home in the wilderness 
converted into a hi\'e of industry; to wit- 
ness also the swee[>ing away of the then 
village by the merciless fury of lire, and 
Phftnix-like to rise triumphant from its 
ashes. As one of the oldest businessmen 
of Peshtigo, no oni' is more widely known 
in northeastern Wisconsin, and no <-)ne is 
more highly esteemed and respected. 

In 1852 William A. Ellis was united in 
marriage with Miss Helen Keyncjlds, also 



a native of Maine, daughter of Stejihen 
Ke\-nolds, who lirst saw the light in that 
State, where he died and where his 
widow, Amelia 1'. (l)a\is) l\e\iuilds, is 
yet li\ing. To this union were born two 
<diildren, lioth sons: ICdward, who died 
in Peshtigo, in i88.|, and William A., 
Jr., cashier <if the Peshtigo Lmnber Co. 
Politically a Republican, our subject 
takes an active interest in tln' affairs ni 
the party. In addition to his business 
engagemcmts, lie has been i^alled to many 
positions of trust, among which ma\' be 
mentionetl those of ti'easurer of Peshtigo 
to\\nship (which be held some ten \earsi, 
and chairman of the townshi]) e\er since 
the organization nl Mai'iiiette count)-, 
b'rom 1837 to 1S73 he sei-\-e(l as jiost- 
master at Peshtigo, tilling all the incum- 
bencies entrusted to him with e.xcc-iitional 
cai'e and acknowledged al>ility. In 18S0 
he was nominated and elected to repre- 
sent Marinette county in the Senate 
during the years 1881 82. As a business 
man his rc'coni is without stain, and 
whether in jn'i ispi;rity or adxersitv Mr. 
r.llis lias e\'er been uprii;lit, conscientious 
and hou'.irable, ami that lie has held his 
share of ].)ublic and pri\ate conlidence 
and esteem the ri'cord of his life alone 
makes manifest. 



STAFFORD P. JONICS, M. I)., one 
of the leading and enu'nentl\' siic- 
cessliil phj'sicians of Marinett<:, 
county, has been a respected and 
exemplary resident of lliecit\- of Marinette. 
Marinette county, f'lr the |)ast twent\- 
se\'en years, and ha^ built up a rejiiit.at ii hi 
Second to none in his jirofi^ssiou. 

.\ natixeiif the Stati' of \ew ^'(lrk. \\c 
was born May 10. 18,44, 'i' Onecnta. Ot- 
sego county, a son i>f .S.imiiel |iines, a 
blacksmith by trade, whu, in 1845. came 
with his wife and iwn children — StalToid 
P. and Marv hum ( )iieonta to Wiscon- 
sin, locatiu.gin Ta\(lieeilah, I'oud du L.ic 
county. Here he lolloweil his tr.ide 
twelve 3'ears, and then remo\'ed to Chilton. 



492 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPHTCAL RECORD. 



Calumet county, where he continued 
blacksniithing until February, 1862, the 
time of his enlistment in Company G, 
Fourteenth Wis. \'. I., in which he ser- 
ved nearly three years, durinjj that time 
participatinj; in the battles of Pittsburg 
Landing and C'orinth. In October, 1864, 
on account of sickness contracted while in 
the discharge of his duties, he returned to 
his home, and died the following month; 
while in the army he was detailed as 
hospital steward. His widow, whose 
maiden name was Laura Potter, and who 
was a native of Oneonta, N. V. , died at 
Chilton, Calumet Co., Wis., in March, 
1889. 

The subject proper of this memoir re- 
ceived his litcrar}' education at the schools 
of Taycheedah and Chilton, Wis., in 
which latter city he commenced the studj' 
of medicine under the preceptorship of 
Dr. David LaCount, with whom he con- 
tinued until October, 1866, in that year 
entcringChicago Medical College, Chicago, 
where he remained as a student until March 
7, 1868, and graduated March 7, 186S. At 
once coming to Marinette, W'is., he com- 
menced the practice of his chosen pro- 
fession in that thriving city, and has since 
met with well-merited success. At one 
time he was attached, as medical attend- 
ant, to two hospitals — the " Wisconsin " 
and " Michigan " and what is now the 
"St. Joseph," formerly tlie " Provident 
Hospital," and since retiring from those 
incumbencies he has devoted himself ex- 
clusively to his wide and successful labors 
in the medical field as a general practi- 
tioner. 

On March 15, 1868, Dr. Stafford P. 
Jones and Miss Mar)" Brabant were united 
in marriage at Chilton, Wis., and two 
children, both daughters, have come to 
brighten their home: Mae B. and Maude 
D. , both at home. Politically our subject 
is a Republican; socially he is a member 
of the F. & A. M., Blue Lodge No. 182, 
Chapter No. 57. and Commandery No. 
26; he has officiated as scribe in the Chap- 
ter and as generalissimo in the Command- 



ery, and now is Eminent Commander. The 
Doctor and his amiable family enjoy in an 
eminent degree the respect and esteem of 
a wide circle of friends and acquaintances. 



LG. WALKER, M. D.. a well and 
fa\-orably known physician and 
surgeon, of Marinette county, has 
been engaged in active practice 
there since 1883, havmg his residence m 
the village of Pound of which he was one of 
theh rst permanent residents. The Doctor 
was born July 19. 1843, in Pensacola, 
Florida, son of the once noted Jonathan 
Walker, author of the book known as 
" The Branded Hand," and a native of 
Massachusetts; the mother, Jane (Gage) 
W'alker, was also a native of that State. 
Jonathan Walker was by trade a ship 
builder, and a sea captain for many years, 
cruising principally along the Atlantic 
coast, though he also sailed to European 
ports. He was an ardent .Abolitionist, a 
disciple of the principles promulgated and 
upheld by the famous William Lloyd Gar- 
rison. For a few years the family re- 
sided in\'crmont, in 1852 migrated thence 
to the new State of Wisconsin, locating 
in Fond du Lac. Captain Walker fol- 
lowed his trade for some time, later for a 
few years living on a farm in Sheboygan 
county. Wis., but he finally removed to 
Lake Harbor, Mich., where he opened up 
a small fruit farm and resided up to his 
death which occurred April i, 1887; his 
wife died in the year 1881. They raised 
a famil)- of children, of whom we give a 
brief record: John, the eldest, who fol- 
lowed his father's vocation, that of a sea 
captain, resides in Plymouth, Mass. ; Al- 
tornea (Mrs. Chase) has her home in 
Plymouth, Mass. ; Nancy (Mrs. Elisha 
Cha.se) lives in Fairhaven, Mass. ; Sophia 
(Mrs. Zedock Chase) resides at Cape Cod, 
Mass. ; Mrs. Mary Lucas is a resident of 
Iowa; Maria C. (Mrs. Underbill) lives in 
the town of Lyndon, Sheboygan Co., 
Wis. ; George resides in Milwaukee, Wis. ; 
William lives in North Crandon, F'orest 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOEAPIHCAL RECORD. 



493 



Co., Wis.; is also engaged in the practice 
of medicine and is a very noted and skill- 
ful surgeon. 

Dr. L. G. Walker, the subject proper 
of this biography, was reared in Vermont 
up to his ninth year, and received his 
early education in the common schools 
therein and also in Fond du Lac and 
Sheboygan counties, Wis. During his 
youth and early manhood he was en- 
gaged in farming and lumbering, con- 
tinuing to follow those pursuits un- 
til he commenced the study of med- 
icine, with the exception of the time 
he was in the service of his country 
during the Civil war. He enlisted De- 
cember 19, 1862, at Grand Haven, Mich., 
for three years, and was mustered into 
the service at Kalamazoo, Mich., as second 
sergeant of Company B, F"irst Michigan 
Sharpshooters, which was attached to the 
Ninth Army Corps, and assigned to the 
Army of the Potomac. He was engaged 
in the battles of the Wilderness, Cold 
Harbor, Spottsylvania and Petersburg, and 
all the battles before Richmond. Va. ; at 
Spottsylvania he was wounded by a shell 
while charging the Rebel works. He par- 
ticipated in the grand review at Washing- 
ton, D. C, and was honorably discharged 
as second lieutenant at [ackson, Mich., in 
1865, returning to Grand Haven, Mich., 
remaining there for a short time, thence 
to Black Creek, Outagamie Co., Wis. In 
1873 he took up the study of medicine 
under a preceptor by the name of Adolph 
Rheinhart, being with him up to 1875; 
then was under another preceptor by the 
name of Dr. William Daniels, for another 
year. He then graduated from the Med- 
ical School at Ann Arbor (Mich.) Univer- 
sity, and in the year 1880 took a post- 
graduate course at the Bennett Medical 
College, Chicago. In 1881 the Doctor 
located at Pound, Wis., his present home. 
The railroad had not yet been extended 
to that point, and his dwelling was one of 
the first erected there, the site being first 
cleared of timber, which at that time 
covered it. 



In 1866 Dr. Walker was married, in 
Sheboygan county. Wis., to Miss Sarah 
H. Pierce, who was born in the State of 
Massachusetts, daughter of John T. 
Pierce, a native of the same State. In 
an early day he came to Wisconsin and 
opened up a farm in Sheboygan county, 
whereon he resided for a number of years. 
He is now a member of the Soldiers' 
Home at Waupaca, Wis., in a very feeble 
state of health; his wife died some eight 
years ago; during the Civil war he was a 
member of the Fourth Wisconsin Cavalry. 
To Dr. and Mrs. Walker were born seven 
children, viz. : Franklin, the eldest, died 
at the age of two years; George, living; 
Frances (now Mrs. Ketchum) resides, at 
present, at Pound, Wis. ; Warren died at 
the age of five years; Emma, living; 
Harry, also died at the age of five years; 
and Freda, the youngest, is living. 

Politically, Dr. Walker is a stanch 
Republican, and has served as a member 
of the Board of Education for a number 
of years; has also held many positions of 
honor and trust. Socially, he is a mem- 
ber of A. H. SizerPostNo. 207, G. A. R. , 
of Maiinette, Wis. Although his resi- 
dence in Wisconsin has not yet been a 
long one, comparatively speaking, yet the 
Doctor has made many friends and gained 
the good will and respect of all with 
whom he has come in contact, being 
thoroughly respected and honored wher- 
ever known. 



IVl 



ILTON D. BRYCE, city attor- 
ney of Marinette, is one of the 
younger members of the bar 
of Marinette county, but has 
already manifested an ability that has 
won him recognition among leading at- 
torneys, and indicates a bright future. 
He was born in St. Clair county, Mich., 
September 30, 1863, and is a son of C. D. 
and Addie M. (Draper) Bryce, the former a 
native of Canada, the latter of Macomb 
county, Mich. The father was reared in 
the Wolverine State, has for many years 



494 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



followed farming in St. Clair county, and 
has served as postmaster at Lynn. Both 
he and his wife are still living, and are 
held in high esteem in the community in 
which they have so long made their home. 

Under the parental roof our subject 
was reared to manhood, and in the inter- 
vals of farm work attended the district 
schools of the neighborhood. At the age 
of eighteen he entered the Romeo High 
School, and was graduated in the class of 
1886, after which he took up the profes- 
sion of teaching, which he successfully 
followed in St. Clair and Macomb counties 
for two and a half years. Desirous of 
gaining a more advanced education, he 
next entered the Northwestern University 
of Evanston, where he pursued a one-year 
literary course. Choosing the law as a 
profession which he wished to make his 
life work, he began his preparatory studies 
in Romeo, Mich., and later entered the 
law department of the University of Michi- 
gan, where he was graduated in the class 
of 1894. He was admitted to practice 
in the supreme court the same year, and 
in July established himself in an office in 
^farinette. 

Mr. Bryce now practices in all the 
courts of Wisconsin and Michigan. He 
located here with a reputation to make, 
but his natural abilities and acquirements 
have well fitted him for his chosen work, 
and he is rapidly forcing his way to success, 
having already gained a practice which 
many an older lawyer might well envy. 
In February, 1895, he vva3 appointed city 
attorney of Marinette, to fill out the un- 
e.xpiredterm of A. E. Mountain, deceased, 
and re-elected the following .\pril. In 
politics he is a Republican, in religious 
faith a Methodist. 



E\]-:RETT CLARK EASTMAN, 
who stands in the front rank of 
the legal profession in northern 
Wisconsin, was born at Lisbon, St. 
Lawrence Co., N. Y. , February 19, 1S59. 
Morgan L. Eastman, father of our 



subject, was also a native of St. Lawrence 
county, and for twent)'-one years was a 
Congregational minister at Lisbon; he 
might be called "the old man eloquent" 
of his day, for he was an orator of supe- 
rior ability, an evangelist of great force of 
character, and was known far and wide. 
He is still living at the advanced age of 
eighty years, retaining the vitality of many 
men of fifty. He resides in Royalton, 
\\'is. , where for twentj'-two years he was 
pastor of a Congregational Church, but 
has lived retired since 1892. His wife, 
who bore the maiden name of Evaline 
Thorpe, died in Rovalton, in August, 
1886. 

Our subject is the youngest in their 
family of nine children, of whom one died 
in infancy, the others being: Mary, wife 
of j. H. Leonard, a merchant of Royal- 
ton; Miriam, wife of George H. Clark, a 
jeweler of Daytona, Fla. ; Samuel E., 
who married Bertha A. Ford, and is now 
acting as assistant pastor of Dr. H. K. 
Beecher's Church at Elmira, N. Y. ; Lucy, 
wife of Dr. John Russell, of Atlanta, Ga. ; 
Luna B., wife of William Edmundson, a 
fruit grower of Daytona, Fla. : Lewis D., 
who wedded Mary Scoville, and resides at 
Menominee, Mich.; and Marcia H.. wife 
of M. C. Phillips, an attorney of Osh- 
kosh. Wis. The Eastman family was 
founded in New England at an early day, 
and was probabl)- of English lineage, 
while the Thorpes were of German ex- 
traction, and belonged to an old New 
York family. 

E. C. Eastman was educated in the 
schools of Royalton, and in Ripon College, 
where he pursued a two-years' course. 
He then continued his studies privately 
for three years, spending the last two 
years in law study with the firm of Howe 
& Tourtellotte, of La Crosse, Wis. He 
was admitted to the bar March 12. 1S79, 
by Judge .A. W. Newman, of La Crosse, now 
one of the justices of the supreme court 
of Wisconsin. Mr. Eastman soon after 
began the practice of his profession in 
New London, Wis., where he remained 



/ 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPmCAL RFAJORD. 



495 



until November, 1879, removing then to 
Kaukauna, where he continued until 
March, 1S83, the date of his arrival in 
Marinette. Here he has built up an ex- 
tensive and successful practice, gaining a 
place with the foremost at the bar in 
northern Wisconsin. As an advocate he 
is earnest and painstaking, and his argu- 
ments are often eloquent, always telling, 
and seldom failing to convince. In Jan- 
uary, 1887, and again in 1888, he was 
elected on the Republican ticket as city 
attorney, and on November 6, 1894, he 
was elected district attorney of Marinette 
county, in which position he is now capa- 
bly serving. His law office, comprising 
three rooms, is elegantly fitted up with 
electrical appliances and steam heat, and 
is the front suite on the second floor of 
the new Stephenson block. For nine 
years Mr. Eastman was associated in busi- 
ness with Arthur E. Mountain, the part- 
nership of Eastman & Mountain having 
been formed January i, 1886, and con- 
tinuing with mutual pleasure and profit 
until January 19, 1895, when Mr. Moun- 
tain died of typhoid fever. He was a 
native of Quebec, Canada, and a brilliant, 
able lawyer, serving as city attorney at 
the time of his death; he was also very 
prominent in social circles. At his death 
he left a widow and four-year-old son. 

Mr. Eastman was married September 
I, 1 88 I, in Pierrepont, St. Lawrence Co. , 
N. v., to Anna L. Leonard, and they 
have three children: Morgan Leonard, 
born in 1884; Luna Katherine, born in 
1889; and Stanley Everett, born in 1S91. 
Mr. and Mrs. Eastman are members of 
the Presbyterian Church, and are held in 



the highest esteem and regat 



the 



community of which they art: worthy 
members. 



GEORGE H. WESTMON has for 
almost a third of a century been 
identified with the history of 
Marinette, and his name is in- 
separably connected witli the commer- 

28 



cial interests of this section of the State. 
He is a self-made man, who owes his 
prosperity in life to tireless energy, reso- 
lute purpose and honorable dealing. 
Steadily has he worked his way upward, 
step by step, until to-day he stands 
among the most eminently successful 
and most honored business men of north- 
ern Wisconsin. He has lived in this 
State since the age of seven years. 

Born in Norway in 1847, he is a son 
of Nels Anderson and Anna Marie West- 
mon, who were also natives of the "land 
of the midnight sun." Reared and mar- 
ried in that country, they continued 
their residence there until 1854, when 
they crossed the Atlantic and located in 
Door county. Wis., where the father 
pre-empted a tract of land and developed 
a good farm. Seven families located in 
Liberty Grove township. Mr. West- 
mon, with the exception of two years 
spent on Chambers Island, continued on 
his first farm until his removal to Green 
Bay. In 1861 lie became a resident of 
Fort Howard, and two years later re- 
moved his famil}' to Freeborn county, 
Minn., where he had previously pur- 
chased land. In 1866, however, he sold 
that property and returned to Green 
Bay, making the journey across the 
country by team. His death occurred 
the same year; his wife died in Fort 
Howard, near Green Bay, in May, 1889. 
This worthy couple had a family of four 
children: The eldest, Andrew, was a 
sailor; in 1861, at Buffalo, N. Y. , under 
the name of Andrew Anderson, he en- 
listed in Company I, One Hundredth N. 
Y. V. I. ; his regiment was assigned to 
the Eastern army, and in an engagement 
he was captured and sent to Libby 
prison, where he died in 1S63. Inger 
Marie is now the wife of John O. Lin- 
quist, of Menekaunee, Wis. George H. 
is the next in order of birth. Caroline is 
now Mrs. M. Clements, and resides in 
Fort Howard, Wisconsin. 

From the age of seven years George 
H. Westmon was reared in Door county. 



496 



COMyiEMOltATIVE BIOOIlAPniCAL RECORD. 



His educational privileges were some- 
what meagre, and he had to go to school 
a distance of two and a half miles 
through the woods. Later, however, he 
attended the Cedar Valley Seminary, at 
Osage, Iowa, and, after entering upon his 
business career, feeling the need of fur- 
ther education, he pursued a course in 
the Green Bay Commercial College. In 
1863 he went with the family to Minne- 
sota and secured a clerkship in the store 
of Frank Hall, in Albert Lea, that State. 
In 1866 he returned to Fort Howard, 
thence coming to Marinette, and has 
since been identified with the business 
interests of that city. He is one of the 
pioneer merchants thereof, and through 
his promotion of commercial activity has 
been an important factor in its upbuild- 
ing. He had visited Marinette in 1861, 
drilling in the Home Guards. When he 
became numbered among its citizens, he 
secured work in the shingle mill, and 
later entered the employ of John O. 
Lindquist, owner of a trading vessel on 
the bay, which carried a line of general 
merchandise, including almost every 
commodity sold, except liquor. For this 
reason it was known as the "Temper- 
ance Trader." Living an industrious 
and frugal life, Mr. Westmon at length 
acquired the capital which enabled him 
to buy out his employer, and he contin- 
ued in the trading business on Green 
bay for three years. In 1871 he opened 
a mercantile establishment on Dunlap 
square, Marinette, which he conducted 
until 1874 when he sold out. In the 
fall of 1877 he went to Chicago, w^here 
he entered the wholesale grocery house 
of McKendley, Gilchrist & Co., in which 
he was employed, until 1S84, as 
traveling salesman, when, the firm re- 
tiring from business, he went with Gray, 
Kingman & Collins, of Chicago, as trav- 
eling salesman with which firm he was 
connected until embarking in his present 
line of business. In connection with Mr. 
Lindquist, under the firm name of Lind- 
quist & Westmon, he established a mer- 



chant-tailoring and general-clothing store, 
and on the admission of Mr. Campbell to 
a partnership, the firm style was changed 
to Lindquist, Westmon & Campbell, 
which is still continued. They are the 
leading merchants in their line in the city, 
carrying a large and complete stock of 
gents' furnishing goods and ready-made 
clothing, also doing a large merchant- 
tailoring business. Any one conversant 
with this line of trade would at once de- 
clare their store to be a credit to the 
city, and the members of the firm to be 
representative business men. 

Mr. Westmon has had several other 
business enterprises; from 1S85 to 1889 
he was the copartner with J. H. Hanra- 
han &Co. , of Stephenson, Mich.; with 
C. E. Bradner & Co., of Powers, Mich.; 
and with K. Lundberg & Co. , of Mene- 
kaunee. Wis. , which firms did a large and 
lucrative business, and made a little money 
for our subject. About the year 1 889 he 
drew out cf these and bought out a gen- 
eral store in Daggett, Mich., which was 
run in his own name, G. H. Westmon, 
of Daggett, Mich., until 1892, when it 
was merged into the G. H. W^estmon 
Lumber Co., of Daggett, Mich., our sub- 
ject holding a large share of the capital 
stock and management. This concern, 
W'hich comprises a sawmill plant, has con- 
ducted a general cedar and lumber busi- 
ness, and furnished employment to a large 
community about Daggett, Mich., in va- 
rious forms for years. He is also con- 
ducting a general store at Daggett, with 
John Dunham, under the firm name of 
W^estmon & Dunham. This and the G. 
H. Westmon Lumber Co. are about the 
only business enterprises at present, he 
having withdrawn from L. W. Westmon 
& Co., Marinette, this fall, by dissolution. 
In 1889, at Powers, Mich., George 
H. Westmon was married to Mary Eliza- 
beth Bradner, a native of Washington 
Island, Door Co., Wis., and a daughter 
of Enos and Sarah (Johnson) Bradner, 
who were pioneer settlers of that Island. 
The father now makes his home with his 



COMMEMOUAriVE BIOailAPinCAL UECORD. 



497 



son, C. E. Bradner, of Powers, Mich., 
but the mother passed away in that place. 
Mr. and Mrs. Westmon attend the Pres- 
byterian Church. He takes an active 
interest in pohtical affairs, and supports 
the Repubhcan party. Socially, he is 
connected with Marinette Lodge, No. 
182, F. cS; A. M. He is pre-eminently 
public-spirited, deeply interested in all 
that pertains to the general welfare and 
to the development and upbuilding of the 
community. He is a thorough, practical 
businessman; one who in his extensive 
operations has followed an honorable 
policy, tliat commands the respect and 
confidence of all. Through the pursuit 
of a persistent purpose, through indefat- 
igable energy, guided by sound judgment, 
he has won a handsome competence. In 
manner he is pleasant, social and genial, 
and his love of sports is manifest in his 
ownership of a fine sailing yacht. He 
has the reputation of being one of tlie 
best sailors on the bay, and he takes his 
greatest enjoyment on the water. He 
and his amiable wife enjoy the respect 
and esteem of all, and their own beauti- 
ful home is the abode of hospitality. 



ANGUS McAllister is the pop- 
ular and efficient county treasurer 
of Oconto county, and is one of 
the leading and influential citizens 
of the community. His genuine worth 
and ability have gained him a prominent 
place in the esteem of his fellow towns- 
men, and his well-directed efforts in busi- 
ness life have brought to him a handsome 
competence. 

A native of New Brunswick, Canada, 
Mr. McAllister was born in Restigouche 
county, April 4, 1S46, and is a son of 
Ronald and Mary (Cook) McAllister, who 
were born of Scottish parents on the 
Island of Arran, just off the Scottish 
coast. Their marriage was celebrated in 
New Brunswick, where they carried on 
farming and weaving. In March, i S94, 
he was called upon to mourn the death 



of his wife, and in December, following, 
he also passed away. Five of their fam- 
ily still survive, namely: John, who re- 
sides in New Brunswick; James, living on 
the old homestead there; Archibald, a 
resident of Oconto township, Oc(jnto 
county; Angus, in Oconto City; and Will- 
iam, who makes his home in Stiles town- 
ship, Oconto county. A sister, Mrs. 
Mary McAllwee, died in Superior, Wis., 
in 1895. 

In the place of his nativity, Mr. Mc- 
Allister, the subject of this sketch spent 
his boyhood days, and in the public 
schools acquired his education. He was 
nineteen years of age when he sought a 
home in Wisconsin, locating in Oconto 
county in 1865. The city of Oconto was 
then a small hamlet, the lumber business 
being about the only industry carried on 
there. He sought and obtained a position 
with A. Eldred Lumber Company, they 
operating a sawmill in Stiles, where he 
remained for eighteen months. He then 
engaged in lumber scaling, and followed 
that vocation until 1884; also engaged in 
buying and selling logs, ties and posts 
for the Oconto Co., and for A. Eldred 
Lumber Co. He is now doing a successful 
business as a real-estate dealer, handling 
farming and lumber lands, and is the 
real-estate agent for the Chicago & North- 
western Railroad Company, and for the 
Northern Land Company. He was en- 
gaged in the fire insurance business, and this 
enterprise has proved to him quite re- 
munerative. He possesses sound judg- 
ment and e.xcellent executive ability, and 
carries forward to successful completion 
whatever he undertakes. He bought and 
improved a fine farm in Stiles township, 
and followed farming a number of years. 

Mr. McAllister was married in Oconto 
township, in 1868, to Miss Rachel F. 
Durgan, a native of Maine, and a daugh- 
ter of Daniel and Mary Ann (Ross) Dur- 
gan. Her parents were born in Scotland, 
and in an early day in the history of this 
State emigrated from Maine to Wiscon- 
sin, spending their last days in Oconto 



49S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



county. Eight children bless the union 
of our subject and his wife, namely: 
Charlie, Alfreda, William, Mary Ann, 
Hattie, Inez, Edward Ronald and Roy. 

In his political views, Mr. McAllister 
is a stalwart Republican, and does all in 
his power to promote the growth and 
insure the success of his party. He has 
held the offices of township clerk, 
assessor, justice of the peace and super- 
visor in Stiles township, and as a member 
of the school board has done effective 
service in the interest of education. In 
November, 1S84, he was the Republican 
nominee for the office of county treasurer 
and elected, and by re-election was con- 
tinued in that position for si.\ years, when 
he was nominated for the State Legis- 
lature. He lost that election, however, 
and in November, 1894, was again elected 
county treasurer, entering upon the duties 
of the office in January, 1895. No more 
capable official has ever served in that 
position. True to every trust reposed in 
him, his honesty is above question, and he 
has the confidence and high regard of all 
with whom he has been brought in con- 
tact. Socially, he is a member of Oconto 
Lodge, No. 190, I. O. O. F. , and of the 
Knights of Pythias, No. 94, Oconto 
Lodge. He attends the Presbyterian 
Church, and has given of his time and 
means to all worthy enterprises or move- 
ments that he believes will benefit his 
fellow-men and promote the best inter- 
ests of his adopted county, with which he 
has long been honorably and closely 
identified. He came to Oconto a poor 
boy, and is a self-made man in the high- 
est sense of the word. 



GARDNER R. BROOKS is one of 
the most highly-respected citi- 
zens of Marinette. He is num- 
bered among the honored pioneers 
who formed the advance guard in the 
march of westward civilization, and also 
took part in another march in which the 
boys in blue planted the stars and stripes 



in the capital of the Southern Confed- 
eracy, and made the Union "one and in- 
separable." 

Mr. Brooks was born near Hanover, 
N. H., in 1825, and is a son of Jeremiah 
and Ori (Miner) Brooks, the former born 
in Marshfield, Mass., the latter in Demp- 
ster, N. H. The father was a carpenter 
and farmer, and, having married, located 
in the Granite State During the war of 
1812 he served with the "Minute Men." 
His death occurred in 1872, and his faith- 
ful wife, with whom he had so long trav- 
eled life's journey, passed away the fol- 
lowing year. They reared a family of 
eight children — si.\ sons and two daugh- 
ters — of whom five are living. Wilder, 
an early pioneer, of Door county. Wis., 
who worked on the harbor of Milwaukee 
in 1843, and now resides in Jacksonport, 
Door county. Byron, who enlisted for 
three years' service, in Company K, 
Twenty-fourth ^^' is. V. I., and was killed 
at the battle of Stone River, December 
31, 1862. Gardner R. is the next younger. 
Mrs. Emma Eliza Cobb died in New 
Hampshire in 1871. Mrs. Oris Butler is 
living in Denver, Col. Luman, who en- 
listed in the Ninth N. H. V. I. during the 
Civil war, and was afterward promoted to 
the rank of captain and then to colonel, 
now resides in Lebanon, N. H. Orin is 
living in Brockton, Mass. Buren died at 
the age of twenty-two. 

Mr. Brooks, the subject of this sketch, 
was reared in his native State and edu- 
cated at the schools of Hanover. At the 
age of seventeen he left home for the Ter- 
ritory of Wisconsin, working in 1843 and 
1844 on the Milwaukee harbor. In the 
following year he came to Peshtigo, Mar- 
inette county (then a part of Brown 
county), and for many years was in the 
employ of the Peshtigo Lumber Com- 
pany. He located in what is now Grover 
township, purchasing eighty acres of tim- 
ber land, which was wholly uncleared, 
but with characteristic energy he began 
its improvement, and placed it under a 
high state of cultivation, continuing to 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGUAPUICAL RECORD. 



199 



make it his home until 1S91, when he 
removed to Marinette. In 1S71, how- 
ever, he saw the work of years swept 
away in a few minutes, for in the great 
Peslitigo lire which occurred in October, 
his home, his barns, his outbuildings, his 
fences and in fact everything that he had 
was destroyed. With a commendable 
courage he put forth e\'ery effort to re- 
trieve his lost possessions, and again make 
his farm a habitable place. 

Mr. Brooks was married in Pcshtigo, 
in 1850, to Miss Jane Mattis, a native of 
New York, and they became the parents 
of si.\ children who are yet living: Henry, 
a resident of Ouinnesec, Mich. ; Mary, 
wife of L. A. Morrison, of Menominee, 
Mich.; Luella, wife of Charles Layden, of 
Iron Mountain; Charles, a resident of 
Oshkosh, Wis. ; Maggie, wife of J. C. 
Eslick, of Iron Mountain, Mich. ; and 
Arthur, who is living in Ouinnesec. Will- 
iam died at the age of twenty-eight, and 
Albert at the age often, and in 1885 Mr. 
Brooks was called upon to mourn the loss 
of his wife, who had been to him a faith- 
ful companion and helpmeet on life's 
journey for thirty-five years. 

During the Civil war Mr. Brooks man- 
ifested his loyalty to the Union by enlist- 
ing at Peshtigo, October 2, 1861, in Com- 
pany F, Twelfth Wis. V. I., and was 
mustered in at Madison, Wis., for three 
years' service. The regiment was assigned 
to the army of the Tennessee, Seventeenth 
Army Corps, and he participated in the 
siege of Vicksburg, went with Sherman on 
the celebrated March to the Sea, and was 
in the Carolina campaign, thus partici- 
pating in some of the most important en- 
gagements of the war. In January, 1864, 
he re-enlisted in the same company and 
regiment, at Natchez, Miss., and con- 
tinued at the front until the preservation 
of the Union was an assured fact. He 
then participated in the most brilliant 
military pageant ever seen on the West- 
ern hemisphere — the grand review in 
W'ashington, D. C. — and was honorably 
discharged in Louisville, Ky., July 16, 



1865, having served for three years and 
nine months. Bravely and unfalteringly 
he followed the old flag, and his war 
record is one of which he may well be 
proud. In Jantiary, 1895, he was elected 
adjutant of Samuel H. Sizer Post, No. 
207, G. A. R., and was a delegate to the 
convention at Green Bay. In politics he 
is a stalwart Republican, takes a deep in- 
terest in political affairs, and has served 
as town superintendent of sciiools, town 
clerk and town supervisor. The duties of 
civil life have always been as faithfully 
performed as were those he discharged on 
Southern battle fields, and during his 
fifty -years' residence in Marinette county 
he has ever been a supporter of all inter- 
ests calculated to promote the general 
welfare. 



LUTHER B. NOYES was a prom- 
inent journalist and lawyer of 
Marinette. He was born in Cin- 
cinnatus, Cortland Co., N. Y., 
December 17, 1830, and was a son of 
Dr. Isaac Noyes, who in 1 842 removed 
to Michigan, and subsequently located in 
Milton, Wis., where he died in 1880, at 
the age of eighty years. The genealogy 
of this branch of the Noyes family dates 
back in the history of this country to the 
year 1620, when the progenitor of the 
family landed on American shores as a 
passenger from the "Mayflower." The 
mother of our subject bore the maiden 
name of Minerva Osgood, and died dur- 
ing the infancy of her son. 

Luther B. Noyes when a child of 
twelve years accompanied his father to 
Wisconsin, and has long been identified 
with the interests of this State. He was 
numbered among the loyal defenders of 
the Union during the Civil war, having 
enlisted in November, 1861, at Sparta, 
Wis., in Company C, Eighteenth Wis. 
V. I., for three years' service. The reg- 
iment was organized at Milwaukee, and 
started for St. Louis, March 30, 1862. 



500 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



Its members participated in the battle of 
Pittsburg Landing, and soon after Mr. 
Noyes contracted an illness which caused 
his honorable discharge the following 
September. He then returned to Mon- 
roe county, Wis , and was elected clerk 
of the circuit court, serving until Janu- 
ary, 1864, when he assisted in raising 
and enlisting Company D, Thirty-sixth 
Wis. V. I., of which he was commis- 
sioned first lieutenant. With his com- 
mand he took part in the campaigns of 
the army of the Potomac, including the 
battles of Fredericksburg, North Ar.na 
and Cold Harbor. I-Iis regiment was 
the only one to ad\ance beyond the en- 
emy's breastwork in the memorable 
charge at Petersburg. While in the rifle 
pits of that place, Mr. Noyes was 
severely wounded in the leg, and sent to 
the field hospital at City Point. He 
was then granted a thirty-days' furlough, 
after which he reported at the hospital at 
Annapolis, Md., but erysipelas set in, 
and he was honorably discharged, having 
faithfully defended the old flag until his 
wounds compelled him to retire. 

On his return to Monroe county, Mr. 
Noyes was appointed county judge, and 
filled out an unexpired term. He after- 
ward became traveling representative for 
the Chicago Ri/'iiluicnii (now the Inter 
Ocean), the Chicago Journal, the Mil- 
waukee Sentinel and the Evening:; Wis- 
consin. He later engaged in journalistic 
labors on his own account, publishing 
the Sliel>oyo;an Herald for about three 
years. In June, 1871, he came to Mari- 
nette and established The Eagle, a 
weekly newspaper, which he published 
most of the time until his decease. He, 
however, sold out in 1875, but re-pur- 
chased the paper in 1880, and continued 
as its editor until 1894. Previous to this 
time it became the property of a stock 
company, which is now styled the Eagle 
Printing Company. He retained an in- 
terest in it until 1894, when he sold out 
entirely and afterward lived retired, en- 
joying the rest which should always fol- 



low an active and useful business career. 
He died April 18, 1895. 

Mr. Noyes was married April 25, 
1 85 5. in Appleton, Wis., to Miss Isabella 
Woodward, a native of S\Tacuse, N. Y. , 
whose father was one of the earliest set- 
tlers of Appleton, and a prominent mer- 
chant there. 



FRANK E. NOYES is the manager, 
editor and principal owner of the 
Daily and Weekly Eagle, Mari- 
nette, and is a wide-awake, pro- 
gressive citizen, whom any community 
might be proud to claim among its mem- 
bers. He is numbered among the native 
sons of Wisconsin, his birth having oc- 
curred in Appleton, April 2\, 1856. He 
acquired his elementary education in the 
public schools, also attended Lawrence 
University, of Appleton, and later became 
a student in the State University at Madi- 
son, being graduated at that institution in 
the spring of 1878. In 1868 he began 
learning the printer's trade, which he fol- 
lowed at irregular intervals until his grad- 
uation, also acting as one of the editors 
of the paper published bj' the Lawrence 
University. 

\\'hen his education was completed 
Mr. Noyes engaged in teaching school for 
a year and a half, and in the meantime 
took up the study of law. In 1 880 he be- 
came identified with the paper which he 
now publishes as a member of the firm of 
L. B. & ¥. E. Noyes. In 1886 tfie busi- 
ness of the company was purchased by a 
stock company, and our subject owns a 
controlling interest of the stock. He has 
been business manager of the paper since 
1883 and since 1891 has been the princi- 
pal owner, the manager and the editor of 
what is now one of the best and most 
successful papers published in this section 
of the State. The Eagle building is fitted 
with steam heat and electric power, has 
two large cylinder presses and two job 
presses, antl tmns out, besides the news- 
paper work, all kinds of job work and 



COMMEMOUA TIVE BfOORAPIIWAL HHCOUn. 



^oi 



blank and other book work. General 
binding is also done. The //'(•(■/■/)' Jur irit- 
is a seven-column quarto, with a circula- 
tion of about fifteen hundred, while the 
Daily /{iri;-/i\ which was established in 
1892 b}' Mr. Noyes, is a seven-column 
folio with a circulation of 1,200 copies. 
It is published in the interest of the Re- 
publican partv, and is a bright newsy sheet, 
up to date in ever}' particular, itsiniluence 
being far reaching. 

In September, 1890, Mr. Noyes was 
married at Ceres, Cal., to Miss Belle Car- 
ter, a native of the Golden State, and 
they have two sons — Eugene Carter and 
Lenwood Irving. Mr. No3'es holds mem- 
bership with the Masonic fraternity, be- 
longing to Olive Branch Lodge, No. 250, 
F. & A. M.; Marinette Chapter, No. 57. 
R. A. M. ; Commandery, No. 26, K. T. ; 
and the Wisconsin Consistory, having at- 
tained the thirty-second-degree. He is 
identified with the Episcopal Church, and 
is a broad minded, honorable gentleman, 
one who keeps abreast with the times in 
every particular, and has the esteem of 
many friends. 



HIRAM ORLANDO FAIRCHILD. 
Standing among the leaders of the 
bar in his section, where he is said 
to be one of the best jury and 
court lawyers, recognized as an orator, 
and in theory and practice the soul of 
honor, this gentleman commands and holds 
a foremost position in his profession in 
northern Wisconsin. 

Mr. Fairchild is yet a comparatively 
young man, having first seen the light 
August 14, 1S45, in Newtown, Fountain 
Co., Ind., a son of John Fairchild, who 
was a minister of the Presbyterian Church, 
and an organizer of the pioneer congre- 
gation at Marinette, Wis., where he 
preached from iS6,^ to 1S72. He died 
there April 9, 1885, aged eighty-one 
years, and his widow, whose maiden name 
was Laura P. Bigelow, resided in that 
city, with her son Albert, until her death, 



December 15, 1895, in her eighty-fifth 
year. Our subject received his education 
at the public schools of his native place, 
and also at the high school of Wabash, 
Ind., after which he attended Wabash 
College, Crawfordsville, same State, where 
he graduated in June, 1866. His school 
days being now completed, he left the 
parental roof, and proceeding to Ft. 
Kearney, Neb., was given employment in 
the sutler store, in that city, belonging to 
Judge Levi Hubbell, of Milwaukee, where 
he remained one year, at the end of that 
time coming to and settling in Wisconsin. 
We now find him engaged in the abstract 
office of Richard Hall, Oconto, also in 
surveying; but in the fall of 1868 he com- 
menced the study of law in the office of 
his brother, John B. Fairchild, at Oconto, 
with whom he remained until admitted to 
the bar in i 870 by the circuit court of his 
district. In May, 1870, he "hung out 
his shingle" at Marinette, and being the 
first attorney at law to locate in the place 
he had all the business, though, in his 
own words, he "found it hard scratching 
along." At this time Marinette was 
simply a town organization, and Mr. Fair- 
child soon took a prominent part in the 
affairs of the place. In December, 1876, 
he was admitted to the bar of the Supreme 
Court of the State; in July, 1884, to the 
United States Circuit and District Courts, 
and in 1890 to the Supreme Court of the 
United States. In 1879, on the organi- 
zation of the county, he was sent to Madi- 
son to attend to the necessary legislating, 
and he was immediately thereafter ap- 
pointed, by the Republican administra- 
tion, district attorney, to which position 
he was re-elected consecutively until Jan- 
uary, 1891; but was again elected in the 
fall of 1892, continuing in the office until 
January, 1895. In 1883 he was elected, 
on the Republican ticket, to the State 
Assembly from the District comprising 
the counties of Marinette and Florence, 
and was re-elected in 1884. During the 
first session he served as member on the 
Judiciary Committee and Cities Commit- 



502 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



tee, and during the session of 1885 — the 
year in which John C. Spooner was elect- 
ed to the U. S. Senate, in which election 
Mr. Fairchild took an influential and 
prominent part — he officiated as Speaker 
of the House; same year he was one of 
five appointed to plan the present License 
Law of Wisconsin, and he was appointed 
by the committee to draft same, which 
law, with the exception of one paraf:;raph, 
was accepted /// toto. In politics he has 
always taken an active part, being a re- 
cognized worker for his party, of which 
he is one of the wheel-horses. He has 
also been a potent factor in the growth 
and prosperity of his city, township and 
county, most of the public improvements 
receiving substantial impetusat his hands. 
In the course of his professional career he 
has acted as attorney for large corpora- 
tions, such as the Boom Company, at 
Marinette, and he is still attorney for that 
syndicate. From February, 1874, to De- 
cember, 1894, Mr. Fairchild was asso- 
ciated in law practice with his brother, 
the style of tfie firm being Fairchild & 
Fairchild; but in April, 1895, he associated 
himself with George G. Greene and 
Charles Woman, prominent attorneys at 
Green Bay, Wis., uiider the firm name of 
Greene, Vroman & Fairchild, at which 
latter city he is continuing in the practice. 
He has had and still has an extensive 
practice in both civil and criminal cases, 
including some eighteen murder trials. 
As a pleader of great force, a jurist of 
sound judgment, and a safe counsellor, he 
stands second to none at the bar, while in 
his own district he is the acknowledged 
head. 

In 1 87 1 Hiram O. Fairchild was united 
in marriage with Miss Emma Hough, of 
Crawfordsville, Ind., daughter of George 
Hough, a real-estate dealer of the same 
place, and four children have been born 
to them, viz.: Caroline H., Arthur W. , 
Bertha W. and Herbert li. Mrs. Fair- 
child is a member of the Presbyterian 
Church; and Mr. Fairchild, socially, is 
affiliated with the Knights of Pythias, a 



charter member of Marinette Lodge No. 
72, of which he has served as vice-chan- 
cellor, prelate, etc. When at college he 
was a member of the Beta 'Theta Pi 
Society. 



J 



\\. WRIGHT, senior member of the 
widely-known enterprising firm of 
Wright Brothers, the name in com- 
mercial circles being "familiar as 
household words," is well deserving of 
prominent mention in this volume. 

The extensive business of Wright 
I5rothers was established in Marinette in 
the spring of 1866 by Ely Wright, his 
brother J. K. buying an interest in the 
fall of the same j'ear. The firm erected 
a store building on what is now Main 
street, it being the first of the kind, out- 
side company stores, to do business in 
Marinette, and they are still occupying 
this store for commercial purposes — a gen- 
eral mercantile trade. The city was not 
at that time platted, and consisted of but 
a few straggling buildings, many of them 
being but mere shanties. After doing 
business in that locality some fifteen 
years, the building was removed to Hall 
avenue, and an addition made to it, where 
the business has since been continued. 
The firm do a general mercantile business, 
including lumber, etc.. and have five 
stores in Wisconsin and Michigan, includ- 
ing a branch business at Green Bay, where 
they have a cedar and shingle yard, mill, 
etc., and a sawmill at Granite Bluff, 
Mich. They do a wholesale and retail 
business, principally in cedar and lumber, 
having a large trade with the Milwaukee 
& St. Paul Railroad Company; they 
give employment to about five hundred 
men during the winter season. Ely 
Wright remained in the firm until 1S72, 
when he sold out his interest to J. K. and 
A. F. Wright, who have since carried on 
the business under the old firm name of 
Wright lirothers. 

The subject proper of this review, J. 
K. Wright, was born November 4, 1840, 




^ ^r^^ 



COMMEMORATim BfOOUAPinCAL RECORD. 



503 



at Athens, Bradford Co., Penn., and is a 
son of Jason I\. and Maria E. (Ely) 
Wright, the former a native of Massachu- 
setts, the latter of Camden, N. Y. The 
Wrights were early settlers of Bradford 
county, Penn. , where Foster Wright, the 
grandfather of our subject, opened up a 
farm and resided during the remainder of 
his life. He was a soldier in the war of 
1812, and ser\'ed his country faithfully 
and well. Jason K. Wright, the father 
of our subject, recruited a company at 
Athens, Penn., in 186:!, was coinmis- 
sioned captain, and assigned to the One 
Hundred and Forty-first Pennsylvania 
Volunteers, at which time he was sixty- 
five years of age, and in robust health. 
He served until disabled by sickness, when 
he resigned and returned to his farm near 
Athens, Penn., where he subsequently 
died from the effects of disease contracted 
in the army. His widow, now aged 
eighty-six years, resides in Athens. They 
reared a family of ten children, as follows: 
Edward, who resides at Athens, Penn. ; 
Frederick K., now postmaster at Wells- 
boro, Penn. ; Ely, senior member of the 
original firm of Wright Brothers, now re- 
siding at Minneapolis, Minn.; J. K., our 
subject; Anson F., a member of the firm, 
having his home at Iron Mountain, Mich., 
and who was a resident of Marinette for 
some years; Alfred C, foreman of the 
Union Bridge Works, Athens, Penn. ; 
Mary G., now Mrs. E. L. Parmenter, of 
Menominee, Mich.; Maria E., formerly 
Mrs. A. M. Fairchild, who died in 1888; 
Susan H., now Mrs. D.Y. Caswell, of Her- 
rick, Penn. ; and Estelle, now Mrs. E. P. 
Ciillett, of Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania. 
Our subject grew to manhood in his 
native State, and received his primary 
education at the public schools of Athens, 
which was supplemented by a short time 
at ayoung men'sseminary in Elmira, N. Y. 
While attending the latter school he 
enlisted in Company F. Twenty-third New 
York Volunteers, his brother Ely enlist- 
ing at the same time, which enlistment 
was under the first call made for three- 



months' volunteers; at the expiration of 
their term of service, the brothers re-en- 
listed for two years in the same company 
and regiment. They participated in the 
battles of Antietani, South Mountain, 
Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Sulphur 
Springs, Gainesville, Fort Butler, and 
Bull Run. At the expiration of his term 
of service, our subject was honorably dis- 
charged at Elmira, N. Y., returned home 
and there engaged in mercantile business 
until his removal to Marinette in 1866. 
On October \2, 1870, Mr. Wright was 
married at Athens, Penn., to Miss Louisa D. 
Hancock, who was born in Athens, Penn., 
daughter of William and Lucy (Northrop) 
Hancock, both of whom were natives of 
Bradford county, Penn. Her mother died 
in Pennsylvania in 1869, and her father, 
who was a dealer in stock, removed to 
Marinette, Wis., in 1880, where he made 
his home until his death in January, 1890. 
Mrs. Wright is a second cousin of the late 
Gen. W. S. Hancock, and a lineal de- 
scendant of John Hancock. To our sub- 
ject and wife have been born five children: 
Clara Louisa, John Frank, Winifred Han- 
cock, Ely Cleveland and Maria Ely. John 
F., the eldest son, is a graduate of St. 
John's Military Acadamy, at Delavan, 
Wis., and has the medal for deportment 
and best oration, the subject being " Mc- 
Clellan";he now has charge of Wright 
Brothers' yards at Green Bay. The sec- 
ond daughter, Winifred Hancock, is at 
present attending St. Mary's school at 
Knoxville, 111. In politics, Mr. Wright 
is a stanch Democrat, and has always been 
a leader in and advisor of the party. He 
was a member of the State Central Com- 
mittee, during the years preceding Cleve- 
land's first election, was the first register 
of deeds in Marinette county, and the first 
Democratic postmaster at Marinette. 
Fraternally he is a member of the Ivnights 
of Pythias and Royal Arcanum. Mrs. 
Wright and children are members of the 
Episcopal Church, and the entire family 
stand high in the esteem and regard of 
the community. 



504 



COMMKMORAriVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



JOHN LEIGH I : !i. For over 

forty years this name was a familiar 
one throughout Oconto county, of 
which Mr. Leigh was one of the 
earliest settlers, having come here in 
1852, from which time up to his decease 
he was prominently identified with its 
progress and development. 

Mr. Leigh was a native of the Em- 
erald Isle, born in 1828, and was reared 
in his native country up to the age of 
si.xteen, when, in 1844, he emigrated to 
America with his parents, James and 
Catherine (Murphy) Leigh, who were ; 
also natives of Ireland. The family lo- 
cated in the State of Maine, where Mrs. 
Leigh passed from earth, Mr. Leigh aft- 
erward, in 1849, coming to Berlin, \\'is., 
and here ended his days in 1863. They 
had a large family, all of whom grew to 
maturity and all came to Wisconsin, as 
follows: Margaret (Mrs. McDonald), of 
Chicago; John, whose name introduces 
this memoir; James, of Milwaukee; 
Thomas, who lives in Stiles township; 
Patrick, who was drowned in Lake 
Michigan, off Kacine; Mathew, who died 
in Chicago; Mary Ann (Mrs. Rodney), 
who makes her home in Iowa; Joseph, 
who died in Wisconsin; and Peter, a 
resident of Berlin, Wisconsin. 

In 1849 John Leigh left Maine, and 
coming westward lived in the city of 
Chicago about one year. In 1850 he 
came to Berlin, Wis., and in 1852 to 
what is now Stiles township, Oconto 
county, of which he was one of the first 
permanent settlers. He arrived here 
long before the railroad had been intro- 
duced, and his journey hither was made 
up the river in a canoe. Not long after 
his arrival he obtained employment in a 
sawmill at what is now Leighton, work- 
ing there three years, for George Smitii, 
and at the end of that time purchasing 
the mill. Lumbering in those days was 
a popular and profitable vocation, and 
Mr. Leigh was successfully engaged in 
that business until 1878, when the saw- 
mill was burned. In 1876 he had erected 



a flourmill, and established the business 
in which he continued up to the time of 
his death, and which is now conducted 
by his widow. He was instrumental in 
having a post office established, which 
was named, in his honor. Leighton; but 
the office was discontinued after a nine- 
years' existence. Mr. Leigh first in- 
vested in forty acres of land, from time 
to time adding to his original purchase 
until he had a farm of 275 acres. He 
was at one time the owner of about 
3.500 acres, and was one of the heaviest 
losers in the great Peshtigo fire of 1871. 
But it was not only as a business man 
that he was known in his adopted town- 
ship and county; he took an active inter- 
est in ever progressive movement, and 
was one of the most zealous and go- 
ahead citizens of the community, be- 
grudging neither time nor influence to 
promote the public welfare. He gained 
the full confidence and esteem of his fel- 
low citizens, and was honored by them 
with various positions of trust, the du- 
ties of which he discharged with the same 
care which he gave to his private affairs. 

He assisted in organizing Stiles town- 
ship, of which he served as chairman for 
fifteen years, and was also active in hav- 
ing the school district formed. In 1875 
he was a member of the State Legisla- 
ture, having been elected bj' the Repub- 
lican party, to which he gave his political 
support, and served with his usual ability 
and conscientious devotion to duty. 
During his active business and public 
life he gained the esteem of all with 
whom he came in contact, and was 
widely and favorably known through 
Oconto county, and, in fact, the entire 
section, never proving unworthy of or in- 
different to the respect and confidence 
accorded him. He passed from earth 
October 5, 1893, on the farm whereon he 
settled in 1852, and the entire com- 
numity mourned the departure of one 
whose long, busy and useful life had 
been passed in their midst. 

In February, 1850, Mr. Leigh wedded, 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOOllAPUWAL RECORD. 



505 



in Washington county, Maine, Miss 
Esther Durgan, and their union was 
blessed with cliiidren as follows: Joseph, 
who is married and lives in Stiles town- 
ship; Kate (Mrs. Hill), of Buckley, 
Wash. ; Mary Ann (Mrs. Allen), of Ta- 
coma. Wash. ; Maggie, who died in Stiles 
township, August i, 1864; John, mar- 
ried and has his home in Stiles township; 
Hattie, who died February 22, 1880; 
Lincoln, married and residing in Stiles; 
and Edward, married, who lives in the 
city of Oconto. Mrs. Esther (Durgan) 
Leigh was born in New Brunswick, Can- 
ada, of which Province her parents, Dan- 
iel and Mary Ann (Ross) Durgan, were 
also natives. The family removed thence 
to Maine, and in about 1865 came to 
Oconto county, Wis., the father ofiening 
up a farm in Oconto township, where he 
died in 1883; his wife followed him to 
the grave in 1885. They were the par- 
ents of twelve children, of whom the fol- 
lowing named are now living: William, 
who lives in California; Mrs. Leigh; 
Phcebe (Mrs. Chase), of California; Ma- 
ria (Mrs. Mcintosh), of Green Bay, 
Brown Co., Wis. ; Mary (Mrs. Way), of 
Portland, Oregon; Alex, who lives in 
Oconto; Jane (Mrs. Joseph Hall), of 
Oconto; and Mrs. Angus McAllister, of 
Oconto. 



NB. BLACK, city treasurer of 
Marinette, and vice-president of 
the Eagle Printing Company, was 
born at Port Hope, Ontario, 
Canada, September 27, 1865. 

His parents. Ale.x. and Eliza (Bald- 
win) Black, were natives of Scotland 
and Canada, respectively. The mother's 
people were related to the Sherman family, 
of which the noted General was a member. 
In 1854 the father came to Canada, be- 
ing employed for a number of years in the 
bridge builders' department of the Grand 
Trunk railroad. He located at Port 
Hope, there making his home until 1886, 
when he went to Merrill, Wis., where 



both he and his wife are living retired. 
His father, James Black, never left his 
native Scotland, and his death occurred 
at the very advanced age of one hundred 
and four years. The parents of our sub- 
ject have a family of seven children, all 
living: Alex. L. went to Merrill, Wis., in 
1882, and is now connected with the 
Eagle Printing Company, of Marinette; 
N. B. is the next younger; Mrs. William 
Hutchinson resides in Merrill; Mrs. Bayne 
Langill has been a resident of Wausau, 
Wis., since 1882; Fred D. is foreman of 
the Herald, published at Menominee, 
Mich. ; William D. resides in Merrill; Mrs. 
|. H. Allen is living in Menominee; and 
Walter is at home. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
passed in Port Hope, and he was there 
educated. In i 879 he entered the office 
of the Port Hope Times, where he was 
employed in various capacities until 1882, 
when he went to Merrill, ami worked for 
the West Merrill Herald for three years. 
In 1885, in connection with his brother, 
Alex. L., he leased the I.iiieolii County 
. J (/('('(vr/f of ex-Congressman McCord, the 
oldest paper in the county, and remained 
in the newspaper business in Merrill until 
1889, when he arrived in Marinette. He 
is now vice-president of the Eagle Print- 
ing Company, whose paper was estab- 
lished in Marinette in 1870. 

In Merrill, Wis., in 1886, Mr. Black 
wedded Miss Jennie Christenson, who 
was born in Oshkosh, Wis., in 1869, a 
daughter of David and Anna (Hough) 
Christenson. Her father located in 
Neenah, Wis., in 1852, and was there 
married in 1858. He engaged in the 
manufacture of shingles, as a member of 
the firm of Christenson & Osborn, in Osh- 
kosh until 1880, when he removed to 
Merrill, and established the Merrill Iron 
Works, of which his son is also a part- 
ner. He carried on that enterprise 
until 1 891; but the firm of D. Chris- 
tenson & Son is now engaged in the saw- 
mill business at Daggett, Mich., although 
their home is in Marinette. In the family 



5o6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



there are three children: Peter, who is 
associated with his father; A. G. , who is 
connected with the Merrill Xc^cs, of 
Merrill, Wis., and Mrs. Black. Our sub- 
ject and his wife have three children: Nor- 
man David, Charlotte and Aletha, at this 
writing, aged respectiv^ely eight, si.x and 
four years. 

In politics Mr. Black is a I^epublican; 
socially he is connected with Olive Branch 
Lodge, No. 250, F. & A. M. ; of Marinette 
Chapter, No. 57, R. A. M., and Marinette 
Commander}' No. 26, K. T. He is also 
president of Wiswell Lodge, No. 53, Fra- 
ternal Alliance, and MenekauneeTent, No. 
2, K. O. T. M. He was elected city treas- 
urer in the spring of 1894, and re-elected 
in April, 1895, which position he is now 
filling in an acceptable manner. He is 
highly popular in Marinette, and those 
who know him best are numbered among 
his warmest friends. 



JOHN SWALWELL, who is now 
living retired in Marinette, enjoying 
the fruits of a well-spent life, was 
born at Arran Yell, Canada, in 1820, 
and is a son of Anthony and Mary (Beck- 
withj Swalwcll. In an early day his 
parents removed to Canada, and his 
father, who was a civil engineer, was em- 
ployed on the Rideau canal, near Ottawa. 
He was a native of London, England, and 
from early life followed civil engineering 
in Canada, where his death occurred in 
1873, when he was aged seventy-three 
years. His wife died in the same country 
in 1883, aged eighty-four years. Their 
family numbered ten children, four now 
hving, namely: John; George, a resident 
of the State of Washington; Thomas, 
who is living in Canada, and Sarah, wife 
of James Johnston, of Washington. 

We now take up the personal history 
of our subject, who is both widely and 
favorably known in Marinette. He was 
reared and educated in Canada, and on 
leaving his native land engaged in the 
lumber business, which he followed until 



his removal to Marinette in November, 
1869. The journey from Ottawa, Canada, 
was made by rail to Green Bay. thence 
on the vessel ''Queen" to Marinette. 
Here he engaged in logging for the N. 
Ludington Lumber Company for one win- 
ter, spent one winter in the employ of 
Robert Stephenson, and later engaged in 
logging for the New York Company, now 
the Menominee River Company, through 
one winter. He ne.xt entered the employ 
of the McCartney Milling Compan\', and 
the succeeding j'ear engaged with the H. 
Whitbeck Company, with whom he con- 
tinued for two years. On the e.xpiration 
of that period he abandoned the lumber 
trade, and with the capital that he had 
acquired through his industry and enter- 
prise embarked in the real-estate busi- 
ness. He purchased a lot on Main street 
from Henry Handy, and received the first 
warranty deed given in Marinette. He 
built the first two-story frame building on 
Main street, and after its destruction by 
fire in 1888 erected a fine two-story brick 
building with 60 feet frontage on Main 
street, including three stores that are now 
occupied by clothing firms. The upper 
story is used as living rooms and ofhces. 
In addition to his own residence property 
he has two dN\ ellings on Wisconsin street, 
which he rents, and the rental from his 
stores and houses is a profitable income. 

Mr. Swalwcll was married in Canada 
in 1844 to Elizabeth Johnston, who was 
born in 1825 in Scotland, as was also her 
father, James Johnston, who in an early 
day emigrated to Canada, making it his 
home until his death, which occurred 
man)' years ago. To Mr. and Mrs. Swal- 
wcll have been born three daughters — 
Jane, wife of E. L. Williams, of Mari- 
nette; Elizabeth, wife of Angus Cook, of 
Marii^ette, and Adelia, wife of David 
Barclay, of Menominee. Michigan, 

Mr. and Mrs. Svvalwell are members 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
are actively interested in its growth and 
upbuilding. In politics our subject takes 
a warm interest, and exercises his right 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPIIWAL RECORD. 



507 



of franchise as a supporter of the Demo- 
cratic party. Ail tliat he possesses lie 
has acquired through his own efforts, and 
from limited circumstances he has steadily 
worked his way upward to a position of 
affluence. His life has been well spent, 
his public and private career are alike 
above reproach, and he well deserves 
mention among Marinette's prominent 
citizens. Socially he is a member of the 
Temple (.)f Honor. 



GEORGE W. THORXE, the effi- 
cient county clerk of Marinette 
county, has been a resident of 
Marinette since December, 1879, 
and in the sixteen years that he has re- 
sided here has made for himself a host of 
friends. 

A native of Washington county, N.Y. , 
he was born in 1826, and is a son of 
Henry and Jerusha (Underbill) Thorne, 
the former a native of Glencove, Long 
Island, N. Y. , the latter of Dorset, Vt. 
They were married in Fort Ann, Wash- 
ington county, in 1809, and there spent 
their entire life. The father was a 
(Hiaker, descended of English ancestry, 
and for nearly si.xty years was engaged in 
the practice of law at Fort Ann. He died 
in November, 1862, in his seventy-ninth 
year; the mother died in 1877, in her 
ninety-second year. The old homestead 
where they so long resided is yet in the 
family. Of their children, seven in num- 
ber, William Henry died in 1828 at home; 
Caroline M. was the wife of David Rice, 
a wholesale lumber dealer in Troy, N. Y. 
(she died in Fort Ann, in about 1876, 
while her husband died at Troy in 1 894, 
and was buried at Fort Ann); Charles 
M., who still resides at Fort Ann, in early 
life carried on mercantile business, and 
since 1845 has engaged in farming; El- 
mira is the widow of Samuel Corning, 
who in his lifetime was a merchant of 
l""ort Ann (she now resides with her 
daughter in North Carolina), and George 
W., the subject of this sketch; Jerusha 



L. , born in 1828, was the wife of John 
Barron, who was captain of Company D, 
One Hundred Twenty-third N. Y. V. I.. 
in the Civil war; at the close of the serv- 
ice he located in Maryland, where he en- 
gaged in farming, and later removed to 
Geneva, N. Y. , where he now resides; 
she died in 1894. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
at Fort Ann, N. Y., and studied law in 
the office of his father. He was admitted 
to the bar at Salem, N. Y., in 1848, at a 
general term of the supreme court. For 
seven years succeeding he practiced law 
in his native town, and in 1855 removed 
to Lock Haven, Penn., where he was en- 
gaged in lumbering until the breaking out 
of the war. Almost at the first tap of the 
drum he enlistciJ in the service, and was 
madeipiartermaster of the Eleventh Penn. 
V. I. His term of enlistment was but for 
three months, and at its expiration he, 
with his whole regiment, re-enlisted for 
three years, or during the war. He was 
commissioned quartermaster of the regi- 
ment, and was soon promoted bridge 
quartermaster, later to the commissary of 
the division. His regiment and division 
were a part of McDowell's army, and was 
first stationed in the vicinity of Washing- 
ton. Our subject saw service in the sec- 
ond battle of Bull Run, Antietam, Cul- 
peper, Va., thence proceeding to the 
Rapidan, F"redericksburg, on the march 
to Richmond, and was at Stoneman's 
Switch. In the latter engagement he had 
an ankle smashed by the falling of his 
horse, and for some time was confined in 
the officers' hospital at Washington. He 
was honorably discharged in that city, 
June I, 1863, after which he went to 
New York City, and engaged in the [irac- 
ticc of law, but resided across the river, 
in New Jersey. Subsequently he re- 
moved to Railway, N. J., and remained 
there until his removal to Marinette. 

In September, 1854, Mr. Thorne was 
united in marriage at Corning, Steuben 
county, N. Y. , with Miss Helen P. Bailey, 
a nati\'e of that place, and daughter of 



5o8 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Col. Denajah P. and Martha (Pierce) 
Bailey, both of whom were natives of 
New York. Her father was colonel of 
the Eighty-sixth X. Y. V. I., entering 
the service in 1861, at the age of si.xty- 
three years. He served two years, when, 
his health failing, he was compelled to re- 
sign. He was brevetted brigadier general 
at the second battle of Bull Run. He died 
in Corning, N. Y., in 1871; his widow 
passed away at the same place in about 
1890. To Mr. and Mrs. Thorne have 
been born seven children, three of whom 
are now living: Benjamin Franklin, in 
Kahway, N. J., engaged in the lumber 
business; Ceorgia E., deputy county clerk 
of Marinette, and Florence C, wife of H. 
A. Meade, resides in Milwaukee, Wiscon- 
sin. 

In carl}- life Mr. Thorne was a Whig 
in politics, and although but fifteen \ears 
of age took quite an active part in the 
campaign of 1840, when Gen. William 
Henry Harrison was the candidate of that 
part}- for President. He assisted in the 
building of a log cabin, which was taken 
fourteen miles by wagon to a great meet- 
ing and barbecue dinner, July 4, 1840, 
where he heard Daniel Webster speak. 
In 1853 he was elected to the Assembly 
from Washington county on the Whig 
ticket. Since the organization of the Re- 
publican party, he has been an earnest 
advocate of its principles. For some years I 
after coming to Marinette county, he 
served as justice of the peace, which po- 
sition he resigned to accept his present 
office. 

Mr. Thorne has been prominently iden- 
tified with the Grand Army of the Repub- 
lic from the beginning, and was a charter 
member of the second Post established in 
New Jersey. He is at present a member 
of the S. H. Sizer Post No. 207, G. A. R., 
of which he is past commander. He was 
aid-de-camp on Gen. Palmer's staff, and 
visited many Posts in his State. Since 
1848 he has been a Master Mason; in 1856, 
while residing in Pennsylvania, he was 
made a Royal Arch Mason, and now holds 



membership with the Marinette Chapter, 
R. A. M. Although a resident of the 
county but si.xteen years, he has never- 
theless witnessed many changes in its 
growth and development. He is an act- 
ive, enterprising and popular man. 



TF. .MALONEY, assessor of Cole- 
man township, Marinette county, 
has been a resident of Wisconsin 
the greater part of his life, and for 
the past twenty years of Coleman town- 
ship, where he has been engaged in farm- 
ing since 1887. 

Mr. Maloney is a native of New York 
State, born in 1853 in Niagara county. 
His father, Mathew Maloney, was born in 
Ireland, and when a young man emigrated 
thence to America, locating first in the 
State of \'ermont, where he married Miss 
Margaret Kenney, also a native of the 
Emerald Isle. For several years he fol- 
lowed agricultural pursuits in New York, 
removing from that State to Noble county, 
Ind., and thence, in 1865, to Manitowoc 
county. Wis., where he opened up a farm. 
He continued to reside there until 1880, 
when he came to what is now Coleman 
township, Marinette count}- (then Peshtigo 
township, Oconto county), and opening 
up a new farm here passed the remainder 
of his days, dying in 1893. His wife fol- 
lowed him to the grave in 1894. Their 
family consisted of four children, of whom 
T. F. is the subject of these lines; M. H. 
and M. C. both reside in Coleman town- 
ship; and Bridget died in 1883. 

Our subject accompanied his parents 
to Noble county, Ind., and in 1865 to 
Manitowoc county. Wis., in the common 
schools of which locality he received his 
primary education, later attending two 
years at the Oshkosh Normal School. In 
1875 became to what is now Coleman 
township. Marinette county, before the 
days of railroads, and has since been en- 
gaged in lumbering and farming, working 
for various lumber companies up to 1887, 
when lie settled on his present farm. He 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



509 



purchased an eighty-acre timber tract, all 
in the woods, thirty acres of vviiichhe lias, 
by constant and unflagging industry, 
cleared and put under cultivation. 

Mr. Maloney was married July 9, iSSi, 
in Coleman township, to Miss Catharine 
H. McMillan, who was born in the State 
of Michigan, in the Lake Superior region, 
daughter of L. D. and Anna (McKennon) 
McMillan. Tlie parents were born in 
Glengarry county, Canada, of Scotch 
parentage, and came to Wisconsin many 
years ago, first locating in Marinette, 
whence in 1S73 they removed to what is 
now Coleman township (then Peshtigo 
township), where they yet reside. Mr. 
and Mrs. Maloney are the parents of four 
children: James, Mary, Finnan and Cy- 
ril 1 us. 

Mr. Maloney takes an active interest 
in the affairs of the community in which 
he makes his home, supporting all worthy 
measures and projects which he considers 
beneficial to the general welfare. In 1893 
he was elected to his present incumbency, 
that of township assessor. He votes in- 
dependently, as his conscience dictates, 
and holds no allegiance to any party, 
giving his aid to the right without refer- 
ence to party limits. 



Ri:V. GUI DO BOSSARD, pastor 
of the First Presbyterian Church 
of Oconto, has had charge of the 
congregation there since Septem- 
ber, 1890, beginning his labors on the 
third Sunday of that month. 

Born in F"ort Wayne, Ind., in i860, 
he is a son of Rev. James and Catherine 
(Blouker) Bossard. He was reared in his 
native city, and in 1878 became a student 
at the university at Appleton, Wis., from 
which institution he was graduated with 
the class of '82. He then went abroad, 
spending two years in the German uni- 
versities of Gottingen and Bonn. In 1884 
he returned to his native land, and en- 
tered the Union Seminary of New York, 
from which institution he was graduated 



with the class of i8,S6. He was tlien 
licensed to preach by the Presbytery of 
New York, and ordained by the Presby- 
tery of Milwaukee, Wis., in the same 
year. He at once began ministerial work 
at Manitowoc, Wis.,'whenre he was called 
to the pastorate of the chiuxh in Oconto 
in 1890. 

This church was organized November 
15, 1858, at the home of Mrs. S. A. 
Turner, under the tlirection of the Kev. 
J. W. Donaldson, a missionary of the 
American Home Missionary Society. The 
organization was formed with four mem- 
bers, and on November 29, four others 
united. The work of organization was com- 
pleted, and for some time meetings were 
held in Hart's Hall, and afterward in the 
old court house. The first house of wor- 
ship was erected in 1863, and dedicated 
in 1863. It w;is destroyed by lire Janu- 
ary 15, 1S74, and in the same year a new 
structure was erected. Again the house of 
worship was burned December 22, 1890, 
and in 1891 a substantial brick structure 
stood in its place, being dedicated on the 
anniversary of the burning of the old 
church. This is a very handsome struc- 
ture, modern in style and appointments, 
altogether one of the finest church edifices 
in the State. 

The founder of the church was suc- 
ceeded in the pastorate on November i, 
1862, by Kev. Jasper N. Ball, a returned 
missionary from Turkey, who continued 
his labors there until 1864. He was fol- 
lowed by Rev. Albert A. Young, who was 
pastor until June i, 1866. Kev. T. A. 
Wadsworth filled the pulpit from January 
6, 1867, until December 8 following, and 
from January, 1868, until November 8, 

1874, the Kev. George A. Little was pas- 
tor. His successor was Kev. Charles K. 
Burdick, who served from September 12, 

1875, until July I, 1882. Rev. John H. 
Kerr was minister from July 16, 1S82, 
until April 26, 1887, when iti the summer 
of that year Rev. George W. Luther ac- 
cepted a call to the pastorate, and after 
three j'ears of service was succeeded by 



5' 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the Rev. Bossard, the present esteemed 
and vahied minister. The church is now 
in e.xceilent working; condition, the vari- 
ous missionary, benevolent and charitable 
societies connected with it are doing 
effective work and there is a large Sun- 
day-school. The growth of the church 
has been steady and contimious, and the 
influence of the First Presbyterian Church 
on the moral interest of Oconto is impos- 
sible to estimate. 



JAMES COOK, third son of Daniel 
and Mary (McDonald) Cook, was 
born in New Brunswick, Canada, 
January 15, 1836, and died at Mari- 
nette, Wisconsin, June i, 1874. 

He received his education at the com- 
mon schools of the locality of his place of 
birth, and remained with his parents till 
he was of age. Coming to Marinette, 
Wis., along with his brother Daniel, he, 
like him, became one of the pioneer set- 
tlers of the place. For many years he 
carried on a mercantile business, and also 
lumbered, later, in partnership with his 
wife's father, John Swallwell, under the 
firm name of Cook & Swalwell, conduct- 
ing an extensive lumber business up to the 
time of his decease. He also dealt to 
some extent in real estate, at the time of 
his death owning a considerable amount 
of property in and about Marinette, in- 
cluding the ground whereon the First Na- 
tional Bank building now stands. In fact, 
he and his brother Daniel were heavily in- 
terested in real estate, which was divided, 
together with their other partnership pos- 
sessions, at the time cf the death of James. 
On October 19, 1870, James Cook and 
Miss Mary J. Swalwell were united in 
marriage, and one child, Elizabeth M., 
was born to them, but died when nine 
months old. Mr. Cook was an ardent 
Republican, but was too busy a man to 
interest himself much in politics, not to 
speak of seeking oflice. In church and 
school matters he was ever liberal, as well 
as in all things tending to the advance- 



ment and prosperity of his adopted city 
and county. A typical self-made man, 
he carved his way by perseverance and 
honest toil to an honorable and enviable 
position, both commercial and social. His 
widow is now the wife of Eber L. Wil- 
liams, a sketch of whom appears else- 
where. 



EC. PRESCOTT is the manager 
of the Marinette Iron Works, the 
plant of which was established at 
Marinette in 1867, with Austin 
Cruver, president: D. Clint Prescott, sec- 
retary, and R. H. Trumbull, treasurer. 
It was incorporated with the same officers. 
The plant is located on Main street, and 
covers an area of an acre and a half of 
ground. The approximate cost of the 
plant is $200,000, and it gives employ- 
ment to 1 50 men. The company make 
a specialt}' of saw mill and mining ma- 
chines. In 1 89 1 they established similar 
works at West Duluth, Minn., under the 
same name and with the same officers, 
but on twice the magnitude of the plant 
at Marinette, giving employment to about 
three hundred men. The main office of 
the company is at Marinette. The Mar- 
inette Iron Works was the first industry 
established outside of the lumber in- 
terests in Marinette. It increased its 
business from time to time, and is now 
the largest works of the kind in Wiscon- 
sin outside of Milwaukee. 

Mr. Prescott is a native of Marinette 
county, born in Peshtigo in 1866, and is 
a son of DeWitt Clinton and Sarah (Hol- 
gate) Prescott, the former a native of 
New Hampshire and the latter of Eng- 
land. The father came to Chicago at 
the age of fifteen years, and subsequent- 
ly brought the first locomotive to that 
city for the Chicago & North Western 
railroad. He was in the employ of that 
road as passenger engineer on the Rock- 
ford & Galena division until 1865, when 
he came to Peshtigo as master mechanic 
for the Chicago & North Western rail- 





^T^-ylu^^ 



;^^^: 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPinC'AL nECOIW. 



S^ 



road at that place. There he remain- 
ed until the iron works were established 
at Marinette, of which he was the pro- 
moter and organizer. At Marinette he 
remained until the works were estab- 
lished at West Duluth, Minn., to which 
place he removed in order that he might 
take the management of the business. 
In Chicago, in 1863, he married Sa- 
rah Holgate, and they have eight liv- 
ing children: Fred M., who resides in 
Milwaukee, and is engaged in the manu- 
facture of steam pumps; E. C, our sub- 
ject; Lorin L., who resides at Virginia, 
Minn., engaged as a dealer of mining sup- 
plies; Edward L. , who resides in West 
Duluth, Minn., and is a dealer in sawmill 
and mining supplies; Lillian, wife of N. 
C. Kingsbury, bookkeeper and cashier of 
the company at West Duluth; Sumner, 
attending school at Oberlin, Ohio; Elsie 
and Sadie, at home. The father of this 
family has been identified with the growth 
of Marinette from its infancy. In poli- 
tics he is a Republican. 

The sul)ject of this sketch grew to 
manhood at Marinette and was educated 
in its public schools. At the age of sev- 
enteen he engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness, and at the age of nineteen became 
associated with iron works as superintend- 
ent of the Menominee Iron Works, now 
discontinued. In 1890 he became the 
superintendent and manager of the Mari- 
nette Iron Works, which position he now 
occupies. He was married in Milwaukee, 
in 1888, to Miss Hattie L. Norris, a na- 
tive of Dayton, Wis., daughter of James 
and Harriet (Havens) Norris. Her father 
was a prominent real-estate dealer, and 
for some j'cars was engaged in a flouring- 
mill at Milwaukee. His death occurred 
in 1890; his widow now resides at Mari- 
nette. By this union there are two chil- 
dren: Carol and Minnie. 

Fraternally, Mr. Prescott is a member 
of Olive Branch Lodge No. 250, F. & A. 
M. ; of Marinette Chapter No. 57, R. A. 
M. ; of Marinette Commandery No. 26, 
K. T. , and of Milwaukee Consistory No. 

29 



I, at Milwaukee. In politics he is a thor- 
ough Republican, and firmly believes in 
the principles of that party. 



REV. J. L. COUNTERMINE, pas- 
tor of the Pioneer Presbyterian 
Church, Marinette, came to that 
city in December, 1893, from Hia- 
watha, Brown Co., Kansas. 

The church was organized August 23, 
1863, and a house of worship erected the 
same year, at a cost of about three thous- 
and dollars. It was a frame structure, 
and was used until the completion of the 
present handsome edifice, erected at a cost 
of $22,000. From a small beginning the 
church has grown until it has a present 
membership of 378, with the following 
named officers: Dr. J. J. Sherman, J. F. 
Boyd, G. W. Thorne, K. Lundberg, A. F. 
Dodge, W. Horinbrook, F. Grandale, eld- 
ers; L. A. McAlpine, L. K. McNeill, S. G. 
Reed, deacons; Caleb Williams, Sunday- 
school superintendent. The first pastor of 
the church was Rev. John Fairchild, who 
remained with it for many years, and was 
greatly beloved. The church is in a very 
prosperous condition as is also the Sun- 
day-school, the latter having a member- 
ship of over 470. 

The subject of this sketch was born in 
Schenectady, N. Y., in i860, and is a son 
of J. Paul and Sarah (Morrison) Counter- 
mine, the former a native of England, the 
latter of Rhode Island, of Scotch ancestry. 
The father was seven years of age when 
he was brought to this country. He grew 
to manhood, was educated and married 
in New York. In his early manhood he 
engaged in stock raising, and then in gen- 
eral farming; later he engaged in the grain 
business in Schenectady, N. Y., where his 
death occurred in 1888. His wife survived 
him two years, dying in 1890. They 
reared a family of five sons, of whom, 
William, who resides at Cleghorn, Iowa, 
is engaged in stock dealing; Charles T., 
who resides at Mariaville, N. Y. , was a 
member of a New York regiment during the 



512 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPITICAL RECORD. 



war of the Union, and was wounded in 
the battle of Gettysburg; John D., who 
resides in Beatrice, Neb., is pastor of the 
First Presbyterian Church in that city, 
which is the largest Presbyterian Church 
in the State, is a graduate of Union Col- 
lege, N. Y. , and of Princeton Theological 
Seminary, Princeton, N. J.; Daniel M., 
pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, 
Fowler, N.Y. , is also a graduate of Union 
College and of Princeton Theological Sem- 
inary. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in Schenectady, N. Y., and received his 
primary education in its public schools. 
In 1882 he entered Hamilton College, 
from which he graduated with the class of 
'86, with the degree of A. B. He then 
taught one year in the schools of New 
York State, after which he spent one year 
in the Auburn ( N. Y. ) Seminary, and in 
the winter of 1889-90, entered McCor- 
mick Theological School at Chicago, grad- 
uating with the class of '90. The follow- 
ing year he spent at Glidden, Iowa, as a 
supply, from which place he went to Hia- 
watha, Kans. , and hence to Marinette, as 
already stated. 

In 1891 Mr. Countermine was married 
at Vinton, Iowa, to Miss Ida M. Brewer, 
who was from that city, daughter of Cor- 
nelius and Susan (Smock) Brewer. Her 
father subsequently died at Vinton, where 
her mother yet resides. Bj' this union 
one child has been born, John Landon. 
Mr. Countermine is a Republican, and 
t^kes such intere.st in political matters as 
every minister of the Gospel should do. 
He is a fine speaker, a good pastor and is 
greatly beloved by his church and congre- 
gation. 



RC. RAMSAY, who is efficiently 
serving as county superintendent 
of schools of Marinette count}', is 
a native of Prince Edward Island, 
British Provinces, born in December, 
I 85 5, where his parents, John and Jennet 
(Craig) Ramsay, were also born. They 



were of Scotch lineage, and the father 
was a farmer by occupation. In 1S65 
the family moved to Delta county, Mich. 
There his father carried on both farming 
and lumbering. In 1870 he removed to 
Peshtigo township, Marinette county, 
where he opened up a farm, upon which 
he and his estimable wife are still living. 
They became the parents of a family of 
six children, four of whom still survive, 
namely; Margaret, whose home is in 
Milwaukee; James, who resides in West 
Superior, Wis. ; William, living on the 
old farm, and our subject. 

R. C. Ramsay was reared on Prince 
Edward Island until the age of ten j'ears, 
and lived on his father's farm in Delta 
count\', Mich., until coming with the fam- 
ily to \\'isconsin. His earl}- education, 
acquired in the district schools of Pesh- 
tigo township, Marinette county, was sup- 
plemented by a teacher's course in the 
State Normal School of Oshkosh, receiv- 
ing his diploma therefrom in 1S83. Suc- 
cess comes through following the pursuit 
by which one is fitted by taste, talent and 
inclination, and this Mr. Ramsay has 
done. For two years he was engaged in 
teaching in Wrightstown, Wis., for four 
years was principal of the schools of Pesh- 
tigo, and in the fall of 188S was elected 
as superintendent of the schools of Mari- 
nette county, entering upon the duties of 
the office in January, 1889. At that time 
the schools of the county numbered some 
thirty-six, while at the present time they 
number, outside of the schools in Mari- 
nette, more than fifty. He has greatly 
raised the standard of excellence, the 
schools are now well equipped with appa- 
ratus, many of them have free text books, 
and the school buildings are all good 
frame structures. 

The political support of Mr. Ramsay 
is given to the Republican party; socially, 
he is connected with Peshtigo Lodge No. 
218, F. & A. M., of which he is worthy 
master; with Marinette Chapter No. 227, 
R. A. M., and with Marinette Command- 
ery No. 26, K. T. He also belongs to 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



513 



Ward Tent, Knights of the Maccabees, 
in which he is record keeper, and to the 
Modern Woodmen Lodge of Peshtigo. 
He is specially devoted to his life work, 
doing all in his power to advance the 
cause of education, ever freely giving his 
support to any enterprise calculated to 
prove of public benefit. 

Mr. Ramsay was happily married in 
Marinette county, Wis., in December, 
1 89 1, to Miss Ida C. Rigby, a native of 
Chicago, and a daughter of John and 
Margaret (Swazey) Rigby, the former a 
native of England, the latter of New 
York. Her father came to Green Bay, 
Wis., as a machinist, and in 1874 located 
in Peshtigo, where his death occurred in 
December, 1887, his remains being laid 
to rest January i, 1888. His widow still 
resides in Peshtigo. Mrs. Ramsay is a 
member of the Congregational Church, 
and a most estimable lady, who shares 
with her husband in the high regard in 
which he is held. 



CHARLES S. SIMPSON, county 
surveyor of Florence county, was 
born in 1857 in Buckfield, Oxford 
Co., Maine, son of D. F. and 
Sylvira (Shawj Simpson, who were also 
natives of Maine. 

D. F. Simpson, who early in life was a 
brick manufacturer of Charlestown, Mass. , 
is now a farmer, and resides in North 
Turner, Maine. His wife died in 1873. 
They had a family of five children, three 
of whom are living, namel}': Emma (Mrs. 
A. M. Bonney), of Buckfield, Maine; Ella 
(Mrs. Allen Phillips), of Shirley, Maine; 
and Charles S., the subject of these lines. 
William Simpson, father of D. F. Simp- 
son, was in the war of 1812, serving in 
the navy, on board the "Portsmouth." 
The father of Mrs. D. F. Simpson, Jesse 
Shaw, was born in Maine, and was a sol- 
dier in the war of 1S12; he made his 
home in Maine throughout life. 

Charles S. Simpson was reared in 
North Turner, Maine, there receiving his 



early education, and, in 1S77, entered the 
State College of Agriculture and Me- 
chanic y\rts at Orono, Maine, belonging 
to the class of '80; he left at the close of 
the junior year, however, and engaged 
in surveying, also teaching school part 
of three years. In i 880 he was in Car- 
denas, Province of Matanzas, Cuba; in 
1882 he came from North Turner to P'lor- 
ence, Wis., and has since been engaged 
in general surveying and civil engineering. 
He was assistant locating engineer on the 
Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie 
Railroad in 1886; chief draughtsman of 
the E. I. M. & W. Railroad in 1889^90 
and '91; locating engineer for Murphy 
Co. Railroad since 1891, and locating en- 
gineer for the Quinnesec Narrow Guage 
Railroad since 1895. 

Mr. Simpson is a member of the I^ake 
Superior Mining Institute, a member of 
Fisher Lodge No. 222, F. & A. M., and 
in politics votes with the Republican party. 
He has been identified with Florence 
county since it was organized, has seen 
many changes since coming here in 1882, 
was appointed county surveyor in 1884, 
and has been elected every two years since. 



GEORGE C. YOUNGS, editor and 
proprietor of the illiiiiiii^ Nezus, 
Florence, Florence county, was 
born September 17, 1850, in Un- 
ion City, Branch Co., Mich., and is a son 
of M. L. and Charity (Strong) Youngs, 
who were born in New York State, and 
came in an early day to Branch county, 
Michigan. 

M. L. Youngs is a very prominent man. 
He is Masonic Grand Lecturer for Wis- 
consin, and has been for thirty years; is 
Past Grand Master of the Lodge, and is 
associated in the publication of the JAr- 
so)iiL Tidings at Milwaukee. He married 
Charity Strong, and they had four chil- 
dren, namely: Lina, who was the wife of 
Capt. Wilson Vance, and died in 1871 at 
De Pere, Wis. ; Nettie, now Mrs. W. P. 
Kenny, of Milwaukee, Wis.; Fred M., 



SH 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



who resides in Omaha, and is superintend- 
ent of the press rooms of the Omalia Bcc, 
first vice-president of the Pressmen's Na- 
tional Association, and interested with 
George C. in the Mining News at Flor- 
ence; and George C, who was the second 
child in the family, and is the subject 
proper of these lines. M. L. Youngs has 
resided in Milwaukee since 1856. His 
wife, Charity, died in 1861, and he was 
married again in Milwaukee, this time to 
Louise Gordon. 

George C. Youngs was reared in Mil- 
waukee, educated in the public schools of 
that city, and after leaving school was a 
steward on the lakes through the season 
of navigation, working at the printer's 
trade in Starr's job office in Milwaukee in 
the winter, and for some time was em- 
ployed on the old Mil-watikce Nczvs. On 
July 5, 1 87 1, he was united in marriage, 
in Milwaukee, with Jennie Williamson, 
and they have had four children, all sons, 
as follows: Melvin P., foreman of the 
Marquette Mining Journal ; Wilson C., 
railway mail clerk from Appleton to Anti- 
go, Wis. ; Merwin W. , attending high 
school; and Chase O., at school. 

Mr. Youngs commenced as compositor 
on the Evening Wisconsin in 1872, held 
cases on that paper for ten years, until 
1882, was engaged as a reporter until 
1887, in which year he resigned and came 
to Florence, Wis. , where he has since 
been connected with the Mining Neius. 
This paper was founded in 1880 by J. F. 
Atkinson, continuing under his manage- 
ment until 18S3, and then passing into 
the hands of Osborn & Toner. About 
1885 Chase S. Osborn became sole pro- 
prietor, and in 1887 the paper was pur- 
chased by Campbell & Youngs, the Youngs 
Brothers becoming proprietors in 1888, 
since when George C. Youngs has been 
editor and manager. The Mining Neivs 
is provided with the latest equipments, 
is the official paper of the county, inde- 
pendent in politics, and has an extended 
circulation. 

Since coming here, in 1887, Mr. Youngs 



has seen quite a change in this part of 
Wisconsin. He is a member of Fisher 
Lodge, No. 222, F. & A. M., has been 
W. M. of the Lodge, and is now Senior 
Warden; he is also a member of Badger 
Tent, No. 12, K. O. T. M., and com- 
mander in 1890 and 1896. 



CA. HALLETT, assessor of Flor- 
ence, Florence county, was born 
April 10, 1852, in Hartland, New 
Brunswick, and is a son of Joseph 
and Elizabeth (Smith) Hallett, who were 
also born .in New Brunswick, and were 
of English ancestry. 

Joseph Hallett was a pilot on the St. 
John river, also owning a farm. He 
died in 1865; his widow still resides in 
New Brunswick. They had a family of 
eight children — si.\ sons and two daugh- 
ters — of whom four sons and one daugh- 
ter are living, as follows: Ephraim, Moses, 
Thomas, C. A., and Eleanor Jane (Mrs. 
Rideout), all residing in New Brunswick, 
except our subject. 

C. A. Hallett was reared in New 
Brunswick, and educated in the schools 
of Hartland. In March, 1876, he came 
thence to Menominee, Wis., and engag- 
ing with the K. C. Company worked on 
the Menominee river, and in the woods as 
foreman in the camp for the company. 
He assisted in building Ouinnesec, Mich., 
whence in 1880 he came to Florence, 
Florence county, and had charge of the 
New York Iron Company's explorations 
for two years, after which he settled there 
permanently, and has been engaged in 
real estate, lumbering and cruising. On 
coming here he laid out the village of 
Commonwealth, and assisted in building 
the first few log houses. 

On July 4, 1882, at Ripon, Fond du 
Lac Co., Wis., C. A. Hallett was united 
in marriage with Miss Imogcne Crawford, 
who was born in Fond du Lac county, 
and they have had five children, namely: 
Clara Eleanor, Charles C. , Hazel Murel, 
Kay, and Violet Hope. The parents of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL KECOUD. 



5'5 



Mrs. Hallett, James and Catharine (Ray) 
Crawford, were born in Scotland, came 
to Wisconsin in an early day, and now 
residing at Green Lake, Green Lake Co. , 
Wis. Mr. Crawford was a soldier in the 
Nineteenth Wisconsin Volunteers during 
the war of the Rebellion, serving three 
years, eight months and seventeen days. 
Mr. Hallett owns property in the cit)' 
of Florence, also a farm of forty acres ad- 
joining. He is a Republican in politics, 
and in 1895 was elected to his present 
incumbency, that of assessor. He assisted 
in organizing Florence county, and takes 
an active part in her welfare and the de- 
velopment of her resources. 



WILLL\M P. NEWBERRY, a 
successful farmer and a substan- 
tial citizen of Grover township, 
Marinette county, is a son of 
Henry and Nancy (Belden) Newberry, 
and was born in Wethersfield, Conn., in 
1836. 

Henry Newberry was born'in Connect- 
icut, as was also his father, and the fam- 
ily trace back to the settlement in 1630 
at Dorchester, Mass. Henry Newberry, 
who was a shoemaker by trade, went to 
Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1S48, and 
from there to Menominee, Mich. He 
bought a timber tract of 400 acres in 1855 
or 1856. In 1869 he came out on the 
farm, and was burned to death in the 
Peshtigo fire on the night of October 8, 
1 87 1. On the night of the fire his wife 
was in Menominee. She was born in 
Connecticut, and her death occurred in 
Menominee in 188S. They reared a fam- 
ily of ten children, as follows: Henry 
went to California in 1859, and died 
there in 1891; Benjamin went to Califor- 
nia in January, 1853, remaining there un- 
til 1873, when he came to Grover town- 
ship, Marinette county, and he died at 
Ouinnesec, Mich., in October, 1880; Abi- 
gail, now Mrs. Richardson, of California, 
formerly lived in Menominee, Mich.; 
Walter came from Iowa to Menominee in 



1853, settled on a farm, married, and 
with his wife and three children was 
burned on the night of October 8, 1871 
(the hired man and hired girl were also 
burned); William P. is the subject of this 
sketch; Charles O. came to Menominee 
in 1854, and, with his two children, was 
burned on the night of October 8, 1871, 
but his wife was saved (he was a carpen- 
ter by trade, but lived on a farm); Martha 
resides in Florida, widow of George F. 
Coon, who was an engineer and was 
killed in an accident on the railroad, in 
Dakota; Mary married Lorenzo Richard- 
son, and died at Marinette in March, 
1869; Edward Stoughton came here when 
a boy, was married in 1871, and with his 
wife perished in the fire of October 8, 
that year; Selah French was also burned 
in that terrible visitation of fire which 
brought death to so many members of 
this family and of the community, and 
mourning and sorrow to surviving rela- 
tives and friends. 

William P. Newberry received his 
education in the schools of Connecticut 
and Ohio, and in Detroit, Mich. , where 
he attended school one winter. Leaving 
Ohio in his eighteenth year, he came, on 
June 17, 1854, to Menominee, Mich., 
which then had only two or three houses, 
and there worked for his father. Mr. 
Newberry taught the first school in Dis- 
trict No 3, Peshtigo township, in 1857 or 
1858. He built one of the first business 
houses in Marinette, where the Porterfield 
block now stands, and was in business 
there until he went to farming, in 1 869. 
In Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1868, Mr. 
Newberry' was united in marriage with 
Miss Ellen J. Wolcott, who was born at 
Farmington, Ohio, and they have had 
five children, namely: Mary, who is teach- 
ing at Kimball, Wis. ; Kate, who is at- 
tending the Oshkosh Normal School; Will- 
Ham Kay, Alice and Edward. Mrs. New- 
berry came to Marinette, and was one of 
the teachers in the Marinette public 
schools. Her father, Willis Wolcott, was 
born in Ohio, and died there in 1859. His 



5i6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIIAPHICAL RECORD. 



father, Josiah Wolcott, who was a native 
of Connecticut, was an early pioneer of 
Trumbull county, Ohio. 

In 1869 Mr. Newberry located on a 
farm which he bought in Section 30, in 
what is now Grover township, and he has 
been a resident here continuously ever 
since. He aided in organizing the town- 
ship, and is one of the oldest pioneers in 
this section of Wisconsin. He has an ex- 
cellent farm of 206 acres in a good state 
of cultivation, where he raises small fruit 
and carries on general farming. He has 
platted an addition of five acres to Mari- 
nette, called "Newberry's Addition," 
which is located on Marinette avenue, 
between Bangs and Minnesota streets. 
One of the streets of Marinette bears the 
name of " Newberry Avenue." He votes 
with the Ivepublican party, and is one of 
the justices of the township. Both he and 
Mrs. Newberry are members of the Con- 
gregational Church at Peshtigo. He has 
seen much of the development and pro- 
gress of Marinette count}-, and is well and 
favorably known. 



BM. BRIGGS. This gentleman 
is one of the earliest and most 
prominent building contractors in 
.Marinette, having erected most of 
the principal public and private structures 
in Menekaunee up to 1871, when all were 
burned in the fire of that year. 

He was born in Westerly, Rhode Is- 
land, in 1832, son of Bowen and Hannah 
(Sheldon) Briggs, both natives of the same 
State. The family was one of the early 
New England settlers of English ancestry. 
His grandfather, Isaac Briggs, also of 
Rhode Island, served in the navy during 
the Revolutionary war. His father died 
in 1884 and his mother in 1854. They 
reared a family of nine children, six of 
whom are living in their native State: 
Bowen, Asa, Isaac, Martha (Mrs. Tefft), 
Abbie (Mrs. Blivcn), and Elizabeth (Mrs. 
Collins). 

B. M. Briggs, the gentleman whose 



name introduces this sketch, was reared 
in the State and educated in the schools 
of Rhode Island, learned the trade of car- 
penter and followed it during his residence 
there. When he came from Cleveland, 
Ohio, in 1 861, to Marinette, that now fine 
city was a village of about one thousand 
inhabitants. In 1880, when he built his 
residence on Main street (a fine two-story 
building), it was then in the woods. Be- 
sides this residence Mr. Briggs owns a 
fine business building on Main street, 
2 5 X 60 feet on a 60 X 1 20 foot lot, now oc- 
cupied by a shoe store. He has erected 
more of the buildings along the river than 
any man in Marinette. Among the many 
prominent buildings of his construction 
we mention the following: Exchange 
Hall, New York Cash Store and the Post- 
office in Menekaunee; the Garfield and 
Lincoln School buildings, the Catholic 
Sisters' Academy, known as St. Mary's 
Institute, the Town Hall and many more 
of the finest buildings in Marinette. 

Mr. Briggs was married in 1863 to 
Miss Abbie Sickler, daughter of Phillip 
and Eliza (Dyer) Sickler, all natives of 
Pennsylvania, who came to Marinette in 
1857. Mr. Sickler died in 1885; his 
widow resides with her son-in-law, Mr. 
Briggs. 

Politically, Mr. Briggs is a Republican. 
He is one of the most progressive and 
energetic business men of Marinette, hav- 
ing been identified with its growth and 
improvement ever since he has lived in it, 
about thirty-five j'ears. In the fire of 
1 87 1 he lost all he had, some $5,000, and 
had to commence life over again, he and 
his family saving nothing but the clothes 
they wore. 



RO. PHILBROOK, a prosperous, 
popular and enterprising merchant 
of Peshtigo. was born in Freeport. 
Maine, in 1 844. and is a son of Eze- 
kiel and Martha (Young) Philbrook, who 
were also natives of the Pine Tree State. 
On the father's side the ancestry of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



5'7 



family can be traced back to Thomas 
Philbrook, who came to this country from 
England with the Salem Colony that set- 
tled in Plymouth, Mass. The father was 
a teacher by profession, and always made 
his home in his native State, where he 
died in 1887, at the advanced age of 
ninety years; his wife passed away in 
1877. They reared a famil}- of eleven 
children, ten of whom are now living, as 
follows: Horace, in Brunswick, Maine; 
Ezekiel, in Waldoboro, Maine; Mrs. Del- 
phina Harmon, in Brunswick, Maine; 
Mrs. Jury, in Freeport, Maine; S. V. D., 
in Marinette; Mrs. Wilson, in Yarmouth, 
Maine; Mrs. Austin, in Bath, Maine; D. 
Y., in Webster, Maine; Mrs. Sylvester 
Brunswick, also in the Pine Tree State; 
and K. O., subject of this sketch. 

The last named was reared in the city 
of his birth, under the parental roof, and 
acquired his education in the schools of 
Freeport and Brunswick, Maine. There 
he learned and followed the trade of a 
ship builder, and after coming to Pesh- 
tigo, Wis., in 1866, he again followed the 
same pursuit. He continued to engage 
in that occupation up to the time of the 
memorable fire of 1871. The following 
year he embarked in mercantile pursuits, 
and is now the oldest merchant in years 
of continuous business in Peshtigo. In 
1S79 he established the first general store 
in Iron Mountain, Mich., and was there 
engaged in business for about six years. 
He also secured the establishment of a 
post office at that place, and served as 
postmaster some four years. He was 
truly one of the founders of that town, 
and has also been prominently identified 
with the upbuilding of Peshtigo. He is 
now conducting a large and well-appointed 
general store, and possesses the attributes 
of a successful nature, being progressive, 
energetic, pleasant in manner, and pos- 
sessed of the faculty of pleasing all classes 
of people. 

Mr. Philbrook was married in Maine, 
in 1868, to Miss Anna Allen, a native of 
that State, where her parents both died. 



Her death occurred in Peshtigo in 1874, 
and many friends mourned her loss; she 
left one daughter, Alice, who still sur- 
vives. In Peshtigo, in 1890, Mr. Phil- 
brook was again married, his second union 
being with Miss Anna Hiller, by whom he 
has one child, Madge. He is a member 
of Peshtigo Lodge No. 218, F. & A. M. 
Politically, he exercises his right of fran- 
chise in support of the Republican party, 
assisted in the organization of Marinette 
county, and has been justice of the peace 
for the past eighteen years, filling that 
position in a highly creditable and satis- 
factory manner. He is stictly impartial 
in his dealings, meting out justice without 
favoritism, and all who know him esteem 
him for his genuine worth and strict in- 
tegrity. 



J 



OHN E. WILSON is a leading repre- 
sentative of the lumber interests of 
the Northwest. He is now engaged 
in the manufacture of lumber and 
shingles at Daggett, Mich., as a member 
of the G. H. Westmon Lumber Company, 
which was established under the present 
style in 1891. The company furnishes 
employment to an average of forty men, 
and is doing an extensive business. The 
products of the factory, being of an ex- 
cellent quality, find a ready sale on the 
market, and the trade is steadily and 
constantly increasing. Not a little of the 
success of the company is due to the en- 
terprise and well-directed efforts of Mr. 
Wilson, who is a wide-awake and thor- 
oughly reliable business man. 

Our subject was born in Menominee, 
Mich., in 1S50, and is a son of Adolph 
O. and Margaret (Johnson) Wilson, who 
were natives of Sweden, and became pio- 
neer settlers of Marinette, Wis. Plere 
they both died, the mother first, the 
father in September, 1895. They reared 
a family of four children: Mrs. D. Cook, 
and Mrs. C. E. Shields, both of whom 
are living in Marinette; J. E., subject of 
this sketch; and W. C, who is married 



5iS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



and resides in Dagf;;ett, Mich. He was 
born in Menominee, and resided in Mari- 
nette until 1894, when he removed to his 
present home on account of his associa- 
tion with the lumber company. John E. 
was reared in Marinette, and acquired his 
education in its public schools. On leav- 
ing; the school-room he entered upon his 
business career, working for the Improve- 
ment Company, and subsequently with 
the Boom & Improvement Company, with 
which he was connected for some years. 
In 1873, forming a partnership with his 
brother, he established a general mercan- 
tile store at the corner of Hall avenue 
and Main street, and was successfully en- 
gaged in commercial pursuits until 1884, 
when he sold out in order to give his en- 
tire attention to the lumber business. 
The previous year he embarked in the 
lumber and logging business, and has 
since devoted his energies to this under- 
taking. He has at times furnished em- 
ployment to as many as sixty men. He 
now does a strictly milling business, man- 
ufacturing all kinds of lumber, and is at 
the head of one of the extensive lumber 
factories in this section of the State. 

On October 19, 1882, Mr. Wilson was 
united in marriage in Marinette with Miss 
Mary L. Horigan, a native of Chicago, 
and a daughter of James and Ann (Sulli- 
van) Horigan, who were natives of Ire- 
land, and in an early day crossed the 
Atlantic to Canada, going thence to Chi- 
cago. During the Civil war, Mr. Horigan 
enlisted in Company E, Eighty-ninth Il- 
linois Infantry, and for two and a half 
years was a valiant and courageous de- 
fender of the Union. In 1 866 he removed 
to Green Bay, Wis., where he died in 
1871. His widow now resides in Grand 
Rapids, Wis. In their family were four 
daughters: Jennie; Anna, wife of B. B. 
Pennell, of Milwaukee, Wis. ; Mrs. Delia 
Frederick, who died in Iron Mountain, 
Mich., in 1891; and Mrs. Wilson. To 
our subject and his wife were born one 
son and one daughtsr — Delia and Floyd. 
The mother was called to her final rest, 



September 27, 1893, and her death was 
mourned by her family and many warm 
friends, to whom her many excellencies 
of character had greatly endeared her. 

In politics, Mr. Wilson takes quite an 
active interest, and votes independently 
of party ties. In 1891 he became deputy 
register of deeds, serving out an unex- 
pired term; has also been assistant chief 
of the Fire Department. Socially, he is a 
member of Marinette Lodge, No. 182, F. & 
A. M. He has seen the full and complete 
growth and development of this section 
of Wisconsin, and has witnessed the up- 
building of Marinette from a town of 500 
inhabitants to its present magnitude. He 
has always been interested in real estate; 
in company with his father he built the 
Wilson Block, and he and his brother 
have a considerable tract of land in Mari- 
nette county outside of their milling 
interests. Mr. Wilson is a representative 
of one of the earliest pioneer families in 
his locality. He was in Porterfield town- 
ship at the time of the fire in 1S71, and 
was forced to remain out all night. He 
has ever manifested a deep and com- 
mendable interest in all that pertains to 
the welfare of the community, and Mari- 
nette county recognizes in him a valua- 
ble citizen. 



DANIEL COOK (deceased) was one 
of the early settlers of Marinette, 
locating in that city in the "fif- 
ties, " and from that time until his 
death taking an active and commendable 
interest in everything pertaining to the 
welfare and upbuilding of the community. 
He was born at New Mills, New Bruns- 
wick, Canada, in 1835, and was a son of 
Daniel and Mary (McDonald) Cook, the 
former of whom was a native of Scotland, 
the latter born of Scotch lineage. Both 
were representatives of early families of 
New Brunswick, and in that country Dan- 
iel Cook, Sr. , died. His widow afterward 
came to Marinette, where her death oc- 
curred in her seventy-seventh year. They 




c 




/ 



C^^/t^/ ^r^f\y 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOaUAPniVAL RECORD. 



519 



reared a family of seven sons and three 
daughters, namely: Alex, who was an 
early settler of Marinette, served in the 
Civil war, and died in that city; Daniel, 
the subject proper of this review; James 
and Marion (Cook) Graves, both of whom 
died in Marinette; and Catherine Gold- 
throp, Mrs. Belle Cook, Angus, Charles, 
Robert and John, all of whom are resi- 
dents of Marinette, Wisconsin. 

We now take up the personal history 
of Daniel Cook, who was long one of the 
valued citizens of Marinette. He was 
reared and educated in his native country 
where he began his acquaintance with the 
lumber trade, and in which he was inter- 
ested during the greater part of his busi- 
ness career. When Wisconsin was a 
frontier State, and this region was largely 
undeveloped, he came to Marinette from 
Flat Rock, Mich., and entered the em- 
ploy of the N. Ludington Lumber Com- 
pany, with which he was long connected 
as one of their most trusted and faithful 
employes, and his long connection with 
lumbering interests made him an e.xpert 
in that line of business. 

Mr. Cook was married in his adopted 
city, September 28, 1SS2, to Miss Cath- 
erine Wilson, who was born in Gefle, Swe- 
den, and is a daughter of Adolph and 
Martha (Normount) Wilson, of the same 
nativity. In 1 849 they crossed the ocean, 
and coming to Wisconsin located in what 
is now the city of Marinette, where the 
father died in 1895. ^'Y trade he was a 
shoemaker, but his time and energies later 
were devoted to the real-estate business. 
His wife died in 1889. The four children 
of their family are Mrs. Cook; Josephine, 
wifeof Charles Shields, of Marinette; John, 
married, and living in Marinette; and Will- 
iam, engaged in the lumber business in 
the same place. Mr. and Mrs. Cook had 
three children: Marion, Wallace and Ma- 
bel, all of whom are now attending school. 

In politics Mr. Cook was a Republi- 
can; socially he was a member of Mari- 
nette Lodge, F. & A. M., also of the I. O. 
O. F. He was devoted to everything cal- 



culated to promote the general welfare 
and advance the best interests of his adopt- 
ed town, county and State, and his life 
was an honorable, upright one, in many 
respects worthy of the highest emulation. 
His many excellencies of character furnish 
an example to his children that may well 
be followed, and at his death, which oc- 
curred May 18, 1890, he left to them the 
priceless heritage of a good name. Mrs. 
Cook is a member of the Pioneer Presby- 
terian Church, and an estimable lady, 
whose many friends in the conununity 
wish her a plenitude of years of health and 
happiness. 



HD. WHITCOMB, sheriff of Ocon- 
to county, has been identified 
with the public life of his section 
of the State for a number of years, 
having served for over two years as chair- 
man of the county, and for several years 
as chairman of his township. 

Mr. Wliitcomb is a native of Wiscon- 
sin, born, in 1850, in Kenosha, where his 
parents, Edmond and Louisa (Marsh) 
Whitcomb, located in 1838. They came 
west from New York, in which State they 
were born and married, and on their ar- 
rival in Wisconsin first came to Wal- 
worth county. On removing from Keno- 
sha Mr. Whitcomb opened up a farm at 
Berlin, Wis., from there going, in 1861, 
to Oconto county, journeying by team. 
Here he opened up a farm in Pensaukee 
township, on which he passed the remain- 
der of his life, dying, in 1893, in Snamico 
township; Mrs. Whitcomb preceded him 
to their long home, her death occurring 
in 1889. Their family consisted of three 
children, namely: William, who lives in 
Pensaukee township, on a farm entered in 
1850 (he enlisted in Oconto county in 
Company F, Twelfth Wis. V. I., for 
three years, serving from early in 1 863 
till the close of the war); Carrie (Mrs. De- 
Lano), of Pensaukee, and H. D. 

When about eleven years of age H.D. 
Whitcomb came with his parents from 



530 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



Walworth county to Oconto county, and 
afterward attended school here for a time. 
He aided in clearing the new land which 
his father purchased, and has been well 
trained in agriculture, the greater part of 
the time living in Suamico township, 
where he followed farming. In 1873 he 
was united in marriage with Miss Susan 
Porter (daughter of Milo Porter, now de- 
ceased), who was born in New York State 
and was reared in Portage county. Wis. 
Six children have blessed this union, 
namely: Etta, Carrie, Lester, Blanche, 
Arthur and Harry. 

Mr. \\'hitcomb has been an acti\e, 
useful citi/en, and no better testimonj" to 
his worth and ability could be given than 
his repeated election to office. He was 
elected to his present incumbencj' in No- 
vember, 1 894, and entered upon his duties 
in January, 1895. As before stated, he 
previously filled the office of chairman in 
Suamico township, for seven years, and 
was chairman of Oconto county, serving 
in the responsible positions with fidelity, 
and to the complete satisfaction of all con- 
cerned. Our subject is a Republican in 
political faith. In social connection he 
is a member of the Modern Woodmen of 
America. 



CHARLES W. SUNSTROM, coun- 
ty treasurer of Marinette county, 
has been a resident of Marinette 
since 1881. He is a native of 
Sweden, born January 4, 1861, and is 
a son of Erik Peter and Catharina (Nil- 
son) Sunstrom, both of whom are also 
natives of Sweden, where they j-et re- 
side. Their family consisted of ten chil- 
dren: Emma, now Mrs. Has.sel, of Swe- 
den; Sophia (Mrs. Nilson), who resides 
in Minneapolis, Minn. ; Anna (Mrs. An- 
derson), of Chicago; Matilda, in Mari- 
nette; Robert, a miller in Sweden; Heda, 
who yet resides in Sweden; Scigfried, who 
died in Marinette in 1884; Oscar and Ellen, 
who yet reside in their native laud; and 
Charles W. 



The boyhood and youth of our subject 
were spent in his native land, and he fin- 
ished his educational course at the college 
in Carlstad, Sweden. After leaving school 
he worked in the office of a mining com- 
pany for one year. Believing his chance 
for future advancement to be greater in 
the New World than in the Old, he re- 
solved on coming to the United States. 
On his arrival at New York, in May, 1881, 
he proceeded at once to Chicago, where 
he remained one summer, and then came 
to Marinette, Wis., and entered the em- 
ploy of the N. Ludington Company, spend- 
ing one winter in the woods. In 1882 he 
entered the store of the company at Mari- 
nette, first as clerk, then as timekeeper, and 
later as bookkeeper, which position he 
still retains, though he was elected county 
treasurer in i S94. 

Mr. Sunstrom was married at Mari- 
nette, in 1889, to Miss Louisa Mathison, a 
native of Norway and a daughter of Carl 
Mathison, who resides at Marinette. By 
this union three children have been born: 
Lillie Victoria, Eric Peter and Louisa 
Matilda. Although a native of Sweden, 
Mr. Sunstrom is thoroughly American in 
his ideas, and is willing to adaj^t himself 
to the conditions of this country as he 
finds it. He is quite popular, not only 
among his own nationality, with whom he 
is a leader, but among Americans and those 
of other nationalities as well. In his po- 
litical views he is a thorough-going Repub- 
lican, and has acted with that party since 
he became a naturalized citizen. He has 
served as alderman for the Third ward, 
and, as above stated, was in 1894 elected 
county treasurer, the duties of which of- 
fice he is now discharging to the satisfac- 
tion of all concerned. He is also serving 
as director in the Marinette Savings& Loan 
Association, which was organized in the 
winter of 1895. Fraternally he is a mem- 
ber of the Scandinavian Benevolent So- 
ciety, organized in 1887, of which he has 
been treasurer for five years, and of which 
he has also served as secretary for a time. 
He is an active and influential member of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



521 



the Swedish Lutheran Chiircli, and is the 
present church treasurer. Mrs. Sunstroni 
is also a member of the Swedish Lutheran 
Church, and joins with her husband in all 
church and benevolent work. 

Coming to this country a poor boy and 
without friends, he has, by his industry 
and strict integrity, won the confidence 
of all with whom he is brought in con- 
tact, and no man stands higher in the es- 
timation of his fellow citi;!ens. In 1884 
Mr. Sunstrom paid a visit to his old home 
in Sweden. 



CHARLES J. SirrXERSTEN, the 
well-known supervisor from the 
First ward of Marinette, and a 
prominent business man, was born 
in Motala, Sweden, in 1853, his father 
being G. A. and his mother Caroline 
(Orburg) Settersten, both of whom are 
also natives of Sweden. 

His father, who was a blacksmith by- 
trade, and ran a steam forge for making 
heavy shaftings for locomotives and steam- 
boats, left Sweden in 1869 to try his for- 
tune in America. Coming to Menekau- 
nee, he worked for the Menominee River 
Lumber Co. for a number of years. At 
present he resides in Menekaunee, where 
his wife died in 1892. To them were 
born the following children : Augusta 
(Mrs. P. J. Bowman), of Menekaunee; 
Carl August, who came to Menekaunee in 
1 868, and remained until the fall of that 
year, when he went to Indiana, and from 
there to Duluth, Minn., where he was 
killed in a railroad accident in 1870; A. 
H., a resident of Marinette, Wis. ; Charles 
J. ; Hilda, now Mrs. Erick Erickson, of 
Menekaunee; Gust, who died in 1889; 
Thure, who died in 1879; and Joseph, 
now living in Menekaunee. 

Charles J. Settersten was reared and 
educated in Sweden until si.xteen years 
of age, which was about all the school 
he ever had, having only attended school 
two weeks in this countrj'. On coming 
to Marinette county, he drove a supply 



team for the New York Lumber Co. till 
1S72, when he engaged in fishing and 
working before the mast on various sail- 
ing vessels on the lakes. When Mr. Set- 
tersten came to Marinette it was a village 
of about one thousand inhabitants, in- 
cluding the floating population connected 
with the mills. He has been in the real- 
estate business, and besides his residence 
owns a good business block in Menekau- 
nee, or East Marinette, and also a fine 
residence in the Second ward of Mari- 
nette. He has been county commissioner 
one term. 

Mr. Settersten was married Novem- 
ber 14, 1880, in Fish Creek, Door county, 
to Ruth S. Lundberg, a native of New 
Berlin, Wis., and daughter of Carl and 
Caroline Lundberg, natives of Norway, 
and among the early settlers of Wiscon- 
sin, who came to Fish Creek in 1867, 
where they still reside. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Settersten five children were born (four 
of whom are living): Ula, Carrie, Carl, 
Norman, and Norma, who died in 1895. 

Politically, Mr. Settersten is a Re- 
publican. Socially, he is a member of 
Menekaunee Tent No. 2, K. O. T. M., 
and of the Swedish Lutheran Church. 
He is a prominent man in the public af- 
fairs of Marinette county, a good citizen, 
greatly respected by all. 



FRANCIS X. MORROW, senior 
member of the well-known law 
firm of Morrow & Lynch, Oconto, 
Oconto county, is a native of the 
place, born January 30, 1S63. His father, 
Gilbert Morrow, was a native of Canada, 
born in St. John, and came in 185 1 to 
Oconto, where for some time he kept 
hotel. In 1852 he married Eliza Rouse, 
and five children came to their union, of 
whom George, the eldest, died when very 
young; Emma married Ale.\. Brazeau, and 
now makes her home in California; 
George resides at Stockton, Cal., and 
Gilbert in Oconto. 

Our subject was ten years of age when 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



his mother passed from earth. In the 
fall of 1 874 he commenced to work with 
his father in the Oconto Co.'s mill, being 
emplojcd in taking away box boards from 
a rip-saw run bj' John K. Davis, for 
which he received $12 per month. He 
was in the employ of this company con- 
tinuously from 1874 to 1879, and after 
that, until 1882, was employed at Oconto 
by Chisholm & Burtus, at Comstock's 
and on Pecor brook in the town of How, 
being engaged in driving logs, working on 
the boom, in the mill and in the woods. 
After the big freshet of 1 880 he sacked 
the Oconto river from Stiles to Oconto, 
and in the following year cooked for a 
crew of men that drove out Little river; 
in 1882 he drove the North Branch and 
part of the main river, and in 1883, with 
James Shea as boss, he drove out Pesh- 
tigo brook and the Waupee. During 
some of the winter months he attended 
the public schools, and, being very am- 
bitious and industrious, and a hard and 
constant reader, he gradually accumulated 
a vast and solid fund of valuable knowl- 
edge. In 1883 he acted as clerk in the 
Assembly Chamber at Madison, and in 
1884 he was in Chicago as delegate to 
the Democratic convention. During that 
year Mr. Morrow was in the law office of 
Vroman & Sale, of Green Bay, and in 
the latter part of 1884 he became assist- 
ant bookkeeper for Charles A. Paltzer, a 
wholesale lumber merchant on Archer 
avenue, Chicago. In 1887, after three 
years of hard work in the office of Hon. 
Francis A. Kiddle, a board of trade law- 
yer, during which time he was also a 
student in the law department of the 
Chicago University, he graduated with 
distinguished honors. 

When Francis X. Morrow received 
the nomination for register of deeds in 
1 892 he was not, as some people supposed, 
comparatively unknown. He had been 
special correspondent for the Green Bay 
Aih'ocatf for several years, and was a fre- 
(juent contributor of news matter to the 
Milwaukee and Chicago papers. He had 



never previously run for office, however, 
and his election was the occasion of much 
surprise and general comment, for he was 
elected over his opponents by a plurality 
of 562 votes. No better evidence could 
be given of his popularity and excellent 
standing in the community than his re- 
nomination at the Democratic county 
convention in Oconto last fall, and the 
people are satisfied that the confidence 
reposed in him is not misplaced. He is 
a self-made tnan, and deserves the honors 
he enjoys. 



CHARLi:S C. DAILY, of the firm 
of Quillan & Daily, attorneys at 
law. No. 1825 Hall avenue, Mari- 
nette, came from Fond du Lac, 
Wis., to that city in May, 1879, and has 
ever since been engaged in the practice of 
law there. 

Mr. Daily is, however, a native of 
Rome, N. Y., born in 1853, and is a son 
of John and Mary (Curran) Daily, both 
of whom were natives of Ireland. John 
Daily came to the United States from Ire- 
land when a boy, locating in New York, 
where he married, and subsequently re- 
moved with his family to Fond du Lac, 
Wis., where he settled down to farm life 
and passed the remainder of his days, dy- 
ing March 15, 1895; his wife died in 1887. 
They were numbered among the pioneers 
of Fond du Lac county, and there reared 
their family of seven children, viz.: 
Charles C, our subject; Miles, who died 
in 1889; John, who died in Chicago in 
1882; Thomas, residing in Eden, Fond du 
Lac Co. , Wis. , who is a teacher and car- 
penter; Daniel, who resides at Eden, Fond 
du Lac county; Dennis, residing at Os- 
ceola; and Mary, who died in 1885. 

Charles C. Daily was about twelve 
years of age when the family came to 
Wisconsin, and he was reared to farm 
life. He was educated in the schools of 
I""ond du Lac county, and after complet- 
ing his literary education taught school 
and earned money that he might attend 



COMMEMOltATIVli: niOOHAI'l/IOAL RRCOllD. 



523 



coiiiiiicicial co11c,l;c ;it I'oiul ilii l,;u-, from 
which h(; j^radnatcd in 1S73. Ih: contin- 
ued to teach in the scliools of I'^ond dii 
Lac county after f,M"aduatinj; from I lie com- 
mercial colle;;(', and also connni'iiced liic 
study of the law. In 1S77 he was admit- 
ted to the bar at l*"ond du I^ac. Previous 
to this, howcN'er, in i^i/S, he received an 
ap|K)int inenl as cadet at West I'oinI, and 
attenilc;d alii uit one month, when it was 
discovered lie was over at;e and ('ould not 
reuKiin. After iiis admission to the bar 
he commenced the practice of his jirofes- 
sion at I'"onil dn Lac. where lie remained 
imtil iSjc), and then c.une to Marinette. 
In iSSi he was electetl justice of the jieace, 
which position he held for some; tinu'; he 
was also elecli;d town clerk, and held that 
ollice si.\ years. .At this lime what is now 
I'doreiice county and all of Marini;lte, 
w itli the exception of Peslitigo, comprised 
one town. For twelve years he was 
|)olicc! justice of Marinette, at the expira- 
tion of which tinu; he resumed the prac- 
tice of law. In I<S9J he was elected to 
the Legislature and served two years, 
durin;,' which time he was on the judici- 
ary conunittee and tin- Town and County 
conunittee. lie was nominatiMl to the 
Senate from tiie First district in 1X94, but 
as his jiarly w'as in the minority he was 
not elccteil. In politics he is a Democrat, 
has been prouunent in jiolitical affairs, 
and is the present court connnissioner for 
Marinette count}'. In his profession he 
ranks amonj,' the best attorneys in north- 
ern Wisconsin, and h.is an extensive jirac- 
tiee not only in the courts of Wisconsin 
but also in Michij^an. 

Mr. Daily was married at Marinette;, 
in I.S91, to Miss Nellie P>radford, a native 
of Mt. Clemens, Mich., and dauj^hter of 
Horace and Cynthia (Mann) lii-adford. 
natives of (ialesbur;;, Mich., and IV;nn- 
sj'lvania, respectively, who in an (;arly 
day settled at Mt. Clemens, Mich. Tin; 
father was a printer, and foUowc-d that 
occupation throuj^hout his life. I lis death 
occurred some years af^o, but the mother 
is still livinf,' at ICaton, Colo. j-iy this 



union two tdiildri;n have been born : I la/id 
and Inez, tin; last named cKiuu; in Ajiril, 

I'^raternally Mr. Daily is a nu;nd)er of 
Marinette Lodtje No. 7:2, K. of I'. lie 
was a cdiarter member of the ^'. M. C. A., 
at Marinette, and served ei;;hl yi;ars on the 
board of nianaj;crs, takini; a lively part in 
the construction of their present line 
buildin;;. I li; is a member of the llusi- 
ness Men's y\ssociation, and lakes an .u-t- 
ive interest in its work of advertisiuf; and 
dexelopin;.^ the material interests of his 
ado|i|rd cily. When Mr. D.uly cauu' to 
Marmelle he found a )oun^ cilv of ^.ooo 
ndi.ibilanis, and ha;; witnessed its steady 
.!;rovvlli until it now has a ])opulalinn of 
about i7,oof). No man has taken a niMic 
active interest in its advancement ami 
|irospenly, aiul none b:i\e been more w ill- 
in^ to do their p.irt lli.in tin; subject of 
this sketch. 



JOHN SHICLDKlCK, one of ih,. most 
])romiiU'nt and best known plaster 
contractors in Wisconsin, nioi(; 
especially in the norllu'in purlimi of 
the Sl.ite, where he has bm 1 1 up fi>i' himself 
a hij^h and solid rt'putation lor superior 
work in his line, is well woithy to be rep- 
resented in llie paj^'i'S of this work. 

A native of the meliopolis of the 
world, London, Liif.;land, he was born in 
iS..)7, and is a son of Ldward .md |aiiel 
(Lnke) Sheldrick, the foi'iiu'r ol whom 
was also born in London, the lallei in 
Ldinburf;h, Scotland, rhe\ were marric^l 
in London, and there reari'd a family of 
three (diildren ; lulward, who came to Hds- 
ton, Mass., in 1870, but is now li\in;; in 
London, JCnj.,dand; |olm, subject of this 
sketch; and Thomas, who also resides in 
London, Lnj.;land (Ik; visited Chic.if^'o in 
187J, returninj,' to ICn/^land the followirif; 
year; in iS74he \'isited .Mb.niy, N. Y., 
but once more betook himself to his 
native city). The father was a seafariuf,' 
man, chielly in the cajiacity of steward 
on sailinf,' vessels, and may be said to ha\e 



524 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



sailed all over the world. He died in 
London, Engknd, in 1859; his wife pass- 
ing away in the same city in 1S87. 

John Sheldrick, whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, received his education 
at the schools of his native place, and 
learned the trade of plasterer. In 1871 
he came to the United States, here to 
make a permanent home, landing at Bos- 
ton, Mass., whence same year he came 
to Oconto, Wis., which had just suffered 
from a conflagration. Here he worked 
at his trade till moving to Chicago, 111., 
in 1872, thence proceeding to Marquette, 
Mich., in 1873. where he followed con- 
tracting and plastering some fouryears, or 
till 1877, at which time he came to Mari- 
nette where he has since had his home. 
He had the plaster contract on the new 
hotel, and has done a large amount of 
contracting ever since coming to the city, 
having secured nearlj' all the best work 
in the place. At the present time he 
employs from three to ten men. 

In December, 1865, Mr. Sheldrick 
was united in marriage with Miss Sarah 
Peters, who was born in London, Eng- 
land, a daughter of Edward and Jane 
(Cumpcrj Peters, natives of Surrey, Eng- 
land, where the father died, the mother 
coming to Marinette in 1890. Mr. Peters 
was a landowner in Surrey, and a profes- 
sional man. To Mr. and Mrs. Sheldrick 
have been born five children, as follows: 
Edward, born in London, England, a ma- 
chinist in Beloit, Wis. ; John, born in Chi- 
cago, assistant to his father; Jennie, born 
in Marquette, Mich., now in Chicago, be- 
ing a saleslady in the employ of Marshall 
Field's millinery department; Thomas and 
Edith, both born in Marinette, and both 
still at home. Mr. and Mrs. Sheldrick 
are members of the Episcopal Church, 
and, socially, he is affiliated with May 
Lodge No. 265, I. O. O. F. He has met 
with well-merited success in his business, 
and is now owner of two houses on Depot 
street, Marinette, which he rents, and 
has an elegant residence on Hall avenue. 
During the eighteen or more years he has 



been a resident of Marinette, our subject 
has seen its growth and expansion from a 
town of 5,000 inhabitants to a line city of 
16,000, and has himself contributed in no 
small degree to its progressiveness and 
advancement, very many of the buildings, 
both public and private, presenting sub- 
stantial evidences of his handiwork. 



GEORGE C. RATHBUN, city 
clerk of Marinette, was first 
elected to the position in 1894, 
and re-elected in 1895. He has 
been a resident of Marinette since 1890. 
In 1 89 1 he was engaged as clerk at Ellis 
Junction for Butler Mueller and was sub- 
sequently in the employ of the Boom 
Company. 

Mr. Rathbun is a native of Beaver 
Dam, Wis., born in 1857, and is a son of 
Duane and Catherine (Post) Rathbun, 
the former a native of Connecticut, the 
latter of Pennsylvania. They were both 
early settlers of Dodge county. Wis., the 
latter arriving here in 1847, and the for- 
mer in 1849. They were married at 
Beaver Dam. Duanc Rathbun was a 
manufacturer of sash, doors and blinds, 
and followed that occupation for some 
years. He also worked in flouring mills 
at Beaver Dam some time, and was thus 
engaged when the war for the Union 
commenced. Almost at the first tap of 
the drum he enlisted in Company C, 
Sixteenth Wis. V. I., enlisting for three 
years. In 1863 the regiment veteranized, 
and Mr. Rathbun re-enlisted and served 
until the close of the war. His regiment 
was with the Western army, and was very 
actively engaged during his whole term 
of service. He was honorably discharged 
at the close of the war, and returned to 
Beaver Dam, where he remained a short 
time, and then went to Green Bay, at 
which place he found employment in the 
planing mills. In 1 868 the family removed 
to Fish Creek, Door Co., Wis., but he 
remained at Green Bay, and finally dis- 
appeared, nothing being now known of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORB. 



525 



his whereabouts. The mother now re- 
sides at Marinette, to which place she 
removed some years ago. They had a 
family o{ four children: George C, our 
subject; Emma, who married Henry 
Graham, and now resides in the State of 
Washington; Herbert and John, who both 
reside in Marinette. 

George C. Rathbun, our subject, spent 
his boyhood and youth in Green Bay and 
Fish Creek, receiving his education in the 
common schools of the latter place, which 
was supplemented with one term at the 
Normal School in Oshkosh. After leav- 
ing school, he engaged in teaching for a 
time, in Door county, and at Sturgeon 
Bay, in 1883, married Margaret E. Brad- 
ley, a daughter of D. W. and Mary A. 
(Mathews) Bradley, who were natives of 
Ireland, and who at an early day emi- 
grated from that country to New York, 
from thence, in 1871, coming to Door 
county. Wis. ; the father died some years 
ago; the mother now resides at Marinette. 
To this union two children have been 
born: Guy Leslie Walter and Vivian Kate 
Irene. 

In politics, i\fr. Rathbun is a Repub- 
lican, with which party he has affiliated 
since attaining his majority. He has 
never desired or sought public office, but 
while residing at Egg Harbor, he was 
town clerk some five years. Fraternally, 
he is a member of Marinette Lodge. No. 
1 82, A. F. & A. M. ; of Marinette Chapter, 
R. A. M. ; of the Independent Order of 
Forresters; of Hamilton Camp No. 43, 
Sons of Veterans, and of Fraternal Alli- 
ance No. 53. Mr. Rathbun stands well 
in the community in which he resides, 
and enjoys the respect and confidence of 
his fellow citizens. 



AH. SETTERSTEN, city assessor, 
and junior member of the firm of 
Wittig & Company, undertakers, 
came to Marinette July 9, 1869, 
and has since been a resident of that city. 
He is a native of Sweden, born in 



1 85 I. and is a son of G. A. and Caroline 
(Orburg) Settersten, both of whom were 
also natives of that country, emigrating 
to this country in 1869, and coming di- 
rect to Marinette. Here the father, who 
is a blacksmith by trade, worked in a 
mill, also in Philbrook's shipyard, and is 
yet living in East Marinette. His wife, 
the mother of our subject, died in Mari- 
nette in March, 189J. They reared a fami- 
ly of eight children: Augusta, wife of Peter 
Bonier, of Menekaunee; C. A., who was 
the first of the family to come to Wiscon- 
son, arriving here in 1868, and was killed 
in Minnesota in 1870; A. H., our subject; 
C. J., who resides in Menekaunee, is su- 
pervisor for the First ward; Hildah, wife 
of Erick Erickson, of Menekaunee; Gus, 
who died in Marinette, W^is., in 1889; 
Tryon, deceased some years ago; and Jo- 
seph, a resident of Menekaunee. 

The boyhood and youth of our subject 
were spent in Sweden, and his educa- 
tion was obtained in the schools of his 
native land. He was eighteen years of 
age when the family came to Mari- 
nette, where he at once obtained em- 
ployment in the mills, and also worked 
in the woods. For twenty years he was in 
the employ of the Menominee I^iver Lum- 
ber Company, a part of which time he 
was engaged as a sawyer, and for about 
eight or nine years as foreman of the 
mills, having entire charge of the same. 
Some years ago he engaged in the livery 
business in Marinette, in company with 
Peter Holquist, with whom he remained 
five years. His present partnership with 
Mr. Wittig was subsequently formed. 

On coming to this country our sub- 
ject was a single man, but at Marinette 
he became acquainted with, and in 1880 
married, Miss Elizabeth Hanson, a 
daughter of Tufve Hanson, both of 
whom were natives of Sweden. Her 
father died in his native land some years 
ago, and there her mother continues to 
reside. Mr. and Mrs. Settersten have 
six living children: Freddie, Willie, Wal- 
ter, Elsie, Rudolph and Victor. Ernest 



526 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPmCAL RECORD. 



Oscar died at the age of fourteen months, 
and Edmund Ephraim at the age of 
eleven months. 

In his pohtical views Mr. Settersten 
is a decided Republican. He has filled 
several local . offices, including that of 
overseer of highways, which position he 
occupied for two years, and has also filled 
the position of city assessor. He is well 
and favorably known, not only in the city 
but throughout Marinette county. In re- 
ligious faith he is a member of the Swed- 
ish Lutheran Church, and has been for 
some years secretary and treasurer of 
same. 



LUTHER K. M.\cNEILL, loan 
broker and dealer in real estate at 
Marinette, commenced business 
here in 1885, and for ten years had 
the only abstract office in Marinette 
county. On his arrival here in April, 1879, 
he found a village of some four thousand 
inhabitants, and what is now known as 
Marinette county was formerly a part of 
Oconto county. On the third day of 
March, of that year, Marinette was de- 
tached from Oconto county and became 
independent. 

The subject of this sketch was born 
in Milwaukee, Wis., July 30, 1850, and 
is a son of William J. and Lily A. 
(Mitchell) MacNeill, the former of whom 
was a native of Ayrshire, Scotland, and 
the latter of Ireland. The father was 
reared in Scotland, and at the age of 
about thirty years came to Boston, in 
1849 settling in Milwaukee, Wis. He 
was a painter by trade, and followed that 
occupation until his death, which occurred 
in September, i S70. He was originally 
a mctnber of the Wesleyan Methodist 
Church, retaining his connection with 
that body until i860, when he witluirew 
from their fellowship and united with the 
Spring Street Congregational Church, now 
the Grand Avenue Church. He was ever 
interested in all Church, temperance and 
benevolent work, and was willing to do 



his share in building up any good cause. 
In his political views he was first an 
Abolitionist and later a Republican. His 
wife survived him two years, dying in 
1872. Of the familj- of four children, all 
were born in Wisconsin, as follows: 
Luther K., our subject; Martha B., wife 
of C. D. Simonds, connected with the 
Chauncey-Simonds Clothing Co., of Mil- 
waukee; Samuel M., a Congregational 
minister at Lake Mills, W' is. ; and Edward 
H., a traveling salesman, residing in Mil- 
waukee. 

\Miile li\ing in Milwaukee our subject 
attended the public schools, and in his 
youth learned the painter's trade, which 
he followed until 1870. He then became 
clerk in a grocery store, after which he 
was in the employ of F. W. Ambler & 
Co., wholesale hat dealers, remaining 
with this firm about one j'ear, when he 
became the junior member of the firm of 
Schuster, Pitts & MacNeill, who were 
handling the Florence Sewing Machine, 
as general agents for Wisconsin and Min- 
nesota. He continued in that about two 
years, and then retired from business 
for a brief period, subsequently engaging 
with the Hansen Fur Company, with 
whom he remained until a short time 
previous to his coming to Marinette, in 
1879. Upon his arrival here he entered 
into the employ of the N. Ludington 
Company, with whom he remained until 
February i, 1883, when he accepted a 
position in the Stephenson Bank as teller. 
In January, 1884, he resigned his posi- 
tion in the bank and accepted the ap- 
pointment as county clerk, serving that 
year; in the spring of 1884 he was elected 
justice of the peace. In the fall of 1885 
he engaged in the abstract business, buy- 
ing the books of R. L. Hall, of Oconto, 
and continued in that business, together 
with that of real estate and loans, up to 
November i, 1895, when he sold out to 
the Marinette Land & Abstract Co., he 
still retaining his real-estate business. 

Mr. MacNeill was married at Mari- 
nette, in June, 1SS8, to Miss Harriet M. 




^^^^^^?d^^::^^^^^L^^^^Vi^.^^^ 



C0MME3I0ItATIYE DIOORAPniOAL RECORD. 



527 



McAlpine, who was born in Lee, Mass., 
daughter of Robert and Harriet P. 
(Graves) McAlpine, both of whom are 
now residing in Marinette. Three chil- 
dren have been born of this union: Robert 
William, Helen Virginia, and Milo John. 
In politics Mr. McNeill is a Republican, 
and served as city treasurer one term, in 
1889. In religious faith he is a member 
of the Pioneer Presbyterian Church, of 
which he is a deacon and also a trustee. 
He is a member of the Caledonian Society 
and of the Modern Woodmen of America. 
Coming to this county in the year of its 
organization, and having been actively 
engaged in business during the interven- 
ing years, Mr. MacNeill has contributed 
no small part toward its development. 
Few men are better known in Marinette 
county, and none stand higher in the 
estimation of the people than does the 
subject of this sketch. 



JOHN GROSSE, the pioneer mer- 
chant of Little Suamico, and the 
most prominent citi/en of that 
place, having done more for its de- 
velopment and upbuikling than any other 
individual, located in that locality in 
March, 1851. 

He is a native of Germany, his birth 
having occurred in the little village of 
Seddin, near Potsdam, in 1836. His 
parents were G. A. and Caroline (Spiseke) 
Grosse, also natives of the same country, 
the father born in Potsdam, the mother 
in Seddin. The father was a merchant 
and farmer, and carried on business in his 
native land until 1849, when he bade 
adieu to that country and sailed from 
Hamburg to New York, where he arrived 
after a voyage of six weeks. He at once 
made his way to Green Bay, Wis., where 
he remained for two years, when he came 
to Little Suamico, Oconto county, and 
was engaged in fishing and farming, 
making his home here until his death in 
1872. For many j'ears he served as town 
clerk, was an intfuential citizen, and a 

30 



supporter of the Democratic party. His 
wife died in 1877. They reared a family 
of four sons ; |ohn, our subject; Will- 
iam H., a resident of Little Suamico 
township; G. A., who is carrying on 
farming and fishing, and also serves as 
postmasterat Little Suamico; and Charlie, 
who died in that place in 1894. 

The subject proper of these lines spent 
the first twelve years of his life in the 
Fatherland, and there began his educa- 
tion, which was completed in the public 
schools of Green l>ay after the family 
came to America. He was a youth of 
fourteen when he became a resident of 
Oconto county, and here he engaged in 
iishing, also in aiding his father in the 
opening uj) and developing of the farm. 
He assisted in cutting the road through 
to Big Suamico, in 1851, for at that time 
the onl\' road was an Indian trail. There 
was no bridge across the river, and the en- 
tire country round about was unimproved, 
giving little evidence of future develop- 
ment. The first bridge across the river 
was built by him, in 1856. Mr. Grosse 
has been very pr<.)minently connected 
with the progress and advancement in his 
locality, and almost all works of public im- 
provement have recei\-ed from him sub- 
stantial aid. He has made judicious in- 
vestments in real estate, and now owns 
1600 acres of land in Little Suamico 
township, 200 of which are cleared and 
under a high state of cultivation. He is 
the pioneer merchant of Little Suamico, 
having begun business on a small scale in 
i86o; his present store he built in 1873, 
and he here carries a large and complete 
stock of general merchandise, while from 
the public he receives a liberal patronage. 

In 1 86 1 Mr. Grosse was married to 
Miss Mary L. Scheuring, a native of Ger- 
many, and a daughter of Louie and 
Matilda (Schmolkej Scheuring, both born 
near Berlin. In 1849 they sailed from 
Bremen to New York, and thence pro- 
ceeded to De Pere, Wis., where they 
spent their remaining days, the father 
passing away in 1895, the mother in 



528 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



1885. Mr. and Mrs. Grosse have five 
children : John, married and Hving in 
Little Suamico; Mrs. Matilda Early, of 
British Columbia; Edward, married and 
residing in Little Suamico township; 
Mary, wife of Mr. Wilce. station agent at 
Little Suamico; and Ella. 

Mr. Grosse exercises his right of fran- 
chise in support of the Republican party, 
and has most efficiently served as a mem- 
ber of the town board of supervisors, as 
township clerk and as treasurer. He has 
erected manj- fine buildings in Little 
Suamico, and may well be said to be the 
founder of the town. The influence of 
such a character as that of Mr. Grosse on 
the business and political life of a com- 
munity can not be estimated. He is a 
man of strong determination and unques- 
tioned integrity, and his honorable rec- 
ord, commanding the confidence of all, 
has left its impress for good on the various 
interests with which he has been con- 
nected. 



JOHN COOK. Among the worthy 
citizens that New Brunswick has fur- 
nished to Marinette is this gentleman, 
who was born in New Mills, Resti- 
gouche county, in 1849. His parents, 
Daniel and Mary (McDonald) Cook, were 
natives of Scotland, and the Island of 
Arran, respectively, which latter is near 
the Scottish coast. Daniel Cook and his 
brother James crossed the Atlantic to New 
Brunswick, and the latter afterward went 
to one of the western Provinces of Canada. 
The former was married in New Bruns- 
wick, and there engaged in lumbering for 
a time, after which he located on a farm, 
which he made his home until his death 
in 1863. His wife came to Marinette in 
1883 and was called to the home bcjond 
August 8, 1888. They reared a family 
of ten children, si.\ of whom are yet 
living. 

Our subject spent the days of his child- 
hood in his parents' home, and acquired 
his education at the schools of his native 



town. When about fifteen years of age 
he came to Marinette and secured a posi- 
tion as chore boy with the N. I^udington 
Lumber Company, with whom he re- 
mained three months, attending the schools 
of Appleton, Wis., during the following 
winter. Since that time he has been con- 
nected with the lumber trade, working in 
the woods and at lumber cruising, em- 
ployed most of the time by the H. Whit- 
beck Company. He is ever faithful to 
the trust reposed in him. and has the con- 
fidence of his employers, and the regard 
of those with whom he is associated. 

In July, 1879, at Marinette, Mr. Cook 
wedded ^liss Nellie Agnes Halron, a na- 
tive of Manitowoc, Wis., and a daughter 
of James and Margaret (Maney) Halron. 
Her father was a native of Ireland, and 
on coming to the United States located 
in Ohio, where he was married. In 1856 
he brought his family to Manitowoc, Wis., 
and in the midst of the forest opened up 
a farm which he continued to cultivate 
until his death, in 1877. His wife is still 
living on the old home place. In their 
family were nine children, as follows: 
Bridget, wife of Thomas Conley, of Cato, 
Manitowoc county; Mary Ann, wife of 
Robert Powers, of Peshtigo; Nellie A., 
Mrs. Cook; Mrs. Margaret Ditwiller, of 
Chicago; Katie, who became the wife of 
James Sommers, of Lisbon, Dak., and 
died in May, 1884; Cornelius, who died 
in Marinette in 1881; Elizabeth, of Cato, 
Wis. ; Sarah, wife of Tom Timlin, of 
Channing, Mich., agent of the Chicago, 
Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. ; and 
James, who is living on the old homestead. 

Seven children were born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Cook, five of whom are living, viz. : 
Tessie Isabelle, born July 10, 1880; Lill- 
ian May, born March 26, 1882; James D., 
born May i, 1884; John A., born January 
10, 1 886, who died on the 5th of August 
following; Ralph Alex, born February 28, 
1887; Sarah Ethelyn, born March i, 1890, 
who died a few days later; and Nellie 
Vivian, born July 5, 1892. Mr. Cook 
votes with the Republican party and takes 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPnTCAL RECOTIT). 



529 



a deep interest in political affairs. So- 
cially he is a member of the Caledonian 
Society and of the Modern Woodmen of 
America. His wife holds membership 
with the Catholic Church. They are both 
worthy representatives of honored pioneer 
families of Marinette. 



M 



Iv. WELLINGTON is one of 

the early settlers of Pensaukee 
township, Oconto count}', hav- 
ing arrived there in 1857, set- 
tling on the farm which is still his home. 
He is a native of Massachusetts, born 
in March, 1816, in Lexington, son of Mar- 
shall and Elizabeth (Kimball) Wellington, 
who were also born in Massachusetts, 
where they were married. The father 
was a butcher and a farmer by occupa- 
tion; he always lived in the State of his 
birth, dying in Lexington in 1875; the 
mother survived him. There were four 
children in their family, three of whom 
are livng, as follows: M. K., whose 
name opens this sketch; Elizabeth, who 
was married to Albert W. Bryant, and 
died in Massachusetts; Nanc\', who be- 
came the second wife of Mr. I^ryant, of 
Lexington, Mass. ; and Walter, who also 
lives in Lexington, Mass. Grandfather 
William Wellington was born in England, 
and in early life came to America. Grand- 
father Kimball was born in Massachusetts. 
Our subject was reared in his native 
State, and received his education in the 
common schools, also attending private 
school six weeks; but the grater part of 
his knowledge has been gained by steady 
application and observation. In early 
life he was apprenticed, at Lexington, to 
learn the shoemaker's trade, which he 
followed for many years. In 1842 he 
was married, in Waltham, Mass., to Miss 
Joanna Caryl, who was born in Vermont, 
as was also her father, Calvin Caryl, and 
two children came to this union; Mary 
(Mrs. E. R. Wilson), of Pensaukee town- 
ship, and Charles, who resides in Chicago, 
111. The mother of these died in Decem- 



ber, 1869, on the farm in Pensaukee 
township. In 1857 Mr. Wellington set 
out from Lowell, Mass., coming direct 
to Pensaukee township, Oconto Co., 
Wis., journeying by rail to Buffalo, thence 
on the steamer " Michigan, " Capt. Gay- 
lord, around the lakes to Green Bay, and 
from there on the "Fannie Fiske " to his 
destination. He located on the farm 
which has since been his home, and which 
consists of 120 acres, all being at that 
time in the midst of a vast wilderness, un- 
developed and uncared for by the hand 
of man, and into which not even ordi- 
nary roads had yet been made. He and 
his son-in-law, F. R. Wilson, together 
cleared and impro\'ed this tract, and have 
converted it into a fertile, productive 
farm. Mr. Wellington settled here before 
the railroad had been introduced into the 
region, and at a time when other marks 
and signs of civilization were few and far 
lietween. During the thirty-eight years 
of his residence here, however, Oconto 
county has never once halted in the 
march of progress, and though still a 
comparatively new section has reason to 
be proud of the rapidity with which her 
resources have been developed and in- 
creased. Mr. Wellington has been a Re- 
publican in political faith, and takes a 
warm interest in the success of his party. 



NELS LINDQUIST, one of the 
very early pioneers of Menekau- 
ne, Marinette county, having 
come here in 1857 from Chicago, 
in which city he located upon his arrival 
from Sweden, in 1854, was born October 
27, 1805. His parents died in their na- 
tive land, leaving two children, Nels and 
Augustoph, the latter still residing there. 
The father was a sailor and followed that 
calling until his death. 

Mr. Lindquist was reared and edu- 
cated in Sweden, and was a teacher in the 
schools of that country for seventeen years. 
He came to this countrj' in a sailing ves- 
sel, the "Esmerelda," Capt. Johnson, 



53° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPHTCAL RECOJIB. 



landing at New York after a voyage of six 
weeks. On reaching Chicago (in 1854) 
he engaged in the business of painting, 
glass cutting, etc., until 1857, when he 
came to Marinette, then a mere hamlet, 
and here followed the business of shoe- 
making for several years. He was mar- 
ried in the old country to Miss Anna 
Grainan, who was born in Sweden, and 
died in Marinette, in 1883. Eight chil- 
dren were born of this marriage, three of 
whom died before the parents came to 
this country. Of the five now living, Carl 
Gustoph, John O. and Peter August are 
residing in Menekaunee township, Mari- 
nette county; William ¥. resides in Iron 
Mountain, Mich., and A. Victor in E.s- 
canaba. Michigan. 

Nels Lindquist is one of the oldest 
settlers in Marinette county; he is said to 
be the oldest, both as to age and the length 
of residence, in Marinette city, and not- 
withstanding his age he is an active, ear- 
nest Republican, taking great interest in 
local, State and national political move- 
ments. He is also a prominent and con- 
sistent member of the Swedish Methodist 
Church, and is respected and esteemed 
by all who know him. 



JOHN O. LINOgUIST, son of Nei- 
Lindquist, was born in Sweden in 
1835, came to Chicago, 111., in 1S54, 
and engaged in the business of paint- 
ing, in which he continued until his re- 
moval to Marinette, Wis. Having no 
settled plans for the future, he entered the 
woods and was employed as a cook in 
various lumber camps until about the 
year 1866, when he began the career of 
sailor on the lakes. 

In 1869, tiring of a sailor's life, Mr. 
Lindquist rented premises of Dr. J. 
J. Sherman and embarked in a general 
mercantile business, which he conducted 
until October 8, 1871, one day before 
the great fire in Chicago, when his estab- 
lishment was completely burned out. 
But possessing the courage and tenacity 



I'l [uirpose which so eminently distinguish 
the business men of the West, he imme- 
diately set to work to retrieve his losses, 
and erected the building now occupied by 
K. Lundberg, where he not only re-es- 
tablished his former business, but in ad- 
dition engaged in wholesale and retail fish 
dealing, giving employment to a number 
of men. In 1890 he organized the firm 
of Lindquist, Westmon & Campbell, one 
of the largest and most successful mercan- 
tile firms in Marinette, now doing business 
on Hull avenue. Mr. Lindquist is one of 
the oldest business men in the city, hav- 
ing been a resident of Marinette since 
1857 — for thirty-eight consecutive years. 

In 1862, at Fort Howard, Wis., Mr. 
Lindquist was married to Miss Maria West- 
mon, a native of Norway and daughter of 
Nels and Marie Westmon. The parents 
were both born ;in Norway, and coming 
to this country, in 1857, settled in the 
woods at Sister Bay, Door county, where 
the father engaged in farming and dealing 
in stone, etc. , having opened a stone quarry 
on his land. From Sister Bay they re- 
moved to Minnesota and settled upon a 
farm. Mr. Westmon being a ship carpen- 
ter by trade, he later returned to Wiscon- 
sin, settling at Fort Howard, where he died 
her 26, 1866. Mrs. Westmon's death 

II red there. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Lindquist were born 
twelve children. Of those still living, 
Naboth E. is secretary of the Marinette 
Bicycle Club, a member of Olive Branch 
Lodge No. 250, F. & A. M., Marinette 
Chapter No. 57, K. A. M., and of Mari- 
nette Lodge No. 72, K. of P. He is a 
Republican in politics, and has held the 
office of city treasurer for two years, 
1890-91. The other living children are 
Francis O., Orville A. and Inez S. Mr. 
Lindcjuist is a member of the M. E. 
Churcli; in politics he is a Republican, and 
has served his fellow citizens as supervisor 
of Marinette township, when it was in- 
cluded in Oconto county. He may be 
truthfully said to be one of the pioneers 
of Marinette, as he has seen its growth 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



5.V 



and development from a population of five 
persons to its present size. His family 
are also "old-timers," having resided here 
before the introduction of railroads, steam 
and electricity, and all the members are 
held in high esteem by their neighbors 
and fellow townsmen. 



J. FKANCAIvT has passed almost 
his entire life along the west shore 



H 

I I of Green Bay, and now lives on 
his farm in Pensaukee township, 
Oconto county, to the clearing of v\'hich 
he is devoting the greater part of his time. 
He came to this country in 1856 from 
Belgium, his native land, where he was 
born July 18, 1848, son of Ferdinand 
Joseph and Prudence A. (Moes) Francart, 
also of Belgium nativity. On leaving 
ing Moisse for Ameriac, they sailed from 
Antwerp, landing at New York City after 
a voj'age of forty-five days, and arrix'ing 
in Green Bay, Brown Co., Wis., on June 
2. After a short residence in that city 
the family located on wild land in the 
same county, in alocalit}' known as Shan- 
tytown, opening up a farm and living 
there four jears. They then bought and 
removed to a farm in Bay Settlement, 
same county, where the father kept a 
tavern ten years, during which time, in the 
the winter of 1863-64 they moved to the 
city limits of Green Bay. Thence ttiej' 
came to Oconto, where the father re- 
mained until his death, in 1876. His wife 
survived until 1893, when she passed 
away in Marinette. Of their family three 
are hving: H. J., the subject proper of 
these lines; Flora, Mrs. William Place, 
of Marinette; and Josie, Mrs. William 
Hardwick, of Marinette. Ferdinand J. 
Francart, father of our subject, enlisted 
on March 16, 1864, in Company G, Sev- 
enteenth Wis. V. I., wherein he served, 
in Sherman's army, until the close of the 
war in 1865. His father, John Joseph 
Francart, served in Napoleon Bonaparte's 
first army, for twelve years, and finished 



his campaigns at the battle of Waterloo, 
June 18, iSi 5. 

H. J. Francart was but eight years of 
age when the family came to Green Bay, 
Brown county, and there he received his 
education. Reared amid the scenes of 
pioneer life, and in a forest-covered region, 
his entire life has been devoted to lum- 
bering, milling, and, latterly, to farming, 
lumbering having been his chief occupa- 
tion for the long period of thirty years. 
By trade he is a sawyer. In 1871 he 
came to Pensaukee, Oconto county, and 
on his arrival secured employment with V . 
B. Gardner, with whom he worked over 
thirteen years, subsequently engaging with 
the Oconto Lumber Co. at Big Badenoch, 
Ba}' de Noquette, for whom he worked in 
the woods for some time. For eight years 
after this he was in the employ of Eldred 
& Son, and since then he has given the 
greater part of his time and attention to 
the clearing of his land. His farm fon 
which he resides) in Pensaukee township, 
contains 100 acres, tenor twelve of which 
he has cleared, and he also owned a tim- 
ber tract of 260 acres in Sections 3 and 4. 
In 1S92 Mr. Francart lost his residence 
by fire. 

On October 18, 1880, Mr. Francart 
was married, in Oconto, Oconto county, 
to Miss Emma Frappy, who was born in 
Negaunee, Mich., daughter of Peter and 
Emma (Roberts) Frappy, the former of 
whom was born in Canada, the latter in 
Upper Michigan; they now reside in Her- 
mansville, Mich. To our subject and wife 
seven children have been born, viz.: Feli- 
cite, Joseph, Josephine, Ferdinand, Mary, 
Prudence and George. In politics Mr. 
Francart votes with the Republican party, 
and has served one term as justice of the 
peace in his townshp. In religious con- 
nection he is a member of the French 
Catholic Church. He is one of the oldest 
settlers of Pensaukee, and has watched 
with interest the complete change which 
the past few years have wrought in this 
count}', taking an active and substantial 
part in the work himself. 



532 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOliAPHICAL RECORD. 



LUDWIG H. I..\KM:N, registn ! 
deeds of Marinette county, was 
elected in 1894 by the surprising 
majority of over 800 votes, and 
assumed the office in January, 1895. He 
has resided in Marinette county since 
1882, when he entered the employ of the 
Menominee River Lumber Company, re- 
maining with that well-known corpora- 
tion for three years. He retired from its 
employment to engage in business with 
his brother, I^. N. Larsen, in a store 
known as the "Star Grocery," of East 
Marinette, from which business he was 
promoted to the honorable office which 
he now occupies. His career in Mari- 
nette county can be stated succinctly in 
those few words. 

Mr. Larsen is a native of Winnebago 
county. Wis., and the light of day first 
fell on his eyes near Winneconne, August 
29, 1866. His parents were Onon and 
Johanna (Onsen) Larsen, and they were 
both born in Norway, and were educated 
in that country. Onon Larsen bade his 
native land good bye in 1852, and started 
for the New World. After traveling 
around for some time, looking for a de- 
sirable place of residence, he picked out 
Winneconne, Winnebago Co., Wis., and 
there identified himself with various inter- 
ests, including the coal business and the 
management of a steam-boat dock. A 
year after his arrival at Winneconne, his 
intended, Johanna Onsen, took the ocean 
voyage to the land of the stars and stripes, 
and Cupid made them one in 1853. He 
then purchased a fine tract of agricultural 
land near Winneconne, and there retired 
to the domestic pursuits of the farm. 
Mrs. Larsen died in December, 1880, at 
the age of fifty. They had eight children, 
of whom six are now living: Louis N., 
who is now running the " Star Grocery" 
at East Marinette; Frank A., who resides 
at Tomahawk, has been postmaster of 
that city, and is now city treasurer; Mary 
C, wife of William Hronson, a farmer 
residing in Poygan, Winnebago county; 
Ludwig H., our subject; Julia B., who 



resides at home, and Nora, living in Iron 
Mountain. 

The subject of this sketch spent his 
early days at Winneconne, and his edu- 
cation was received in its public schools. 
His boyhood and youth were spent on the 
farm near there, where the rugged life in- 
stilled in him the qualities tliat win — 
energy and perseverance. He came from 
Winneconne to Marinette, where he at 
once became a scaler for the Menominee 
River Lumber Company. Mr. Larsen is 
a Republican, and proud of the fact that 
he has cast every vote with that party 
since attaining his majority. After a hard 
fight for the office of register of deeds, he 
was triumphantly elected by an unusual 
majority on the I\epublican ticket. He 
displayed rare tact and judgment through- 
out his entire campaign, which he con- 
ducted almost single handed, and made 
his mark as a young politician. Frater- 
nally, Mr. Larsen is very active. He is 
a member of Marinette Lodge No. 72, 
Knights of Pythias; of Marinette Lodge 
No. 189, Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows; of Menekaunee Tent No. 2, Knights 
of the Maccabees; of the Norwegian Lit- 
erary and Benevolent Society; and of the 
Scandinavian Benevolent Society. He is 
a fine representative of the American citi- 
zen of Norwegian descent; thoroughly im- 
bued with American ideas, he does not 
hestitate in his advocacy of measures cal- 
culated to advance the best interests of his 
adopted cit}' and county. 



GFRED COLTER, M. D., is a 
native of York county, N. B., 
Canada, born in 1864, and a son 
of James and Victoria (Long) 
Colter, both of whom were also natives 
of Canada, the former being of Irish de- 
scent. His father (the grandfather of our 
subject), Alexander Colter, was a native 
of County Donegal. Ireland, and in an 
early day located in St. John, N. H., 
Canada, from which city he removed to 
Fredericton, in the same Province. He 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



533 



was a well-known pioneer in that section 
of the country, and died about 1889. 

James Colter, the father of our sub- 
ject, was engaged in the lumber and mer- 
cantile trade at Fredericton, where he and 
his estimable wife, the mother of our sub- 
ject, yet reside. They reared a family of 
six children: G. Fred, the subject of our 
sketch; Newton, who resides in California; 
Thomas, residing in Fredericton, N. B., 
Canada; Samuel, a druggist of Marinette; 
and Fannie and Roy at home. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in his native county of York, N. B., 
Canada, and received his primary educa- 
tion in the schools of same. He then 
spent three years in the University of 
New Brunswick, at Fredericton, gradua- 
ting with the class of '94, after which he 
entered the University of Philadelphia, 
(Penn.), studied medicine, and graduated 
with the class of '88. On receiving his 
degree, he returned home, and com- 
menced practice with an uncle, Newton 
Ramsay Colter, M. D.,L. R. C. P. London, 
Eng. , at Woodstock. His uncle is now 
a member of the House of Commons. Dr. 
Colter continued in practice with his uncle 
until the fall of 1889, when he came to 
Marinette, where he has since continued 
to reside. Since coming to that city he has 
been very successful, and has built up an 
extensive practice. He is at present the 
health officer of Marinette, receiving his 
appointment in the spring of 1894. 

In 1893, at Marinette, Wis., Dr. 
Colter was united in marriage with Miss 
Marie Louisa Laing, born in Fond du Lac 
county, Wis., daughter of Alexander 
Laing, a native of Scotland, who located 
at Fond du Lac at an early day, and now 
resides in Marinette. Dr. Colter is recog- 
nized as a physician of undoubled skill and 
ability, and as a citizen is enterprising 
and progressive, one who is willing to do 
his part in the material advancement of 
his adopted city. He is popular with all 
classes, and greatly beloved by his many 
patients. Dr. and Mrs. Colter are attend- 
ants of the Methodist Church. 



HON. WILLIAM HENRY 
Y O U N G, superintendent of the 
Holt Lumber Co. Mills at Oconto, 
is a native of Mississippi, born 
August II, 1845, in the town of Wood- 
ville, Wilkinson county, son of Uriah and 
Lucretia (Prewet) Young, the father a 
native of Louisiana, and a planter and 
lumberman by vocation, the mother of 
Mississippi. For several generations the 
ancestors, both lineal and collateral, were 
Americans, and on both sides participated 
in the struggle for independence. 

In 1852 the parents of our subject 
inox'ed with their family from Mis- 
sissippi to Greensburg, La., where they 
passed the rest of their days, both dying 
there in i860. They reared a family of 
two sons and one daughter, viz.: Anna, 
who died in Louisiana in 1S72; W. H., 
our subject; and George, who came to 
Oconto in 1867, but returned to Louisiana 
in 1 87 1, and now resides at Edgerly, in 
that State. 

Our subject received his primary edu- 
cation in Mississippi, completing same 
at the schools of Louisiana, at the same 
time assisting his father in his labors on 
the farm and in the sawmill. As will be 
seen he was about fourteen years old when 
he became an orphan. At the age of 
eighteen, in 1SC3, the war of the Rebel- 
lion being at its height, young William, 
fired with the spirit of patriotism, enlisted 
in the Fourth regiment Wis. V. C, at 
Baton Rouge, La., for three years' service 
or during the war, and was assigned to 
the Department of the Gulf, Nineteenth 
Army Corps. His regiment participated 
in the battles of Mobile, Ft. Blakely and 
Spanish Fort, serving in Alabama and 
Georgia, whence they proceeded to Vicks- 
burg, after which they took part in the 
Red River campaign as far as Shreveport, 
thence marching to Texas where they saw 
service at Houston and San Antonio. Mr. 
Young was mustered out at Brownsville, 
Texas, in May, 1866, having served two 
years and seven months. The regiment 
was furnished transportation to Madison, 



534 



C0M.VE.VOIl A TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Wis., and upon his arrival at the capital 
of Wisconsin, Mr. Yoiinj:; went to Chicago, 
where, at Bryant & Stratton's commer- 
cial college he took a seven-months' course 
of tuition, at the close of which he visited 
Oconto, where most of his army comrades 
resided. Arriving there in November, 
iS66. he secured employment with the 
lumber firm of Holt & Balcom, at scaling 
logs in the woods, in which line he con- 
tinued for some si.\ or seven years in the 
winter months. During the summer of 
1867 he was employeil by the same com- 
pany as night watchman, while the fol- 
lowing summer he became time-keeper, a 
position he held nineteen years. In 1887, 
Mr. Balcom having withdrawn from the 
firm of Holt & Balcom, the Holt Lumber 
Co. was organized as its successors, and 
to continue the business, Mr. Young be- 
ing promoted to the position of superin- 
tendent, which incumbency he has since 
filled. The company cuts about twent}'- 
five million feet annually, and gives em- 
ployment to a force of from 450 to 600 
men — all under the supervision of Mr. 
Young. In 1866 he was connected with 
the organization of the Oconto National 
Bank, of which for some years he has 
been vice-president. 

On January i, 1S72, Mr. Young was 
married in Oconto to Miss Ellen Russell, 
a native of New Brunswick, Canada, and 
one child was born to them, named Ina, 
at the present time attending Lake Forest 
(Illinois) University. Mr. Young has al- 
ways been progressive and public spirited, 
ever in sympathy with all movements tend- 
ing to the prosperity of his adopted city. 
He was instrumental in organizing the St. 
Paul & Eastern Grand Trunk Railroad 
Company, and served as secretary and 
treasurer of that corporation until it dis- 
posed of its property to the Chicago & 
North Western Railroad Campany; was 
secretary and treasurer of Oconto Division 
of the Lake Shore road, and was also in- 
strumental in the building of the Chicago, 
Milwaukee & St. .Paul line to Oconto 
Junction. He has been largely interested 



in real-estate ticals, and is associated with 
the Oconto Land Company. Politically 
Mr. Young has always been a strong sup- 
porter of the Republican party, his first 
vote being cast, in 186S, for Gen. Grant, 
since when he has lent his aid to assist his 
party materially, and has served as dele- 
gate in several State conventions. Early 
in the seventies he was elected a member 
of the city council of Oconto, and was 
continuously re-elected until 1880, when 
he was elected mayor of the city, and 
again in 1 88 1 by re-election. In i8S4he 
was elected to the Wisconsin General As- 
sembly from Oconto and Langlade coun- 
ties. In April, 1893, he was again elect- 
ed to the mayoralty of Oconto, serving 
two years, this mayoraltj' term ending his 
twelve consecutive years of membership 
in the council. He also served on the 
school board, proving himself, by the 
measures he supported, to be a true friend 
of education. Sociallj', he is a member 
of E. A. Ramsey Post No. 74, G. A. R. , 
and is commander of Oconto County Vet- 
erans' Association. Mr. Young is a self- 
made man in the fullest and truest sense 
of the term, having begun life a poor boy, 
and from humble circumstances, by assid- 
uous conduct, he has risen to his present 
enviable position in the community. 



He. HIGGINS, president of the 
Marinette Gas, Electric Light and 
Railway Compaii)', Marinette, has 
resided in that city since 1S87. 
He was born in Ireland in 1847, and is a 
son of Thomas and Mary (Gannon) Hig- 
gins, natives of County Roscommon, in 
that country, where they were married, and 
in an early day they came to America, lo- 
cating in New Jersey, from which State 
they removed, in 1863, to Whiteside coun- 
ty, 111. Settling at Sterling, Mr. Higgins 
engaged in farming near that city, and 
died there in March, 1895. His wife had 
passed away in 1874. They reared a fam- 
ily of seven children: Sarah, now Mrs. 
James Ryan, of Chicago; Michael, who 



r^ 




-'?- 



/" 



IV 



« » 











COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



535 



resides in Whiteside county, 111.; H. C, 
our subject; Thomas, who resides at Nee- 
nah, Wis. ; Maria, now Mrs. Morris Mc- 
Corinick, of Whiteside county, 111. ; Cath- 
erine, now Mrs. John Mosier, of White- 
side county. 111. ; and Anna, who resides 
on the old homestead. 

The boyhood and j'outh of our sub- 
ject were passed in New Jerse}', and his 
education was received at the common 
school in the vilkif;e of Freehold, that 
State. He was sixteen years of age when 
the family removed tf) Whiteside county, 
111., where he rcinained assisting in the 
farm work until twenty-one years of age. 
He then began his business career as a 
railroad contractor, contracting first in a 
small way, and finally developing when he 
was twenty-three, into one of the big con- 
tractors of his time. At onetime, in con- 
nection with his younger brother, Thomas, 
he had a contract for fifty-two miles of 
grading on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, 
and sixteen miles on the Pittsburg, Ft. 
Wayne & Chicago railroad. In this line 
of work he remained some five years, and 
then in 1876 commenced the building of 
gas works, first at Dixon, III., later at 
Waterloo, Iowa, and many other towns. 
He continued in this business until elec- 
tricity came into the field as an illumina- 
tor, when he turned his attention to the 
building of electric-light plants, in connec- 
tion with gas works. Mr. Higgins has been 
a permanent resident of Wisconsin since 
1878, residing some years at Neenah, 
from which place he came to Marinette. 

In June, 1890, he returned to Neenah, 
and there married Miss Helen Gaffney, 
who was born in Neenah, Wis., daughter 
of Philip and Anna (McCann) Gaffney, 
the former a native of Wisconsin, the lat- 
ter of New York, and both of Irish de- 
scent; the father was one of the early set- 
tlers of Neenah, and is there engaged in 
mercantile business. By this union one 
son was born, Henry C. , Jr. As soon as 
the marriage ceremony was performed, 
Mr. Higgins brought his young bride to 
Marinette, where they have since contin- 



ued to reside. They are both members 
of the Roman Catholic Church, and are 
active in religious and benevolent work. 
Mr. Higgins takes some interest in ])olit- 
ical affairs, but has never sought or ac- 
cepted official position, his business inter- 
est having always been such as to demand 
his whole time and attention. At present 
he is a director in the First National Bank 
of Marinette, and was one of its incorpo- 
rators; is a member of the Business Men's 
Association, and was one of its promot- 
ers; is also director in the Marinette Hotel 
Co., which hotel was erected in 1895 '^^'^ 
cost of nearly one hundred thousand dol- 
lars. In everything calculated to advance 
the material interests of Marinette, Mr. 
Higgins has taken a special interest. He 
has large holdings of real estate, which it is 
proposed to sub-divide and place upon the 
market at the proper time. 

The Marinette Gas, Electric Light and 
Railway Co., of which Mr. Higgins is 
president, was incorporated in 1889, at 
which time the company purchased a fran- 
chise of a street railway line run by horses, 
and put in an electric line which now in- 
cludes seven miles of street railway. The 
works give employment to about fifty peo- 
ple, and include the gas and electric light- 
ing, as well as the railway line. The first 
electric-light plant was established by C. 
M. Fairchild and brother, assisted by 
others, on the lower water power, and in 
1887 the exchange was made, and the 
plant located in the city at No. 1511 
Main street. Its entire cost was in the 
neighborhood of $250,000. Previous to 
his coining to Marinette, Mr. Higgins had 
been connected with the establishment of 
electric light plants in various cities, in- 
cluding Ashland, Stevens Point, Ishpern- 
ing, and Neenah, Wisconsin. 



JE. ABBOTT, prosecuting attorney 
of Florence, Wis., came to the city 
of Florence in 1SS5, and for two 
years was principal of the schools of 
the city. He is a native of Monroe 



536 



'(iMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



county, Wis., born in 1855, and is a son 
of William P. and Susan C. (Soles) Ab- 
bott, natives of Tioga county, Penn. , and 
who in an early day removed to Monroe 
county. Wis., being among the pioneer 
settlers of that county; they are yet living. 

Our subject grew to manhood in his 
native county, and in Vernon county, and 
was educated in the common schools, 
subsequently graduating from Gatesville 
University, in the class of '74, not taking 
his degree until 1885. He was admitted 
to the bar at Sparta, Wis., in 1879, be- 
fore Judge Newman, who is now on the 
supreme bench of the State. In 1S85, as 
stated, Mr. Abbott came to Florence, and 
two years later engaged in the practice of 
his profession, and also in the insurance 
business, in which he has been quite suc- 
cessful. He was first elected prosecuting 
attorney of the county in i888, was re- 
elected in 1890, and has held the office 
ever since, being re-elected every two 
j'ears. As a prosecutor he has been 
eminently successful, and he enjoys the 
respect and confidence of his associates at 
the bar, the presiding judge, and of all 
who know him. 

Mr. Abbott was married in \'crnon 
county. Wis., in 1878, to Miss Clara K. 
Sloggy, a native of Vernon county. Wis., 
and daughter of Harrison S. Sloggy, an 
early settler of Portage county, Wis., 
but who now resides in St. Paul, Minn. 
By this union four children have been 
born: Clarence E., Maud E. , Clarissa 
Bell, and Harry S. Fraternally, Mr. Ab- 
bott is a member of Florence Lodge No. 
31, K. of P., of which he has been chan- 
cellor commander, and is deputy grand 
chancellor; he is also a member of Grand 
Kapids Lodge No. 91, I. O. O. F. 

Mr. Abbott came to Florence from 
Clinton ville. Wis., where he had been 
principal of the high school for two years; 
he has given, in all, some twelve years of 
his life to teaching in the public schools 
of the State. For ten years he has been 
identified with the city of F""lorencc, estab- 
lishing there the high school, and has 



been instrumental in securing the school 
library of nearly twelve hundred volumes; 
has also been instrumental in the securing 
of a philosophical apparatus. It is said 
that Florence can justly boast of a high 
school better than is to be found in any 
town of its size in the State. Its citizens 
generally take an active interest in the 
school, and no one more so than Mr. Ab- 
bott. He is a member of the high-school 
board, and is one of the wide-awake and 
active business men of the city. 



HON. AMOS HOLG.\TE, for over 
nine years the highly efTicient and 
estimable county judge of Mari- 
nette county, is by birth an En- 
glishman, having been born January 12, 
1842, at Leeds, Yorkshire. 

Abraham Holgate, his father, who 
was of the same nativity, and by vocation 
a merchant, came in 1848 with his wife 
to the United States, locating near Low- 
ell, Mass., and four years later our sub- 
ject, then nine years old, and his sister, 
both of whom had been left in England, 
in the care of their grandparents, fol- 
lowed their father and mother to this 
country, and rejoined them in Massachu- 
.setts. In 1 8 52 the entire family moved 
to Illinois, and after a brief sojourn in 
Chicago proceeded to Marengo, in the 
same State, where the father conducted 
a mercantile business up to his death. 
The mother is now residing at Tacoma, 
Wash., the father having died at Ma- 
rengo, Illinois, in 1856. 

Shortly after coming to Illinois the 
subject proper of these lines found em- 
ployment as news agent, etc., on what 
was then known as the Chicago & Galena 
Union Railroad, now known as the Ga- 
lena Division of the Chicago & North 
\\'estcrn railroad, between Chicago and 
Rockford, the then tcrmimis, which, later, 
was at F'reeport, and still later at Galena, 
at which business he continued till 1858. 
In the fall of that year he received the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPnWAL RKCOIW. 



537 



appointment of traveling agent for tlie 
same road, lint in 1859 60 we find him 
learning the life of a pilot on the Red 
river and lower Mississiiii)i. Returning 
to Marengo, 111., about one week before 
the first gim was fired at Vt. Sumter by 
the Confederates, he, on April 27, 1861, 
enlisted in a Marengo volunteer rifie com- 
pany, which was mustered into the 
United States service as Company I), 
Fifteenth 111. V. I., ami went into camp 
at Freeport (this regiment enjoys the dis- 
tinction of being the Jlrs/ volunteer regi- 
ment mustered into the l-niteil States 
service for three years, which was accom- 
plished at 10 A. M. of the day on which 
several other regiments were mustered in 
later. Mr. Hoigate's first service was in 
Missouri, under command of Col. Grant 
and Gen. Fremont, on which occasion 
they took 1,300 Rebel prisoners, and 
then, December 26, 1861, went into win- 
ter quarters at Otterville, Mo. From 
there they were sent to Fort Donelson, 
Tenn., and from there the regiment was 
attached to the "fighting Fourth Divis- 
ion," and was one of the first to reach 
Pittsburg Landing; at the battle of Shiloh, 
on the first day of the engagement, April 
6, the regiment held its position for over 
an hour, although both flanks were 
strongly opposed by a superior number of 
the enemy; but owing to the lack of sup- 
port the gallant Fifteenth was compelled 
to retire. At the second attack the Four- 
teenth and Fifteenth Regiments received 
the first shock, and filled the terrible gap 
for over three hours without giving 
ground, the enemy in the meantime sacri- 
ficing over 2,000 men — in fact those two 
regiments were in the hottest of that ter- 
rible two - days' fight, the celebrated 
charge on the second day being led by 
Gen. U. S. Grant in person. The Fif- 
teenth Regiment also participated in the 
battles of Corinth, Grand Junction and 
Lagrange, in the march to relieve Rose- 
crans at Corinth, the engagements at 
Metamora Hill and Hatchie I'.ridge, as 



well as throut 



the stirring scenes 



witnessed by the Western armv dm-ing 
the years 1862 63 64, our subject l)eing 
in continued active service and in the 
midst of the iiottt^st engagements u]) to 
the connnencement of Sherman's Atlanta 
campaign, when, his tiMTu of enlistment 
having expired, lie returned liome. He 
foimd his river experience, before referred 
to, |)rove of considerable service to him, 
for at Vicksbnrg, when rinming the forts, 
he acted as pilot on the " Transp(.)rt," 
and he had several offers of promotion, 
all of which, however, he declineil ; in 
fact, on one occasion he was appointed, 
by Gen. Hurlbut, captain of a colored 
company, an hon<)r he jiositively refused. 
After his retiu'n from the war Mr. 
Holgate conducted a hotel at Marengo, 
Ills., until the fall of 181)5, and for a short 
time was conductor on the Galena Divis- 
ion of the Chicago & North Western rail- 
road. In November, 1865, he went to 
Vicksbnrg, Miss., where he was connected 
with the "Washington Hotel" until 
March, 1866, and then rented a planta- 
tion of 1,400 acres for cotton raising ; but 
he did not cultivate it long, owing to 
failure of crop that season, for we soon 
again find him in the North, in February, 
1867, coming to Peshtigo, Wis., where 
he had a sister residing. Here he found 
employment with the Peshtigo Co. for 
a time, and, the following yi;ar, 1S68, 
he came to Marinette to accept the ]iosi- 
tion of secretary and cashier for the 
Marinette Iron Works, in wliich ca])acity 
he continued until 1875, and tht/n em- 
barked in his present fire insurance busi- 
ness. In the meantime lie servtul the 
city as clerk, three terms ; treasurer, two 
terms, and justice of the peace, several 
years. Having for some time been mak- 
ing a study of law, lie in 1879 was ad- 
mitted to the bar, and at once commenced 
practice in Marinette. In 1885 he was 
elected, on the Independent ticket, county 
judge of Marinette county, taking his seat 
on the first Monday of [anuary, 1886, 
and he has served continuously in that 
incumbency ever since, by re-election, his 



53S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



present (third) term expiring in January, 
189S. 

On January i. 1865, Judge Amos Hol- 
gate was married at Marengo, 111., to 
Miss Laura Chatfield, and three children 
were born to them, namely : John P., 
who was drowned October 22, 1893, ^^ 
the age of twenty-seven years, having 
been washed overboard on the coast of 
Central America while on a voyage to 
Valparaiso, Chili; Clinton P., in the 
insurance business with his father in 
Marinette, and Charlotte, at home. The 
Judge is a prominent member of the G. 
A. K., and of the F. &.A. M., Blue Lodge 
and Chapter, and no one in the county 
stands higher in the esteem and regard of 
the people, his popularity being un- 
bounded. 



THOMAS P.\KENT. The State of 
Wisconsin has ever been famed for 
her vast lumber industries, and for 
the number and success of the lum- 
ber businesses established and carried on 
within her borders. And among the 
men who have made reputations in this 
connection none probabh' is more widely 
or favorably known throughout northern 
Wisconsin and Michigan than Thomas 
Parent, who for over a quarter of a cen- 
tury has been prominently identified with 
one of the large and properous lumbering 
concerns of that region. 

Mr. Parent has been engaged in the 
lumbering business all his life, having fol- 
lowed it from earliest boyhood, for as 
soon as able to drive a team he drove 
his father, who was also a lumberman, to 
and from camp. Born May 22, 1S43, in 
the Province of Quebec, Canada, he 
was reared and educated there, and after 
following his vocation in that countr\' for 
a time moved to the State of Maine, 
where he was employed by a lumber com- 
pany one year. In 1866 he migrated to 
Wisconsin and to Marinette, his first em- 
ployment here being to assist in the rais- 



ing of the vessel "Lone Star, "off Cham- 
bers Island. He was next engaged in 
getting out timber for the first dams in 
this main river, which he helped to build, 
and in the winter of 1866-67 he drove 
teams and was otherwise employed for 
what was then known as the Menominee 
River Manufacturing Co., now the Me- 
nominee Kiver Boom Co. In the sum- 
mer of 1867 he had twenty-five men un- 
der his charge, to do all the sorting; in 
1868 his force had been increased to 
forty men, and has since grown until he 
is now superintendent over 500 men. He 
has been superintendent of the Boom 
Company ever since its organization, hav- 
ing, in that capacity, charge of the logs 
after reaching the Menominee river, and 
in addition to his labors as superintendent 
of this department has charge of the Com- 
pany's farm, situated on the Wisconsin 
sitle, in Porterfield township, Marinette 
county. In fact all the responsibilities of 
the management of this vast concern are 
upon his shoulders — the repairing and 
other work connected with the dams, 
looking after supplies, the tugs, steam 
scows, etc., needed in the business, the 
work on the drive, and general improving; 
and, to his credit be it said, no more 
faithful, painstaking or trustworthy man 
for such a responsible position, involving 
as it does the exercise of a vast amount of 
bodily energy and mental activity, could 
well be found. He is a man to whom no 
labor seems too arduous, no risk too 
great, no task too difficult, to accomplish; 
and through all his business he has always 
remained the pleasant, genial and liberal- 
minded gentleman, one who is honored, 
and justly so. by all with whom he has 
come in contact. In Marinette, where 
he is best known, he is a most respected, 
influential citizen, and though he has not 
hatl much time for public matters he has 
always taken a deep interest in the wel- 
fare of the town, which he has seen de- 
velop from a village of 700 inhabitants to 
its present flourishing condition. In 
1 89 1 he served as alderman from the 





^. 




'7^:^^~iZJy J^/c:i>'i^-<2.''t^- 



./ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



539 



Fiftli ward of Marinette, but aside from 
that has not been in political life to an\' 
great extent. 

Mr. Parent was married, November 8, 
1876, in Marinette, to Miss Maire Lemair, 
who was born in Fond da Lac county. 
Wis., daughter of Stephen Lemair, an 
early pioneer of that county, whence he 
removed to Marinette, dyingthere in 1890; 
Mrs. Lemair now makes her home with 
Mr. and Mrs. Parent. In religious con- 
nection our subject is a member of St. 
Joseph's Church, Marinette, and socially 
he is affiliated with the Elks and the Odd 
Fellows, in the latter connection being a 
member of Marinette Lodge No. i8y. 

Joseph and Mary (Selrau) Parent, 
parents of the subject proper of this 
sketch, were natives of Canada, where 
the father followed the lumberman's voca- 
tion, being superintendent for the Wm. 
Price Co., of Gilmore, Canada. His 
wife died in that country in 1861, and in 
1866 he came to Wisconsin, arriving in 
Marinette the second day of August; he 
became the owner of property in Menom- 
inee, where he passed from earth in 
October, 1893. This couple reared a 
family of seven children, of whom five 
are now living, viz. : Thomas, whose 
name opens this biography; Charles, who 
was formerly a merchant, of Menominee, 
Wis., and is now a merchant at Iron 
Mountain; William, who also resides at 
Iron Mountain, formerly having his home 
in Marinette; Clara, Mrs. Samuel Pelkey, 
who resides in Menominee, Mich. ; and 
Angeline, Mrs. Lowry, who has her home 
in Canada. 



CAPTAIN JAMES TOBIN, now a 
farmer, residing near Florence, 
Florence count}', enjoys the dis- 
tinction of being a pioneer in 
what is now Florence county, and one of 
the earliest comers to the iron and lum- 
ber regions of that portion of Wisconsin 
and Michigan, with which interests he has 



been closely identified for nearly a third 
of a century, and in their development he 
has played a conspicuous part. 

He was born in February, 1842, near 
Montreal, Canada, a son of Michael and 
Bridget (Moran) Tobin, natives of Ire- 
land, who when young emigrated to Can- 
ada, where the father was a merchant. 
He died there in 1861, ami the inother 
subsequently removed to the United 
States, locating at Florence, Wis. , where 
she died in 1893. The childreh born to 
them were John, who was an early settler 
at Marquette, Mich., and subsequently 
settled at Florence, Wis, , where his death 
occurred in 1885; Marian, who became 
Mrs. Pontbriand, and resides at Florence 
(her husband died in 1887), and James. 
The latter was reared in Canada, there 
receiving a common-school education. 
Before he was grown he left that coun- 
try, and for a period was employed on 
sailing boats that plied between Boston 
and New Brunswick, and for two years, 
during the Civil war, he was engaged in 
transporting troops on the James river, 
and through the South. In 1863 he went 
to Marquette county. Mich., where he 
was engaged in smelting ore, and had 
charge of a blast furnace until 1873; also 
at intervals during that period he was en- 
gaged in locating mineral and timber 
lands. 

In April, 1869, at Marfjuette, Mich., 
Mr. Tobin was married to Miss Gertrude 
Le Claire, who was born in Canada, and 
a daughter of Michael and Zoe (Proul.x) 
Le Claire, also natives of Canada, and 
who became pioneers of Marquette, Mich. , 
and subsequently residents of Florence, 
Wis. He died there in 1889, and his 
wife, who survives, is still a resident of 
Florence. Our subject and wife have an 
adopted daughter, I-5elle Tobin. Mr. To- 
bin, from the year 1873 until 1877, was 
engaged principally in locating mining 
and timber lands. In April of the last 
named year he came to what is now Flor- 
ence county, which lands were then in 
in their primitive state, with little or no 



540 



COMMl^MORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



evidences of civilization, he having come 
to take charge of the explorations of the 
Commonwealth mining property. The 
mine had been located, and a few tests 
only had been made. No wagon road 
had been cut, and the surroundings were 
most primitive. Nfr. Tobin opened up 
the mine and became its superintend- 
ent, which position he held until i8Si. 
Subsequently he was occupied again in 
explorations in the mining and timber 
districts of Michigan and Wisconsin, lo- 
cating mineral and timber lands, and 
later was interested in the Merrick Lum- 
ber Company. 

He is now engaged in dealing in real 
estate, and has interests in iron mineral 
lands throughout Michigan and Wiscon- 
sin. The Captain is now located on a 
beautiful and well-improved farm, which 
he himself made out of the wilderness, 
and is enjoying the fruits of his earlier 
labors. He has under cultivation i6o 
acres, and 240 in timber; is engaged in 
general farming, and raises small fruits — 
grapes, apples, etc. His is probably the 
oldest family in Florence county. He 
made the wagon-road to Twin Falls on 
the Menominee range, and there was 
then built the road from Ouinnesec, which 
gave an outlet — the first wagon-road in 
Florence county. He has been identified 
with the growth of Florence county 
since its organization. In politics he is a 
Republican. He is a member of Xcgau- 
nee Lodge, of Negaunee, Mich., of Mar- 
quette Chapter, K. A. M., and of the K. 
of P., at Xcgaunee; also a member of 
Florence Lodge, A. O. U. W. Mrs. 
Tobin is a member of the Catholic 
Church. 



Hi:XRY SAKGKNT. In northern 
Wisconsin the most important in- 
dustry is the lumber trade, and a 
worthy representative of this vo- 
cation is our subject, who is doing an ex- 
tensive business, and by straightforward 



methods, energy and enterprise is acquir- 
ing a handsome competence. He was 
born in New Brunswick, Canada, in 1837, 
and is a son of Thomas and Johanna 
(Sullivan) Sargent, natives of Ireland. 
Crossing the Atlantic, the father engaged 
in farming and lumbering in New Bruns- 
wick until his death. His wife survived 
him five years, but has now also passed 
away. They reared a family of five sons 
— Thomas, who came to Oconto in 1857, 
but is now residing in Santa Cruz, Cal. ; 
Henry; W'illiam, who is living in New 
Brunswick; Edward, who came to Oconto 
in 1 864, but since i 888 has been a resident 
of \\'ashington; and James, who came to 
Oconto in 1865, and is now one of its 
prominent lumber merchants. 

Mr. Sargent, the subject proper of this 
review, was reared in his native land until 
nineteen years of age, and obtained his 
education in its public schools. He then 
determined to seek a home in this State, 
journeyed to Chicago, thence coming by 
water to Pensaukee, Oconto county, 
where he entered the employ of the F. B. 
Gardner Lumber Company, and assisted 
in building a mill at Little Sturgeon, Wis. 
He afterward engaged in jobbing on the 
Oconto river. Since i860 he has been 
doing a jobbing business in lumber in 
both Marinette and Oconto counties and 
in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. He 
has succeetled in building up cjuite an ex- 
tensive trade, and furnishing employment 
to from fifty to two hundred men. He 
has also opened up a fine farm, first pur- 
chasing forty acres of land to which he has 
added from time to time, and he now has 
200 acres under a high state of cultiva- 
tion. 

Mr. Sargent was married in Oconto, in 
1866, to Miss Victoria Adams, a native 
of Maine, and a daughter of Samuel and 
Minerva (Randall) Adams. Her parents 
were also natives of the Pine Tree State, 
and in 1857 emigrated to Green Bay, 
Wis., where the father, who had formerly 
been a sea captian, engaged in ship build- 
ing. He there built two vessels, after 



COMMEMORATIVE niOORAPIHOAL RECORD. 



5-'l' 



which he removed to Oconto. In 1863 
he enhsted in the First Wisconsni Cav- 
alry, and after close of the war he engaged 
in farming until his death which occurred 
in 1S84. His widow is still living in 
Oconto. Two children graced the union 
of our subject and his wife: Minnie, who 
was married, in 18SS, to W. A. McDon- 
ald, of Green Bay, Wis. ; and Bessie, at 
school. Mrs. Sargent and her family are 
Christian Scientists. 

In politics, our subject is independent, 
voting for the man whom he thinks best 
qualified for office, regardless of party 
affiliations. He is a member of Pine 
Lodge, No. 88, F. & A. M. Mr. Sargent is 
a genial, courteousgentleman, whose name 
is a synonym for honorable dealing, and 
who owes his prosperity in life to his self- 
reliance, sound judgment, and, above all, 
to his indefatigable energy. 



JOSEPH LEROY, who is promi- 
nently connected with the political 
and social interests of Marinette, 
and, as proprietor of the leading 
hotel of the place, was a worthy repre- 
sentative of its business interests, is a pop- 
ular citizen, well deserving of mention in 
this volume. 

He was born in Baldwinsville, N. Y., 
September 8, 1852, and is a son of Joseph 
and Elizabeth (Rober) Leroy. The father 
was born in Prescott, Canada, in March, 
1827, and his parents, John and Adelia 
fBlonden) Leroy, were also natives of Can- 
ada, whence in 1835 they removed to Og- 
densburg, N. Y. The grandfather en- 
gaged in the lumber business in his native 
country, and served as a soldier in the 
patriot war. From Ogdensburg he re- 
moved to Watertown, N. Y., and snbse- 
quently went to Baldwinsville, where, after 
a forty-years' residence, his death occured 
in 1S85, when he was eighty-three years 
old. His wife diedsi.xty days previous, at 
the age of seventy-nine. The}' reared a 
fainih' of eight children: John, the eldest. 



came to Wisconsin in 1856, and after liv- 
ing on Beaver Island and in Egg Harbor, 
Door county, went to the West, his death 
occurring in Kansas, in 1870; Joseph was 
second in the family; Mrs. Adelia Kober 
resides in Baldwinsville, N. Y. ; Lewis, 
who located in Egg Harbor, in 1859, and 
later removed to Menominee, Mich., after- 
ward made his home in Marinette, but 
since 1888 has li\-ed in Pacific county. 
Wash. ; William is a resident of Hoboken, 
N. J. ; Mrs. Mary Smith makes her home 
in Oswego, N. Y. ; Charlie died in .\1- 
bany, N. Y., in 1889; hVank resides in 
Baldwinsville, New York. 

The father of our subject went with 
his parents to the Empire State, and was 
there reared and educated. He married 
Miss Elizabeth Rober, a native of Roches- 
ter, N. Y. , and a daughter of Joseph and 
Elizabeth Rober, natives of Canada. The 
father, who was a business man of Roches- 
ter for many years, died in Baldwinsville, 
in i860, at the age of eighty-four. His 
widow afterward came to Marinette, and 
died at the home of our subject in 1882, 
at the advanced age of ninety-three. 

Joseph Leroy, Sr. , was a captain on the 
Erie canal, owning a line of boats. Dis- 
posing of his interests in the East, he in 
1 863 removed to Egg Harbor, Door county. 
Wis., locating on a farm, which he con- 
tinued to cultivate until 1867. He then 
went to Menominee, Mich., and leased 
the "Menominee Hotel," which he sub- 
sequently purchased and rebuilt. In 1872 
he bought the " Dunlap Hotel" in Mari- 
nette, which he conducted in connection 
with the "Menominee Hotel," as well as 
carrying on the real-estate business. He 
took an active interest in everything per- 
taining to the welfare of the county, was 
very liberal and public-spirited, and was 
numbered among the valued citizens. A 
man of strong physique and wonderful 
energy, he carried forward to successful 
completion whatever he undertook. An 
ardent Repul)lican, he was nominated for 
county sheriff, in 1872, while in Menomi- 
nee, but resigned his office to take charge 



542 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



of the " Dunlap Hotel" of Marinette. 
He died January 20, 1880, respected by 
all who knew him, and his estimable wife 
crossed the dark river September 1 8, 1 884. 
Their family numbered three children: 
Joseph; Mrs. Lillie Kaiche, of Marinette; 
and Josephine, who is livinj,' with her 
brother. 

Mr. Leroy, the subject proper of this 
review, spent the first eleven jears of his 
life in the State of his nativity, and then 
accompanied his parents to Door county. 
Wis., where he pursued his studies in the 
schools of Egg Harbor, completing his 
education there. When his school life 
was over he engaged in the hotel business 
with his father, and had charge of the 
"Dunlap Hotel" for some years, making 
it a first-class establishment, one that be- 
came very popular with the traveling 
public. 

In 1873, in Marinette, Mr. Leroy 
wedded Miss Laura Biechle, a native of 
Austria, and a daugiiter of Anton and 
Barbara Beichle, also natives of that 
countrj', and crossing the ocean in 1856 
took up their abode in Menasha, Wis. 
The father, who was a well-educated man, 
a teacher by profession, died in Menasha 
in 1856; his widow passed away in the 
same city in 1 892. They were the parents 
of four daughters and one son who are 
living: Mrs. Snyder, of Menasha; Mrs. 
Joseph Pyer, of Appleton; .Anton, of Fond 
du Lac, Wis. ; Mrs. John Obenveiser, of 
Menasha; and Mrs. Leroy. They also 
lost two children. To Mr. and Mrs. Le- 
roy have been born five children: Edward 
Webster, city editor of the Daily Ea^^lc, 
of Marinette, apd correspondent for other 
papers; Lillian, who is employed as a 
stenographer: and Emma L. , Elizabeth 
Laura and Benjamin Harrison, who are 
still under the parental roof. 

In his political afliliations, Mr. Leroy 
is a Republican, stanchly advocating the 
principles of that party, is prominent in 
its councils, and a recognized leader in its 
circles. In 1879 he was elected justice 
of the peace, but after serving for a time 



he resigned. In 1885 he was elected as 
treasurer of Marinette, creditably filling 
that position for two terms, after which 
he was elected register of deeds. He filled 
that office for one term, and was re- 
nominated, but met with defeat during 
the campaign of the Bennett law. He 
has served on various committees of his 
party, was a member of the State Central 
Committee for two years, served on the 
County Central Committee, and was at 
one time its chairman. He has ever dis- 
charged his duties in a most satisfactory 
manner, and his public and private life 
are alike commendable. He and his fam- 
ily are members of Our Lady of Lourdes 
Catholic Church, and he was one of 
the prime movers in the State organiza- 
tion of the Order of Catholic Knights. 
Genial and pleasant, Mr. Leroy is a popu- 
lar citizen, having many warm friends, 
and all who know him have a high regard 
for him. 



HON. D. G. CLASSON, county 
judge of Oconto county, is one of 
the most prominent and honored 
citizens of this section of northern 
Wisconsin. To his present responsible 
position he was elected when only twenty- 
three years of age, a record that but few 
members of the legal profession can boast 
of. His administration of justice has prov- 
en that the confidence reposed in him and 
his ability is not misplaced, and his course 
on the bench has given more than general 
satisfaction. The Judge entered upon the 
duties of the office in January, 1894, and 
is now most acceptably serving in that 
capacity, presiding with a dignity that far 
exceeds his years, and showing by his able 
decision of cases that he is a thorough 
master of the situation. 

Judge Classon is a favorite son of 
Oconto county. He was born in Oconto 
township, September 27, 1869, and is a 
son of W. J. and Adeline (Leger) Classon. 
The father was born in Vermont, but was 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



543 



reared in Canada, wliich was the native 
country of the mother. Their inarria,t;e, 
however, was celebrated in Manitowoc, 
Wis., whence they removed to Oconto, 
and Mr. Chisson has since been niimberecJ 
amonf,'' its leadint;' business men. He 
served during the Civil war as a member 
of the Twenty-seventh Wis. V. I. In the 
family there are six children: Mrs. Abbie 
Moody, of ]>rookside, Wis. ; George, of 
Oeout(j; Edmond, a farmer of Oconto 
count}'; W. (., of Oconto; I), (i. ; and 
Allen, at home. 

Under the parental roof oiu' subji.-ct 
spent his childhood days, and he acquired 
his preliminary education in the public 
schools of Oconto, graduating from the 
high scli(.)ol in the class of icSSj. In the 
fall of 1889 he entered the Wisconsin 
State University, at Madison, and was 
graduated from ihc I^aw Department with 
the class of 'gi. hnmediately thereafter 
he entered upon the practice of law in 
Oconto, and became associated with 
Judge Bailey, tlien county judge. He 
was afterward alone in business for a 
time, or until 189.V in which year the 
present firm of Webster & Classon was 
formed. The Judge practices in all the 
courts of Wisconsin and Michigan, and is 
considered a lawyer of sui)erior ability, a 
wise counselor and an able ad\ocate. 

On June 14, 189^, Judge I). G. Clas- 
son was united in marriage with Miss 
Mabel liurnside, a native of Manitowoc 
county. Wis., and a daughter of W. 11. 
and Loviiia (Classon) Burnside, the for- 
mer born in New York, the latter in Man- 
itowoc county; they are now residing in 
Stiles township, Oconto county. In j^oli- 
tics the Judge takes quite an active inter- 
est, as a recognized leader in the ranks of 
the Republican part}'. Socially he is a 
member of Pine Lodge No. 188, F. & A. 
M. , of Oconto Lodge No. 94, K. P., and 
of Oconto Camp No. 1465, M. W. A. 
He is also district deputy grand chancellor 
in the Knights of Pythias Fraternity, and 
is a valued member of all these organi- 
zations. 

31 



CF. WHITING has resided in 
Oconto township, Oconto comity, 
from the agi? of four years, having 
come hither from Maine with his 
parents, David E. and b^li/abeth (R}'der) 
Whiting, both of whom were natives of 
that State, whore they were married. 

David F.. Whiting was a carpenter by 
trade. In the fall of 1856 he migrated 
with his family to (Jconto township, on 
the Oconto river, where he still makes 
his home. He purchaseil an eighty-acre 
tract of school land, which was thcMi all 
in the woods, but ho lost no time in 
ccjmmencing the woik of improving it, 
and contimied until he had the entire 
tract cleared and under cultivation. Mrs. 
Whiting passcnl from earth in 1883, and 
Mr. Whiting subsequent!}- wedded Mrs. 
Nutt. By his first marriage he was the 
father of seven sons, of whom those whose 
names appe;ir on this sketch are living: 
C. I"., whose name apjiears at the o])en- 
ing of this sketch; J. A., W. F. , L. IC, 
and |. 1;., all of whom are married ;md 
reside in Oconto township, where the 
Whiting family was the lirst to make a 
permanent settlement. 

Our suliject was born in October, 
1852, in hioston, Mass. Coming here at 
the age of four years, he received all his 
educaticMi in tlu; district schools, obtain- 
ing his knowledge of farming, which has 
been his life pursuit, under the tuition 
of his father. He is the owner of a line 
farm of eighty acres, lying in Section if), 
which is under a good state of cultivation, 
ami during his earlier years, inaildition to 
agriculture, he engaged to some extent in 
lumboi'ing. 

In 1875, in Oconto township, Oconto 
county, Mr. Whiting wedded Miss Julia 
C. Ordway, a native of Maine, where her 
parents, James S. and Mary C. (C'hcney) 
Ordway, were also born. The Ordway 
family came to Oconto county in 1856, 
Mr. and Mrs. Ordway subsequently re- 
moving to Oregon, where he died in F"cb-' 
ruary, 1891, and wluM'e, in the city of 
Portland, she is still living. To Mr. and 



544 



COMMEMOUATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



Mrs. W'hitiufj have come two children — 
J. E. and Jessie Dell. Mr. Whiting has 
been active in local affairs, and thouj^h 
not an office-seeker has held various posi- 
tions of trust in his township, with faith- 
fulness and ability. He is a member of 
the school board and clerk of his district, 
and is also serving as chairman of Oconto 
township, which important office he was 
first elected to in 1892, and has held con- 
tinuously since- — a fact which in itself is 
sufficient evidence of the efficient manner 
in which his official duties are discharged. 
In political sentiment he is a Republican. 



GW. HANLEY, secretary of the 
Menominee River Boom Com- 
pany, has occupied that position 
since January, 1890. The pres- 
ent officers of the company are Isaac 
Stephenson, president; S. M. Stephenson, 
vice-president; A. C. Merryman, treasurer; 
Thomas Parent, superintendent. The 
Boom Company was organized in 1867, 
and incorporated that year, under the 
name of the Monominee River Manufac- 
turing Company. Its incorporators were 
Jesse Spalding, Harrison Ludington, Nel- 
son Ludington, Daniel Wells, Jr., Abner 
Kirby, Isaac Stephenson, S. M. Stephen- 
son, Robert Stephenson, W. A. Carpen- 
ter, Truman Woodford, Ely Wright, and 
Richard Hall. In 1887, it was incorpo- 
rated under the name of the Menominee 
River Boom Company, and articles filed 
in both Michigan and Wisconsin. The 
company has charge of all improvements 
of the Menominee river and its tributaries. 
Having established the business in 1867, it 
is one of the oldest institutions on the Me- 
nominee river, and one of the essential 
factors of the development of this section 
of the country. 

The business of the Boom Company is 
that of driving logs from the head waters 
of the Menominee river. From 1868 to 
1895. inclusive, 8,097,928,479 feet of logs 
passed down this river. The largest scale 
was in 1889, when 642,137.318 feet of 



logs were passed. Since then, the scale 
has decreased, though the number of 
pieces handled has increased. The com- 
pany gives employment to an average of 
five hundred men, from April to Decem- 
ber in each year. In 1895, the aggregate 
pay roll was $123,931.85. The earnings 
for 1 895 were $2 56, 48 1 . 98. The expenses 
for labor and supplies were $168,911.27, 
leaving a profit of $87, 570. 7 1 . The com- 
pany have invested in dams, real estate 
and buildings and other personal property, 
to the amount of $1,822,686.07. 

G. W. Hanley is a native of Wisconsin, 
born in Whitewater, W'alworth county, 
in 1856, and is the son of M. J. and Ann 
(Thorpe) Hanley, the former a native of 
Ireland, the latter of New York. The 
father emigrated from Ireland with his 
parents in childhood, grew to manhood 
in New York, and in an early day re- 
moved to Milwaukee, Wis., where he 
engaged in the mercantile business. Later 
he removed to Whitewater, W'is. , where 
he remained one year; and then returned 
to Milwaukee, and there died, in 1867, at 
the age of thirty-nine years, leaving six 
children: G. \\'., our subject; J. E., who 
resides in Colorado; Mrs. F. J. W'hite, of 
Milwaukee; Arthur R. ; Frank J. and 
Stephen, all of whom reside in Milwaukee, 
where the mother yet makes her home. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in Milwaukee and educated in St. John's 
Cathedral parochial school. At the age 
of ten years he went into the law office 
of Matt H. Carpenter, where he remained 
two years, and then worked in different 
capacities in Milwaukee, until he at- 
tained his majority. For a time he was 
chief clerk in the land department of the 
Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railroad, 
and resigned that position on his removal 
to Peshtigo. Previous to his removal to 
the latter place, he was associated with 
the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal & Harbor 
Company, and in this way became ac- 
quainted with those w'ith whom he has 
since been associated in business. His 
removal to Peshtigo was in 1883, the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



545 



place then being the largest in northern 
Wisconsin. In addition to his connection 
with the Boom Company, he is also sec- 
retary of the Marinette Hotel Company; 
secretary of the Marinette Gas, Electric 
Light & Street Railway Company; secre- 
tary of the Marinette Business Men's 
Association, and secretary of the Mari- 
nette & Western Railway Company. 

In 1882, Mr. Hanley was united in 
marriage at Milwaukee, Wis., with Miss 
Agnes Griffin, a native of Milwaukee, and 
daughter of Michael Griffin, a pioneer 
business man of that city, who is now de- 
ceased. Bj' this union two children have 
been born: Marie and Gertrude. 

Mr. Hanley is a member of the Roman 
Catholic Church, and in politics is a 
stanch Republican; has been chairman of 
the Marinette County Republican Com- 
mittee and a member of the Republican 
State Central Committee of Wisconsin. 
In the political affairs of State and Na- 
tion he has ever taken an active interest, 
and has been an advocate of the princi- 
ples of the Republican party since attain- 
ing his majority, but has never allowed 
his name to be used for political office. 
He is a thorough business man, and, in 
addition to what has already been men- 
tioned, he is interested in the Fenton 
Clothing Company. He is a man of 
pleasing address, and one whom it is a 
pleasure to meet. 



HENRY SCHEFFEN. As a con- 
tinuous resident of Oconto county 
for nearly forty years, Mr. Schef- 
fen has been intimately associated 
with its growth and advancement, espe- 
cially in Oconto township, where he has 
been engaged in farming since 1865. 

Mr. Scheffen is a native of Prussia, 
Germany, born April 2, 1835, son of John 
and Mary Scheffen, who were also born 
in Prussia, where the father, who was a 
farmer, died in 1838. The mother re- 
moved to Paris, France, in 1848, and 
died in that city at the advanced age of 



eighty-nine years. There were seven 
children in the family — Mary, deceased; 
Frank and John, both of whom live in 
Prussia; Henry; Joseph, who died in 
Paris; Catherine, deceased; and Mar- 
garet (Mrs. Waggoner), of Paris, France. 

Our subject was educated in Prussia, 
where he was reared up to the age of 
thirteen, at which time he removed to 
Paris, France, remaining in that city up 
to the time of his emigration to America, 
in 1857. He set sail from Havre on a 
sailing vessel, and after a voyage of thirty- 
six days landed at New York, whence he 
proceeded westward to Wisconsin, on the 
way meeting a family on the boat whom 
he brought to Sheboygan. He located 
in the then village of Oconto, being an 
early comer, and remained there, working 
in the water mills, until 1861, in Novem- 
ber of which year he enlisted in the Union 
army. He joined Company F, Twelfth 
Wis. V. I., for three years, was mus- 
tered into service at Madison, and served 
until the close of the war, re-enlisting in 
January, 1864, at Natchez, Miss. He 
participated in nearly all the engagements 
of the Seventeenth Army Corps, was 
with Sherman on the famous march to 
the sea, marched through to Washington 
at the end of the conflict and took part 
in the Grand Review at that city. In July, 
1865, he was honorably discharged at 
Louisville, Ky., and returned to Oconto. 

After his return from the army, in 
1865, Mr. Scheffen bought a tract of forty 
acres in the woods of Oconto township, 
which he cleared, and he now owns eighty 
acres in Oconto township, where he fol- 
lows general farming. He has taken an 
active interest in the affairs of the com- 
munity, assisted in organizing the school 
district, and has served as school director 
and school clerk. In 1883 he was elected 
to the town board, and has since been a 
member of same the greater part of the 
time. Politically he is a member of the 
Republican party. He was married, in 
Oconto, October 28, 1865, to Miss Au- 
gusta Dupee, who was born in Belgium, 



546 



COMMEMORATrFE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



of which country her parents, John and 
Angeline Diipee, were also natives. They 
came in 1857 to Oconto township, where 
Mr. Dupee now resides, with our subject, 
Mrs. Dupee having died March 7. 1894. 
Six children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Scheffen, five of whom are living, viz. : 
Charley (who is married and lives in 
Oconto), Mary (deceased), Joseph, Frank, 
John and Amelia. In religious faith Mr. 
Scheffen is a member of the Roman 
Catholic Church, and socially he is a 
member of E. A. Ramsey Post No. 74, 
G. A. R. 



RICHARD LEWIS HALL (de- 
ceased) was one of the honored 
pioneer settlers of Oconto count}', 
and belonged to that class whose 
earnest efforts toward the upbuilding and 
development of the locality won them the 
gratitude of all. To pioneer settlers there 
falls an arduous work such as the present 
generation can hardly imagine, and for 
which they should feel truly thankful, for 
the influences of civilization, progress and 
improvement have been placed at their 
disposal by these first settlers. 

Mr. Hall was born in Ithaca, N. 
Y. , August 7, 1833, and was a son of 
Dr. Jonathan Corey and Lydia Ann 
(Andrus) Hall, both natives of Spencer, 
N. Y. The father became a prominent 
physician of Ithaca, and had an extensive 
practice. Wishing to retire from that 
field of labor, he came to Wisconsin and 
purchased a water mill on the Menominee 
river. He also engaged in practice to 
some extent, and made Marinette his 
home. There he died, and his wife 
passed away a year later in Oconto. 
They had four children : Richard L. ; 
Mrs. Mary E. Bentley, who died in 
Marinette, Wis. ; Isadore, who died at 
the age of twelve years in Marinette; and 
Ben R. , living in Marinette. 

Our subject was only twelve years of 
age when he accompanied his parents to 
that place. He had previously attended 



the schools of Ithaca, was a verj- apt 
student, and when locating in Wisconsin 
was already a good Latin scholar. On 
June 6, 1853, he graduated from a busi- 
ness college in Chicago, and was always 
well informed on current events, pos- 
sessed of broad general information. He 
then took up the study of surveying which 
he mastered, was employed to survey the 
islands in the Menominee river, and lo- 
cated a number of tracts of land. In 
1857 he came to Oconto, where he en- 
gaged in surveying, following that pursuit 
for some time. He then entered the ab- 
stract business, which he continued during 
the remainder of his life. 

In 1859, at Rosemond, Christian Co., 
111., Mr. Hall was united in marriage 
with Miss Abbie J. Hill, a native of New 
York City, and third in the family of Ed- 
ward S. and Catherine (Houghton) Hill. 
By their marriage our subject and his 
wife have become the parents of eight 
children: Edward J., a surveyor in Pen- 
saukee. Wis. ; Richard L. , who is in the 
abstract office in Oconto; William B. , 
city engineer; Charles Bancroft, an elec- 
trician; and four who have passed away 
— May Frances, the eldest in the family, 
who died at the age of two years; Kate, 
the third child, who died in 1884, at the 
age of nineteen; Ben A., the fifth child, 
who left home at the age of twenty; and 
Andrew H., the youngest, who died at 
the age of two years. 

Mr. Hall voted with the Republican 
party, and took quite an active interest in 
political affairs. He served as county 
treasurer for some years, also as county 
clerk, and for an extended period was 
clerk of the court, filling that office at the 
time of his death, which occurred Feb- 
ruary 15, 1892. In religious faith Mr. 
Hall was a Presbyterian, and on the or- 
ganization of the Church in Oconto he 
was made elder; he also served as super- 
intendent of the Sunday-school ; but in 
his later years, owing to ill health, did 
not attend Church. His upright, honor- 
able life was one well worthy of emula- 



COMMEMOrxATTVE BTOOnAPniCAL UKCOUD. 



517 



tion. He always took an active interest 
in everything pertaining to the good of 
the city or county, and in his death the 
community lost one of its valued resi- 
dents. 



JOHN WINDROSS, a prosperous 
farmer of Pensaukec townsiiip, 
Oconto county, has resided there for 
nearly half a century, engaged for 
the most part in agricultural pursuits on 
the farm which he still owns and resides 
upon. 

Mr. Windross is an Englishman" by 
birth, born May 21, 1821, in Yorkshire, 
where his parents, John and [emima 
(Sketton) Windross, were also born. In 
1833 the family sailed from Hull, Eng- 
land, landing after a voyage of si.\ weeks 
and three days at New York City. They 
first lived in Oneida county, N. Y. , near 
Utica, where Mr. Windross engaged in 
gardening, and in 1837 came to W^is- 
consin, locating on what is now the Kel- 
logg farm in Brown county, where he 
followed agriculture. They subsequently 
came to Oconto county, living on a farm 
along the Bay Shore at Oak Orchard, 
Pensaukee township, where they were 
among the earliest settlers, and here they 
conducted a tavern. On this farm the 
father died in 1858, the mother in 1878. 
There were four children in the famil}-, 
viz.: William, who li\'eswith Charles and 
is unmarried; Charles, who is married 
and resides in Pensaukee township; Anna, 
(Mrs. Hale), of Peshtigo; and John. 

John Windross received his education 
in England, and after leaving school con- 
tinued to apply himself diligently to 
study, with the result that he now has a 
good practical education. He remained 
in his native country up to his twelfth 
year, when he came with his parents to 
this country. He lived with them in New 
York State until he was seventeen, when, 
in June, 1837, the family migrated west- 
ward to Wisconsin, locating first, as 
above recorded, in Brown county. On 



May 18, 1847, John Windross settled in 
Pensaukee township, on the farm wliich 
has since been his home, and which lies 
in Sections 23 and 26. Tiie homestead 
which he took up e.xtends one and three- 
(juarters miles along the bay shore, and 
was then all in the woods. Mr. Windross 
built a log house, and has since devoted 
himself to the improvement and cultiva- 
tion of his place, which comprises 220 
acres of land, seventy of which are clear- 
ed; he is engaged in general agriculture 
and gardening, whicli has been his life 
vocation. Mr. Windross has had his 
home in Wisconsin since the days when 
it was a Territory, and he has lived to 
witness the almost complete transforma- 
tion of the northern part of the State. 
During the early da\'s he experienced, 
with all those whose lot is cast in a newly 
settled region, the numerous vicissitudes 
and hardships of pioneer life. Many 
privations and inconveniences had to be 
born, and they were obliged to go to 
Green Bay, a distance of twenty-five miles, 
for their provisions. Our subject is prob- 
ably one of the oldest settlers in Oconto 
county. 

In 1855 Mr. Windross was married, 
in Brown county, to Miss Ann Redmond, 
a native of Ireland, whose parents, Pat- 
rick and Mary (Stedman) Redmond, were 
also born in the Emerald Isle, and passed 
their entire lives there. Mrs. Windross 
and her brother Patrick came to America, 
in 1850 locating in Green Bay, Wis., 
where they married. Patrick Redmond 
now resides in Poygan, Winnebago county, 
W'is. Eight children have been born to 
Mr. and Mrs. Windross, as follows: David, 
who died in 1869, aged thirteen years; 
Judith (Mrs. Bell), who resides in Pesh- 
tigo; Afary (Mrs. Powell), wlio died in 
1893; Ann, who died when three years 
old; Hannah (Mrs. Snyder), of Pensaukee 
township; Sarah (Mrs. Anderson), a 
widow, resitling at home; John, who died 
in 1892; antl Kate (Mrs. John (irosse), 
of Suamico, Oconto coinitw Mr. Win- 
dross' family are Catholics in religious 



S4S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



faith. He has been active in local affairs, 
and assisted in organizing Pensaukee town- 
ship, on the board of which he has served 
as a member; he has also filled the office 
of justice of the peace. In political afiili- 
ation he is a Republican. 



FA. HANSON, M. D., is success- 
fully engaged in the practice of 
medicine in Abrams, Oconto coun- 
ty, and, though a young man, has 
gained a reputation which many an older 
practitioner might well envy. He was 
born in McKeesport, Penn. , in 1862, and 
is a son of Gunder and Dora (Wiemann) 
Hanson, the former a native of Norway, 
the latter of Germany. Having emi- 
grated to the United States in early life, 
they were married in Pennsylvania, and 
in 1865 came with their family to Two 
Rivers, Manitowoc Co., Wis., where the 
father worked in a chair factory until 
1870. He then removed to Green Bay, 



same State, where he engaged 



the 



milling business for a quarter of a century, 
when, in 1 895, he came to Oconto county, 
and is now farming in Pensaukee town- 
ship. His wife is also living, and their 
family circle now numbers three sons, all 
that is left of eight; Theodore is living in 
Abrams, and Charlie resides in Pensaukee 
township. 

The Doctor was only three years of 
age when brought b)' the family to the 
Badger State, and when a child of nine 
removed to Green Bay. There he ac- 
quired his education in the public schools, 
after which he turned his attention to the 
milling business, and later worked in the 
store of Albright & Co. He also was 
employed in the post office for eight 
years, acting as assistant to Postmasters 
Kimball and Bailey. His leisure hours 
during that time he devoted to the study 
of medicine, and in 1884 he entered the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, at 
Chicago, from which institution he was 
graduated with the class of '87. After 



a year spent in practice in Winneconne, 
Wis., he removed to Amberg in 1889, 
and served as physician for the Amberg 
Granite Company until January, 1892, 
when he established an office in .Abrams, 
where he has succeeded in building up a 
large and lucrative practice. He has also 
for three years served as health officer of 
Abrams and Pensaukee township, and is 
a member of the Fox River Medical So- 
ciety. 

In Oconomowoc, Wis., in September, 
1846, Dr. Hanson was married to Miss 
Mar}' W' . Moon, a native of that city, and 
a daughter of N. P. and Mary (Brown) 
Moon, the former of whom is deceased, 
the latter still living in Green Bay. To 
our subject and his wife have been born 
two children : Ben Cyrus and Ethel 
Louise. The Doctor votes with the Re- 
publican party, and is a progressive and 
public-spirited citizen, withholding his 
support from no enterprise calculated to 
prove of public benefit. 



RR. YE A TON. the founder of 
Abrams, Oconto county, is a na- 
tive of New Hampshire, born April 
2, 1 8 19, in Portsmouth, where his 
parents, John Marvin and Hannah (Oliver) 
Yeaton, were also born. 

The father of our subject served in the 
war of 1 81 2. He was a sea-faring man, 
and was captain of the brig "Planet," 
sailing between Portsmouth and the West 
Indies, and which was owned by Capt. 
Thomas E. Oliver, his wife's uncle. Capt. 
Yeaton died in Guilford. N. H., in 1859; 
his wife had passed away in 1825. The\- 
had a family of five children, two of whom 
came to Wisconsin, as follows: Elizabeth, 
who died in Portsmouth, N. H. ; Robert, 
who came to Oconto county in an early 
day, and died there in 1888 (he enlisted 
from Oconto county during the Civil war); 
R. B., whose name introduces these lines; 
Sylvester, who died in Albany, N. Y. (he 
was engineer on ocean steamers); and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPinCAL RECORD. 



549 



Mary, who was married to Daniel Spoke- 
field, at Lakeport, N. H., where she died 
in 1858. 

Up to the age of six years R. H. 
Yeaton was reared in his native town, 
moving thence to Guilford, N. H., where 
he attended school. His father had mar- 
ried again, this time to Miss Deborah 
Rand, of Guilford. At the early age of 
nine years he was bound out to serve un- 
til the age of twenty-one, but when fifteen 
years old he broke his bonds and started 
out for himself. He traveled on foot to 
Cape Ann, Mass., to Daniel Steele, who 
secured a place for him on Thatcher's Isl- 
and, with the lighthouse keeper, Capt. 
Wheeler; for three years he continued to 
work thus, in the meantime studying un- 
der a private teacher. Next entering a 
shop at Plymouth, N. H., he learned the 
machinist trade, which he also followed 
at Lowell, Mass., becoming a practical 
engineer and serving as such on an ocean 
vessel which plied between Newburyport 
and Boston. Later, the vessel having 
been sold, he took her to New Orleans, 
and sailed between New Orleans and Vera 
Cruz, carrying supplies to Mexican sol- 
diers, and remaining south until 1849. 
On returning to Lowell, Mass., he entered 
the shop of the Merriman Manufacturing 
Co., at that place, with whom he re- 
mained until his migration to Wisconsin, 
in 1S60. He arrived in Pensaukee town- 
ship, Oconto county, May i, and pur- 
chased 120 acres of wild land where the 
town of Abrams now stands, which was 
then all in the woods, and which he com- 
menced to clear. Being a blacksmith, he 
followed the trade here, those he worked 
for laboring on his land, in payment of 
his services. The place was then known 
as West Pensaukee, but is now called 
Adrams, and Mr. Yeaton was the first per- 
manent settler. 

In February, 1863, Mr. Yeaton re- 
turned to Massachusetts, and on the i8th 
of that month enlisted, at Chelsea, Mass., 
in the Sixteenth Massachusetts Light Ar- 
tiller}', for three years or iluring the war, 



was mustered into the service at Boston, 
and assigned to the army of the Potomac. 
He saw active service at the battles of Cold 
Harbor, South Mountain, the Wilderness, 
Spottsylvania, and Chancellorsville, and 
was in many skirmishes. He was also at 
Harper's Ferry and Chambersburg, Md., 
where they captured horses, supplies and 
prisoners. Our subject was twice wound- 
ed, his first injury being a gunshot wound, 
in the right hip, which he received at 
Sjiotts^'lvania, and during the battle of the 
Wilderness he was wounded by a shell in 
the right ankle. He dislocated his right 
hip while helping to lift a gun from the 
carriage, so the enemy could not capture 
it. Mr. Yeaton was confined at Lincoln 
Hospital, Washington, D. C, later at Ar- 
mory Square, and was then transferred 
to the hopital at Whitehall, Penn., where 
he received an honorable discharge June 
25, 1865, and after participating in the 
Grand Review at Washington returned 
home. Soon after the close of his mili- 
tary service he came again to West Pen- 
saukee, Oconto Co., Wis., where he has 
ever since resided, and he is one of the 
most prominent citizens in this section. 
He commenced clearing the land, later 
selling the north side of his propert)' to 
settlers. Of the south side, known as 
"Yeaton's addition," he first sold twenty 
acres, later forty more, and he now has 
thirty-seven acres of the original j)lat, all 
of which is cleared. 

Mr. Yeaton was married, November 
28, 1843, in Campton, N. H., to Miss 
Eliza Ann Rowe, who was born in An- 
(iover, N. H., daughter of Daniel and 
l^etsey (Keyser) Rowe, natives of New 
Hampshire, who lived and died in that 
State. One child came to Mr. and Mrs. 
Yeaton, Charles ¥., who resides in Lena, 
Wis., where he follows his profession of 
teaching; he married, but his wife died 
April I, 1894, leaving three children — one 
son and two daughters: Zella, Lyle and 
.Amy. Mr. and Mrs. Yeaton also adopted 
a daughter, Alice M., who is now the wife 
of James M. Campbell, of No. 109 



55° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Whitaker street, Portland, Oregon. Mrs. 
Yeaton died in Abrams, December lo, 
1890. Mr. Yeaton was originally a Whig 
in politics, casting his first vote for William 
H. Harrison, and since the formation of 
the Republican party he has supported it. 
He has served as a member of the board 
of supervisors, also as justice of the peace 
for nine years, and has always been active 
in public matters in the township and 
county. Sociallj' he is a member of T. 
O. Howe Post No. 124, G. A. R., Green 
Bay, and while in Massachusetts he be- 
longed to the I. O. O. F. 



WALLACE P. COOK. There is 
nothing of more interest to a 
student of human nature than 
the examining into the life and 
character of a self-made man, and an- 
alyze those principles which may have 
enabled him to pass many who, perhaps, 
started out on life's journey with better 
opportunities. In such a case it is almost 
invariably found that his prominence and 
success have been attained through a 
stead}' application, earnest and conscien- 
tious effort and unwavering purpose. These 
qualities are pronounced in the character 
of Mr. W. P. Cook, Oconto's efficient 
mayor and prominent business man. 

Osmer Clark Cook, father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Batavia, N. Y., the 
youngest in a family of four sons. From 
1846 to 1849 he taught school at his na- 
tive place, in the latter year setting out 
on a trip to California via the Isthmus of 
Panama, where he was seized with a seri- 
ous illness. On his recovery he found 
employment on the construction of the 
Panama railroad, later traveling about, 
and for a short time residing on the island 
of Cuba. Returning to New York State, 
he was there married to Miss Lucretia 
Cole, who became the mother of our sub- 
ject. In an early day the family became 
residents of Jackson county, Mich., and 
in i860 removed to Columbia county. 
Wis., locating on a farm. In May, 1865, 



they came to Oconto, and settled on a 
tract of land four miles from the city. 
This was in the midst of the forest, and 
the country all around was in its primitive 
condition. As an instance of the many 
disadvantages pioneers were subject to, 
it may be mentioned that the window 
glass for the cabin home of Mr. Cook was 
brought from Green Bay, and the family 
endured many of the hardships and trials 
incident to pioneer life. Here the father 
was engaged in lumbering until his sons 
were old enough to take charge of the 
business, when he confined himself ex- 
clusively to his farm and nursery up to 
his death, which will be spoken of pres- 
ently. In 1878 his wife, Lucretia (Cole), 
the mother of W. P. Cook, was called 
from earth, deeply and sincerely mourned, 
and in 1880 Osmer C. Cook married Miss 
Dora F. Churchill, by whom there are no 
children. On March 15, 1894, Mr. Cook 
was driving in his buggy, and on crossing 
the railroad track on his way to town his 
horse took fright from the exhausting of 
an engine and shied sideways. The buggy 
struck a telegraph pole, the collision 
throwing Mr. Cook out with great violence; 
the horse breaking loose from the buggy, 
ran about two hundred feet and then re- 
turned to the place of the accident, and 
when found he was watching over his 
master. Some weeks later, on April 12, 
Mr. Cook succumbed to the injuries he had 
received. He was a universal favorite, 
highly respected as a worthy Christian 
man, and his funeral was the largest ever 
seen in Oconto. He was a founder of 
the Pioneer Nursery, and for some years 
was engaged in the nursery business in 
Oconto township. He also served as 
school treasurer of that township, and 
filled other official positions. In politics 
he was a Republican, and an active worker 
in his party's interests. His widow is still 
living. 

To Osmer C. and Lucretia (Cole) 
Cook, were born children as follows: 
Wallace P. and Willard P. (twins); 
Charles, who was drowned in the Oconto 





^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPUWAL UEVOBD. 



551 



river, in 1S7S, while trying to rescue a girl 
from drowning; George, who resides in 
Milwaukee; Sheldon, who is living in 
Oconto township (he had a twin brother' 
who died very young); Mrs. Alice Cald- 
well, of the city of Oconto; and William, 
who died in Michigan in 1855. 

Our subject was born in Jackson 
county, Mich., in 1857, reared in Oconto 
township, Oconto Co., Wis., and early 
became familiar with all the duties that 
fall to the lot of the agriculturist. He 
has resided here since the pioneer days, 
there being no railroads at the time of his 
arrival, few settlements and fewer busi- 
ness industries. With the work of pro- 
gress and development he has been iden- 
tified, aiding in all matters pertaining to 
the public welfare. His education was 
acquired in both the township and city of 
Oconto, and he began to earn his living 
by logging and driving logs, and learned 
to do all the different kinds of work per- 
taining to the hunber business, also sur- 
veying and lumbering engineering. He 
has since been connected with the lumber 
trade, is to-day a member of the firm of 
Cook Brothers, his partner being his twin 
brother, ami they furnish employment to 
between four and five hundred men. They 
are also extensive dealers in real estate, 
handling, largely, farm property. They 
own over one hundred thousand acres of 
land in the counties of Oconto, Shawano 
and Langlade, and have over two thous- 
and acres under a high state of cultivation. 
In addition they are also importers of fine 
stock, and to-day have nearly four hun- 
dred head of horses and colts. They own 
considerable interest in the electric light 
plant of Oconto. 

Mr. Cook is an important factor in the 
community, a prominent and influential 
promoter of its agricultural and commer- 
cial interests. The man who leads forth 
a company to battle is deserving of glory, 
but still greater glory is due to him who 
furnishes employment to others, thus pro- 
viding the means of livelihood for many 
families. The commander places before 



his men what may perhaps cause their 
death, but the business man gives his em- 
ployes the means of life. 

In 1884, in Oconto, was celebrated 
the marriage of Mr. W. P. Cook and Miss 
Lillian Almeda Spies, a native of that 
city, and a daughter of Jacob Spies, one of 
the honored pioneers of Oconto county. 
Three children grace their union — Nora, 
Kaj' and Osmer. Socially, Mr. Cook is 
connected with Oconto Lodge, No. 83, 
K. of P. In politics he is a stalwart Re- 
publican, and for two years served as 
alderman from the East ward of Oconto. 
In the spring of 1 895 he was elected mayor 
of the cit}', and is now capably serving in 
that office, bringing to the discharge of 
his official duties the same progressive 
spirit that has characterized his business 
career. He was one of the organizers 
and builders of the Oconto & Southwest- 
ern railroad from Oconto to Oconto 
Junction, and held the title to the entire 
road in trust for his friends until such 
time as its sale to the Milwaukee & North- 
ern Railroad Company was effected, sat- 
isfactorily to all intesested. Mr. Cook is 
a great lover of horses, and has met with 
unqualified success in handling and break- 
ing them, among those that have passed 
through his hands being many vicious 
animals, which he was entirely successful 
in breaking; and he has never been 
known to sell a horse of any kind that he 
could not satisfactorily work himself. 
The city of Oconto has no more valued 
citizen, and none more widely or favor- 
ably known than Wallace P. Cook. 



THOMAS P. GILKEY, a well- 
known resident of Oconto, is a 
native of the State of Wisconsin, 
and a member of one of the pio- 
neer families of Oconto county, having 
moved here with his parents in 1S51. 

Samuel D. and Caroline (Packard) 
Gilkey, parents of Thomas P. Gilkey, 
were both born in Houlton, Maine, and 
were reared and married in their native 



552 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOItAPmCAL RECORD. 



State. In 1846 they came to what was 
then the Territory of Wisconsin, locating 
first in Dane county. In 1848 they re- 
moved to Green Bay, living there three 
years, and finally, in 1851, came to Ocon- 
to, in which place at that time there was 
but one sawmill, the Jones mill, which 
was built in 1S49. Mr. Gilkey ran camp 
for Mr. Jones, working for him two or 
three years, after which he embarked in 
the hotel business, first erecting a small 
house on the State road, in 1853. Addi- 
tions were afterward made as the patron- 
age increased, and Mr. Gilkey conducted 
the hotel up to 1857, when he sold out to 
R. M. Norton, of Racine; the place is 
now owned by the Holt Lumber Co. 
After disposing of this hotel Mr. Gilkey 
built what was known as the " Empire 
House," which he carried on some five 
or si.\ years, eventually selling out to Mr. 
Wheelock. Mr. Gilkey became promi- 
nent in local public affairs, and for four 
years — from 1862 to 1866 — held the im- 
portant office of sheriff of the county, 
being elected by the Democratic party, 
of which he was an active member. On 
going out of office he retired from business 
life altogether, and lived comparatively 
retired up to his death, which occurred in 
Oconto in 1874; his widow died in 1876. 
Of their family, Hardin W. resides in 
Hayes township, Oconto county, now 
keeping a general supply store, also been 
superintendent of schools many years; 
Roscoe W. resides in Duluth, Minn., 
engaged in the real-estate business; Hen- 
rietta, married Antoine Links, who was 
an early settler of Oconto county, of 
which he served as first treasurer (they 
reside in Oconto. He was a soldier in 
the Mexican army); and Thomas P. is the 
subject of these lines. 

Thomas P. Gilkey was born in 1847 in 
Dane county. Wis., and was four years 
of age when his parents settled in Oconto. 
Here he received his education, and dur- 
ing his active years he has given his 
attention to real estate and cruising. 
Our subject was married in Oconto, in 



1867, to Margaret J. Baldwin, who was 
born in New Brunswick, Canada, and 
they became the parents of three chil- 
dren: Harry and Bell, who reside in 
Oconto, and Fred. The mother of these 
passed from earth in 1878, at Oconto, 
deeply mourned by her family and friends. 
In politics Mr. Gilkey is an ardent Re- 
publican. 



J A. CANNON, superintendent of the 
Marinette Soap Works, is one of the 
most energetic of Marinette's many 
wide-awake and progressive citizens, 
having commenced business with a three- 
barrel kettle, unlimited faith in himself, and 
five hundred dollars as working capital. 

Mr. Cannon was born, in 1836, in 
the Emerald Isle, a son of Patrick and 
Catherine (O'Toole) Cannon. When 
thirteen years of age he went to England, 
and there learned the business of soap- 
making. In the old country he remained 
until 1863, when he decided to seek his 
fortune in that part of the New World 
which is looked upon by all Irishmen as 
the " Eldorado of the West " — the United 
States. In pursuance of this resolution 
he set sail in 1864, and landed at Boston 
where he worked for two months at the 
currying trade. F"rom there he went to 
Prairie du Chien, Wis., where he engaged 
in the manufacture of soap until 1885, 
thence going to St. Louis, Mo., and Chi- 
cago, Illinois. 

In 1886, on coming to Marinette, Mr. 
Cannon began the manufacture of soap, 
as before stated, in a very limited way 
and with few facilities — one small kettle 
and hardly any capital — exchanging soap 
for grease and other supplies. In May of 
that year he erected a building 1 6 x 20 feet, 
which he used as a factory for eighteen 
months, during which time he purchased 
a 2000-lb. kettle, and in 1888 made ex- 
tensive additions to his factory, which is 
now 100 X 50 feet in size, part three stories 
high, and part two stories high. The 
Marinette Soap Works, capital stock $25,- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



553 



ooo, manufacture thirteen different brands 
of laundry soaps, nine brands of toilet 
soaps, besides a floating tar and other 
medicated soaps; also soap powder, chips, 
and an absolutely pure white floating soap 
for the laundry or toilet use. There are 
two 1 8-foot boilers, one lo feet and the 
other 1 8 feet in diameter; one kettle that 
will turn out one hundred thousand 
pounds of finished soap — the largest kettle 
in the State — and tsvo kettles of sixty 
thousand pounds capacity, besides several 
smaller ones; they also have an elevator. 
The factory is the largest of its kind 
north of Milwaukee, in which city there 
are but two its e(iual in size. The factory 
gives employment to thirteen men and 
seven girls, with six salesmen on the road 
and two in the office, and two teams, 
making thirty names on the pay-roll. In 
1894 thirty thousand boxes of laundry 
soap were sold, and the business is con- 
stantly increasing, the factory often being 
unable to keep up with the orders 



Mr. 



Cannon was married in England, 



in 1S59, to Miss Mary Kearns, a native of 
Ireland who came with her husband to this 
country in 1864. They are the parents 
of thirteen children, of whom Anthony 
died in England; Michael, married, lives 
in Chicago; Catherine is a nun, in Duluth, 
Minn.; E. J., of whom special mention 
will presently be made; Honora, who 
was a nun, died in Duluth, Minn. ; James 
Joseph, who died in Prairie du Chien, 
Wis.; Mary, living in Duluth; Theresa, 
at home; Martin, a priest in St. John's 
College, Minn. ; and Agnes, deceased. Mr. 
Cannon is a member and trustee of the 
Catholic Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, 
and of the Catholic Knights of Wis- 
consin. He is a well-to-do, prosperous 
citizen of Marinette, and has great faith 
in the future of the bright little city, doing 
all in his power to aid in its advancement. 
E. J. Cannon, second son of Mr. 
Cannon, is the only one of the family to 
follow in his father's footsteps, as far as 
business is concernet'. He was born 
March i, 1865, and at the age of fourteen 



begged of his father to be taught the soap 
business. After many entreaties, con- 
sent was finally given; so the lad left 
school and became apprenticed to his 
father for three years, to learn the busi- 
ness. Mr. Cannon started his son at 
the foot of the ladder, teaching him that 
the key to success was honesty, hard work 
and perseverance. The young man showed 
a liking to the business, readily accpring a 
thorough insight into every detail thereof. 
At the expiry of his three-3'ears' appren- 
ticeship E. J. was sent by his father to 
St. Paul, thence to Minneapolis and then 
to Chicago, in order that he might secure 
every advantage, and acquaint himself 
with the different ideas in that line of 
business, by seeing and understanding the 
various kinds of machinery used in the 
manufacture of soap. He has followed 
the soap business ever since, and been 
employed in some of the leading factories, 
until he has become extensively known 
and generally recognized as an authority 
on all matters pertaining to the manufact- 
ure of soap. He is now connected with 
the Marinette Soap Co. , being one of its 
directors, and manager of the manufactur- 
ing department. 

On October i, 1895, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Elizabeth May, the 
charming and accomplished daughter of 
Joseph and Carolina Bueler, and the 
young couple are happily settled in their 
beautiful home on Elizabeth avenue, Mar- 
inette, and have abundance of faith in the 
future of that ever-progressive city. 



F 



J. A. LaFRESNIER, M. D., was 
the first physician to locate at 
Wausaukee, Marinette county, 
where he also owns the leading 
drug store, having located there in 1890. 
Dr. La Fresnier was born, in 1864, 
in Lower Canada, near Montreal, son of 
Alfred B. and Olive (Ducet) La Fresnier, 
both also natives of Canada, where the 
father was engaged in farming. Mrs. La- 
Fresnier passed fro«i «arth in 1S83, and 



554 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the father is now residing with his son in 
Wausaukee. There were six children in 
the family: F. J. A.; Honorin, who 
lives in Canada; Oliver, also in Canada; 
Mary Louisa, a resident of Lowell, Mass.; 
Clementine, who has her home in Provi- 
dence, R. L; and Cordelia, in Canada. 

Up to the age of thirteen our subject 
was reared on a farm, and then entering 
Nicollet College, Montreal, took a thor- 
ough classical course, spending eight 
years in that department, and graduating 
from the College in the class of '82, with 
the title of A. B. He then pursued his 
medical studies in Victoria College, Mon- 
treal, from which he was graduated M. D. 
C. M. with the class of '87, and then go- 
ing directly to Garden Bay, Mich., en- 
gaged in the active practice of his profes- 
sion, remaining there until his removal to 
Wausaukee, ^Iarinette county, in 1890. 
In the year of his arrivrd there the Doc- 
tor erected a good residence and drug 
store, which latter he has since carried on 
in connection with the duties of his pro- 
fession, in which he has built up a lucra- 
tive practice as a competent physician and 
surgeon. He is engaged in general prac- 
tice, and in addition to his private clientele 
is examiner for the Mutual Life Insur- 
ance Co., of New York, for the North- 
western Insurance Co., of Milwaukee, 
surgeon of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul railroad, and examiner for the K. 
O. T. M. at Wausaukee, to which latter 
organization he belongs, holding member- 
ship with Tent No. 19. He has also 
served four years as health officer of 
Wausaukee, and he is well and favorably 
known, personally as well as profession- 
ally, throughout the vicinity. 

In 1 889 Dr. La Fresnier was married, 
at Garden Bay, Mich., to Miss Anna 
Bourdleis, who was born in Escanaba, 
Mich., daughter of Oliver Bourdleis, a 
native of Lanorais, Canada, who in 1S53 
came to Escanaba, Mich., becoming a 
pioneer of that place. He now resides in 
Wausaukee. To this union have conr.c 
two children — Rudolph and Paul Aniele. 



On March 11, 1895, the Doctor had the 
misfortune to lose his faithful and ever- 
loving wife, who died of consumption after 
an illness of one year. In religious faith 
our subject, as was also his wife, is a 
member of the Roman Catholic Church. 
Politically, he af^liates with the Demo- 
cratic party. 



OC. DANIDSON, one of the rep- 
resentative business men of Flor- 
ence count}', and one who has 
been actively engaged in develop- 
ing the great iron mines of that region, is 
a native of Fort Howard, Wis., born 
June 22, 1857. His parents were Thomas 
and Tobina Barent Davidson, natives of 
Norwa)', who came to Milwaukee, Wis., 
August 3, 1848, and two years later re- 
moved to F"ort Howard, Wis. He was a 
carpenter and cabinet maker by trade, 
an occupation he followed, also for years 
running on the river. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Thomas Davidson were born seven chil- 
dren, of whom the following three are yet 
living: D. J. and Mary, of Green Bay, 
Wis., and O. C, the subject of this 
sketch. The parents are now living re- 
tired in Green Bay. 

O. C. Davidson grew to manhood at 
Fort Howard, and in the schools of that 
place received his education. He en- 
tered the employ of the First National 
Bank at Green Bay, Wis., and, there re- 
mained eight years and six months, after 
which, about 1882, he went to Norway, 
Mich., where he engaged in the mining 
business, in which he has since continued 
with little exception, having been for two 
years in the meantime in the Kellogg Na- 
tional Bank of Green Bay, Wis. He be- 
came superintendent of the Brier Hill 
Iron Mine at Norway, Mich., and in 1886 
removed to Florence, Wis., having been 
made superintendent of the Florence 
Mining Co., which position he held until 
January, 1889, when he was made super- 
intendent of the Commonwealtli Iron Co. 
Since the establishment of the State Bank 







r^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



555 



at Florence, in January, 1891, Mr. David- 
son has served as its president; its cashier 
is E. E. Wilcox, and vice-president, P. 
McGovern. 

In 1889 our subject was united in mar- 
riage, at Bessemer, Mich., with Charlotte 
S., daughter of William E. and 'EVv/.i- 
beth (Sargeant) Dickinson, who were na- 
tives of New York City and Boston, re- 
spectively; in their family were si.x chil- 
dren besides Mrs. Davidson, as follows : 
Edmond E., Harold, Frank, William E., 
Christine and Lucetta; (William E. was 
abducted in 1882, when five years of age, 
and though big rewards have been offered, 
the family have never received any news 
of him). Mr. and Mrs. Davidson have 
had three children, namely: Ward F. , 
Harold O. and Norman H. Mr. David- 
son in politics is a Republican. He is 
chairman of Commonwealth township 
and chairman of the county board, which 
latter position he has held for four terms, 
since 1889, still serving in that capacity. 
The large enterprise of which he is super- 
intendent has been in operation for fifteen 
years, and the total number of gross tons 
of ore that have been shipped from their 
mines from 1880 to 1895, inclusive, are 
i.637i897- They employ at present 300 
men. The relations that Mr. Davidson 
sustains in an official capacity to the 
people of the county and township, and 
his prominence in the large mining com- 
pany and banking house of Florence, 
evidence his standing in business circles 
and his popularity among his fellow 
townsmen. Mr. Davidson is a member 
of Washington Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. 
M., of Green Bay, and of Pochequette 
Lodge, No. 26, K. of P., Green Bay. 



HD. FISHER, the founder of the 
city of Florence, came to this lo- 
cality from Menasha, Wis., on a 
prospecting tour, in 1871. He 
traveled all through the Menominee range, 
and located the F'lorence mine in 1873, 
and discovered the Commonwealth mine 



in 1876. He began active mining opera- 
tions in the Florence mine about the time 
of the building of the Chicago & North 
Western railroad, which made its survey 
in 1 879, and completed the building of the 
road to what is now the city of Florence, 
October 14, 1880. On first coming to 
the place, Mr. Fisher took up 480 acres 
of government land, mining property, and 
on the lake 240 acres more. Later he 
located twenty thousand acres of mining 
and timber land, between the years 1873 
and 1S76. From the first he has located 
in all about fifty thousand acres. In the 
spring of 1880 he and Menominee Mining 
Co. had surveyed and platted the present 
city of Florence, and on March 16. of that 
year, had the lots put on the market. The 
village was named in honor of the wife of 
Dr. N. P. Hulst. Mr. Fisher, it may be 
said, located permanently in this place in 
1880, and owned a half interest in the fee 
of the mine, which he leased to the Me- 
nominee Mining Co. Since coming here 
he has built extensively, and some of the 
best buildings in the place have been 
erected by him, including the bank build- 
ing, and Masonic Block, which were 
erected in 1889. 

Mr. I-^isher is a native of Vermont, 
born in Vergennes, August 27, 1832, and 
is a son of Hiram and Hannah (Champion) 
Fisher, who were also natives of the 
"Green Mountain State." The father 
died in Vermont, in January, 1879, in his 
seventy-seventh year; his wife passed away 
in 1882, in her seventy-third year. They 
were the parents of four children: H. D., 
our subject; Cyrus (drowned in 1873, 
off Halifax), who was admitted to the bar 
in the high courts of London, and was a 
prominent member of the Cobden Club, 
and an attorney of some note in London; 
Laura (now Mrs. Silas E. Wright), of 
Rutland, Vt., and George P., who resides 
on the old farm in Vermont. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in Vermont, and spent his boyhood and 
youth on the home farm. He was edu- 
cated in the common schools of that State, 



556 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and in early life learned the carpenter 
and joiner trade. At the age of twenty- 
one he came west to Oshkosh, Wis., but 
soon afterward went to Menasha, where 
he was engaged in general merchandise 
business for some years. In 1861 he sold 
out his store, and commenced in the in- 
surance business, in which he continued 
for a time, or until coming to Florence. 
While in Oshkosh, however, he was en- 
gaged as clerk in the old \\'innebago Hotel, 
winters, and as clerk on a boat on the 
Fo.\ and \\'o\[ rivers, during the summer 
season. While residing in Menasha, on 
January 31, 1 86 1 , Mr. Fisher was united in 
marriage with Miss Fmily O. Keyes, who 
was born in Wisconsin, daughter of Capt. 
Joseph and Olive (Williams) Keyes, who 
were natives of Northfield, Vt. , and who, 
in 1837, came to Wisconsin and located at 
Lake Mills, where Mr. Iveyes built a saw 
and grist mill, laid out the town, and made 
it his home until 1853, when he moved to 
Menasha, built a sawmill, and made that 
his home until his death about the year 
1 875. To Mr. and Mrs. Fisher have been 
born four children: Olive (now Mrs. Oliver 
Evans), of Iron Mountain; Katie (widow 
of E. J. Ingram), also of Iron Mountain; 
Nellie (wife of A. M. Pinto), of Omaha, 
Nebr. ; and Laura, at home. 

Fraternally, Mr. Fisher is a member 
of Fisher Lodge, No. 222, F. & A. M.; 
of Marinette Chapter, No. 57, R. A. M.; 
and of the United Workmen and Royal 
Arcanum. In the Masonic Lodge he 
passed all the chairs, and was senior war- 
den of the Grand Lodge in 1894-5. '" 
politics he is a Republican, and served as 
postmaster at Florence from 1 880 to 1 887. 
Mr. Fisher is one of the best posted men of 
the northwest country, and there is hardly 
a foot of land in all the territory of this 
section of the country with which he is 
not familiar. In addition to locating the 
mines of Florence and Commonwealth, 
he also discovered the Armenia Iron Mine, 
east of Crystal Falls, Mich. His busi- 
ness interests have been very extensive, 
and, in connection with real estate, he is 



interested in the bank at Florence, and 
Commercial Bank of Iron Mountain, Mich. 
In the development of this section he has 
certainly been a very active man, and the 
credit for its prosperity is largely due to 
his efforts. 



JOHN S. MONROE, proprietor of a 
post mill at Wausaukce, Marinette 
county, was the first man to settle 
in that town, built the first house 
there, which is still in use, though added 
to. He has seen the development of the 
town and surrounding country from its 
most primitive state, for at the time of 
his coming here it was all a dense forest 
and deep-tangled wild-wood. 

Mr. Monroe came to Wisconsin from 
New York State, where, in Jefferson 
county, he was born November 5, 1822, 
son of John and Sarah (Chapman) Mon- 
roe, the former of whom was a native of 
Cracow, Austria, the latter of the State 
of Connecticut. Before he emigrated to 
America John Monroe was a soldier under 
Napoleon, and he came to New York for 
Joseph Bonaparte, remaining in his cm- 
plo}' up to the time of his death, which 
occurred in 1839. Mrs. Sarah Monroe 
died in 1873 in De Pere, Wis. They had 
a family of six children, as follows : 
Louisa (Mrs. Arnold Munger), of De Pere, 
Wis. ; John S., the subject of this sketch; 
Mrs. Julia Earle, who died in De Pere in 
1892; Mrs. Minerva Thompson, of An- 
tigo, Wis.; Capt. Joseph A., a sailor, 
who lives in Seattle, Wash., and Mrs. 
Elizabeth Blood, of Sioux City, Iowa. 

J. S. Monroe was reared to manhood 
in Jefferson and Lewis counties, N. Y., 
receiving his education in Diana, Lewis 
county, and while in his native State he. 
at the age of twenty-one, entered a ship- 
yard at Sacketts Harbor to learn the 
trade. At the age of twenty-five (in 
1847) he migrated to Wisconsin, and was 
here at the time it became a State, cast- 
ing a vote for the constitution. His first 
location in Wisconsin was at Southport 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPITWAL HE CORD. 



557 



(now Kenosha), where he built a vessel, 
the " Lewis C. Irwin," and in the fol- 
lowing spring (1848) came on the vessel, 
on the deck of which he brought a sail- 
boat, which he launched at the mouth of 
the Menominee river. He cruised along 
the bay to Green Bay, and then on to 
De Pere, Brown county, where he re- 
mained until his removal to Wausaukce, 
owning a water-mill there on the Fox 
river. In 1862 he went to Lake Supe- 
rior to build a dredge for a private con- 
cern. He built the first scow for car- 
rying lumber to the vessels and supplies 
back to Oconto for Col. Jones, of Oconto, 
and also the first scows used on the 
Oconto river for Norton & Co. He 
blazed out a road from Green Bay to 
Stiles, and Eldridge & Ladue put on men 
who cut out the road. He came to 
Wausaukee with the Chicago, Milwaukee 
& St. Paul railroad, and as above stated 
was the first settler of the place, cutting 
the logs on the spot to build his house. 
There were no neighbors for him and his 
family to associate with — there being 
nothing but woods around them, the 
nearest sign of civilization being the old 
Kitson trading post for the Northwestern 
Fur Co. , on the Menominee river, three 
and one-half miles distant. On coming 
here he engaged in getting out cedar 
posts, getting out the first cedar and 
timber shipped from Wausaukee, where 
he now operates a post mill, giving em- 
ployment to four men. He owns the 
greater part of the town plat. Additions 
I, 2 and 3, and is also owner of several 
buildings, which he rents. In Wausaukee 
township he owns a tract of 160 acres, 
and he formerly owned the site of the 
Bird & Wells' mill, selling to Beach & 
Bishop, who in turn sold to the present 
proprietors. He keeps boarders at his 
place, has a blacksmith shop, and three 
teams of horses that are kept at work 
right along. Mr. Monroe has seen the 
growth of the town of Wausaukee to its 
present proportions, its population being 
now about fifteen hundred, and has taken 



an active part in its progress and the ad- 
vancement of its business and other in- 
terests. I'or eight years he served as 
postmaster, having been appointed to 
that office January 12, 18S5, and was the 
first man to handle mail at Wausaukee. 
He votes with the Democratic party, to 
whose welfare he gives all his political 
support. 

Mr. iNIonroe was marrieil. in 1S47, in 
Jefferson county, N. Y., to Miss Jane 
Belton, a native of that county, daughter 
of a prosperous farmer, and within a week 
they left for Southport (now Kenosha), 
where Mr. Monroe built the "Lewis C. 
Irwin," as already related. On their re- 
moval from Kenosha they journeyed by 
stage from there to Janesville, thence to 
Fond du Lac, and thence by team for 
two and one-half days to Green Bay. To 
their union have come the following 
named children : Sarah (who died Oc- 
tober 24, 1890, in Wausaukee), Wallace 
(who resides in Wausaukee), Elizabeth, 
Eliza and Harry. 



JACOB H. BERNARDY is the old- 
est living pioneer of what is now 
Porterfield township, Marinette 
county, having been identified with 
its interests since 1868, the year in which 
he located on his present farm. 

He is a native of the Netherlands, 
born in 1836 in Luxemburg, of which 
province his parents, Jacob and Margaret 
(Senninger) Bernardy, were also natives. 
In 1847 the family sailed from Antwerp 
for the United States, landing on the 
shores of America after a voyage of 
fifty-two days. They came west almost 
immediately, locating in what is now 
Ozaukee county. Wis., where the father 
opened up a farm, residing there until 
1869, when he came to what is now Por- 
terfield township, Marinette county. 
Here he died in 1883, at the home of 
our subject, the mother following him to 
the grave in 1885. Of their family of 
five children, Jacob H. is the subject 



558 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPITWAL RECORD. 



proper of this biojjraphy; Barbara (Mrs. 
Junge), lives in Dakota; Nicholas en- 
listed at Port Washington, \\is. , in 1862, 
in the Sixteenth Wis. \'. I., and died at 
Lake Providence, La., in 1863; Anna 
(Mrs. Conrad), is a resident of Calumet 
county, Wis. ; Frank, who now resides in 
Porterfield township, served in the Thirt}- 
seventh Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. 

Up to the age of ten years our sub- 
ject was reared and educated in his 
native province, and then, in 1847, came 
to the United States, with his parents, 
for one month after his arrival attending 
school in Buffalo, N. Y. He aided in 
clearing the pioneer farm in Ozaukee 
county. Wis., and in 1858 came north to 
the Menominee river, here working for 
what is now the K. C. Lumber Co., and 
also for the N. Ludington Co. For two 
years he was engaged, during the autumn, 
in the pound fishery, and in the fall of 
1 86 1 he enlisted, at Milwaukee, in the 
Second Wisconsin Cavalry, for three 
years. He was mustered in at Milwau- 
kee, his regiment serving with the army 
of the West and also with the Gulf army, 
and he was an active participant in a 
number of battles and skirmishes. In 
1864 he veteranized, at Redbone, Miss., 
in the same company and regiment, and 
remained in the service until November 1 6, 
1865, when he was honorabl}' discharged 
at Austin, Te.xas. During his four-years' 
service he took part in the siege of Vicks- 
burg (two battles), the engagements at 
Jackson and Yazoo City, Miss., the Grier- 
son raid and the Gen. Price raid; after vet- 
eranizing he was in the expedition to Alex- 
andria, La., and subsequently in Texas. 

On leaving the army Mr. Bernardy 
returned to his home in Ozaukee county. 
Wis., in 1 866 coming thence to Marinette 
county, and in 1868, as above stated, 
settling on his present farm in Porterfield 
township. This was then called Mari- 
nette township, Oconto county, and the 
region was for the most part unimproved 
and uncultivated, presenting quite a con- 
trast to its present thrifty appearance. 



He homesteaded 1 20 acres (now lying in 
Section 10, Porterfield township), to 
which tract, at that time, there was only 
a trail, no roads having been laid out, 
and he has since devoted himself assidu- 
ously to the clearing and improving of 
this propert}-, at the present time having 
100 acres cleared and in a good state of 
cultivation; he has added to the area of 
the place until it now includes some 240 
acres. Mr. Bernardy's home was laid in 
ashes by the destructive fire of October 8, 
1 87 1, but he succeeded in saving himself 
and family by going down to the river 
and remaining there until 2 o'clock in the 
morning. 

Mr. Bernardy was married, in 1867, 
at Belgium, Ozaukee Co., Wis., to Miss 
Anna Kit^inger, who was born in Ger- 
many, daughter of Nicholas Kitzinger 
(now deceased), who settled in Ozaukee 
county in 1857. To this marriage have 
come twelve children, rjamely. Frank, 
Margaret, Anna, Carrie, Jacob, Albert, 
Katie, Nicholas, Louis, Frances, Mamie 
and Theresa. Mr. Bernardy takes an 
active part in the public life of the com- 
munit}', assisted in organizing Porterfield 
township, and was its first chairman, 
holding that office three years, and for 
six years he was secretary of the school 
board. He gives his political support to 
the Republican party. Mr. Bernardy 
takes a loyal interest in every project 
which promises to benefit the township 
and county, the almost complete develop- 
ment of which he has witnessed and aided 
in during his residence here, and he is 
looked upon as a reliable, substantial 
citizen by all who know him. Socially 
he is a member of Samuel H. Sizer Post 
No. 207, G. A. R., and in religious faith 
he and his wife are both Catholics. 



PFTER McGOVERN is of Irish 
extraction, his parents, Peter and 
Rose (McGovern) McGovern, be- 
ing natives of Ireland, who in an 
early day emigrated to New Brunswick, 




(^^i. ^^'-^x-l..^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



539 



Canada, and the father, who was a farm- 
er, opened up a farm. Here they reared 
a family of ten children, namely: Thomas, 
a resident of New l^rnnswick; Patrick, a 
resident of Walla Walla, Wash. ; Philip, 



who died in Long Island; 



Maggie, now 



Mrs. Kelley, of Marinette, Wis. ; Peter; 
Rose Ann (Mrs. I'"enton Hines), living in 
New Brunswick; Terrence, who died at 
Oconto, Wis., in 1878; Mary (Mrs. M. 
Clifford), of Mapleton, INfinn. ; John, liv- 
ing in New Brunswick; and I^ridget. The 
parents died in New Brunswick, the 
father in 1878, the mother in 1887. 

Our subject was born June 29, 1847, 
in New Brunswick, and was reared on 
his father's farm, receiving such educa- 
tional advantages as a farmer's children 
generally were given in that day and 
country. While yet in his " 'teens " he 
went to the State of Maine, and was em- 
ployed in the lumber districts; in 1868 
he came to W^isconsin, first locating in 
the then small town of Oconto, and soon 
thereafter entered the employ of F. B. 
Gardner, who was in the lumber business 
at Pensaukee, with whom he remained 
five or six years. He then went to 
Oconto, where he became engaged in the 
lumber business, logging, locating pine 
lands, etc., at which place and in which 
occupation he remained for years. 

In 1883 Mr. McGovern was united in 
marriage, at Oconto, Wis., with Miss 
Mary C. Keegan, daughter of John and 
Alice (Doyle) Keegan, the former of 
whom was born in Canada, where he 
still resides. Mr. and Mrs. Keegan had 
ten children, viz. : Samuel, who is a farm- 
er in I-ieeganville, Oconto Co., Wis.; 
Martha, Mrs. Patrick Kinney, of Ontario, 
Canada; Mary C, Mrs. McGovern; Alice, 
living in Ontario; John and Robert, 
farmers in Ontario; Lizzie, also in On- 
tario; Thomas, who resides in New York 
State; Rose, making her home with Mrs. 
McGovern; and Edward, in Dakota. To 
Mr. and Mrs. McGovern was born one 
son, Frederick, who is now ten years of 
age. 

32 



In 1884 our subject settled perma- 
nently at Florence, where he has since 
been actively engaged in the lumbering 
business in its different branches. He 
still deals heavily in lumber, selling his 
logs, as he never built any mills. He 
was one of the pioneer lumbering men in 
that district, inchuliiig what is now Flor- 
ence county, anil by his tact, foresight 
and business ability has accumnlated a 
large estate, being the jiossessor of from 
10,000 to 20,000 acres of timberland. 
Coming to this region when the country 
was new, he has witnessed the great 
transformation that has been brought 
about, and has been an actor in the 
scene himself. He is now actively en- 
gaged in real-estate dealing, handling 
farm and timber lands, as well as city 
property. Mr. McGovern is vice-presi- 
dent of the State Bank at Florence, of 
which place he is one of the leading citi- 
zens, ever taking an active interest in the 
growth and prosperity of the town, and 
is a genial ^nd pleasant gentleman. Po- 
litically he is a Democrat. 



GEORGE T. PECK, one of the 
early settlers and prominent men 
of Grover township, Marinette 
county, was a Union soldier in 
the war of the Rebellion. He is a son of 
Romanta and Polly (Durgin) Peck, and 
was born in Middlebury, Vt., Se]5tember 

7- 1833- 

Romanta and Polly (Durgin) Peck, 
who were born in the East, moved in i 835 
to East Minden, Monroe Co., N. Y. Mrs. 
Peck died in New York in 1S40. Ro- 
manta Peck came to Waukesha county, 
Wis., in an early day— 1S53 or 1855 — 
and died in 1857. Of their chiklren five 
are now living, namely: Ilazen, of Elk- 
horn, Walworth Co., Wis.; Henry, who 
resides in Waukesha county. Wis.; Oscar 
F. , of Grover township; George T. , the 
subject of this sketch; and Lucy, now 
Mrs. Marvin Munn, of Hamilton county, 
Nebraska. 



560 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



George T. Peck has lived in Wisconsin 
from an earl}' age, was educated in the 
schools of the State of New York, and 
was reared to farming, which vocation he 
has since followed, with the exception of 
his term of service in the army. In 1850 
and 1855 he worked in the woods for the 
Peshtigo Lumber Co. In Waukesha coun- 
ty, in 1 8 54, he was united in marriage 
with Miss Rose Ann Elliott, who was born 
in Ireland, daughter of James and Jane 
(Maitland) Elliott, natives of the same 
country. In an earU' day they came to the 
United States, first residing in Rutland, 
Vt., and thence migrating to Wisconsin 
became early pioneers of Waukesha coun- 
ty; later coming to Marinette county they 
lived eight years with Mr. Peck, Mrs. 
Elliott dying in 1887, and Mr. Elliott in 
1890, at the age of ninety j'ears. Mr. 
and Mrs. George T. Peck have reared 
three adopted children, as follows: Mrs. 
Bashford, of Grover township; John R. 
Bush and Effie Hart Peck, whose father 
was in the Second Wis. V. I., entering 
the service at the age of seventeen, and 
continuing throughout the Civil war. 

In Milwaukee, Wis., on September 
22, 1864, George T. Peck enlisted in 
Company F, Forty-fourth \\'is. V. I., for 
one year. He was mustered into serv- 
ice at Madison, Wis., and was assigned 
to the army of the Cumberland, Twenty- 
third Army Corps, participating in the 
battles of Nashville and Franklin. He 
was for the most part on garrison duty in 
Tennessee, and in 1865 went to Paducah, 
Ky. , where he was stationed from April 
till August. On August 11, 1865, he was 
honorably discharged, and returning to 
Wisconsin remained in Waukesha county 
until October, 1866, when he came to 
Peshtigo and settled on a farm of eighty 
acres which he bought, in what is now 
Grover township. Of this twenty acres 
were cleared. In the fire of 1871 he 
was burned out, at that time living on 
the farm where his brother Oscar now 
resides. Mr. Peck now has a farm in a 
good state of cultivation. 



In politics our subject is independent, 
voting for what he considers the best 
measures. For one 3'ear he was side 
commissioner of the township. He was 
commander of Samuel H. Sizer Post No. 
207, G. A. R. , was a member of the 
Marinette County Relief Commission, and 
has been on the board for seven years. 
Mrs. Peck is a member of the Women's 
Relief Corps. Mr. Peck is a member of 
Peshtigo Lodge No. 185, I. O. O. F., also 
of Peshtigo Lodge No. 218, F. & A. M. 



JOSEPH A. J. LAUERMAN, senior 
member of the firm of Lauerman 
Bros., the leading merchants of Mar- 
inette, also proprietors of the Mar- 
inette Savings Bank Store, and in all re- 
spects ranking among the progressive and 
go-ahead young men of northern Wiscon- 
sin, is a native of this State, born May 
28, 1866, in Muscoda, Grant county, of 
Bohemian ancestry. 

Joseph Lauerman, father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Bohemia, Austria, 
whence when a young man he came to 
the United States and to Wisconsin, 
settling in Muscoda, where he is yet 
residing. He was here married to 
Miss Antoine Kratochwill, also of Bohe- 
mian nativity, b)' whom he had six 
children, as follows: two who are de- 
ceased; Joseph A. J. and Frank J., 
members of the firm of Lauerman Bros. 
(Frank came to Marinette in 1892); Anna 
M., married to H. D. Pfiesterer, and re- 
siding in Muscoda, Wis. ; Charles A., clerk- 
ing in a general store at Julietta, Idaho. 
The mother of these died in 1885 at 
Muscoda, and Mr. Lauerman subsequently 
married Mrs. Annie Fuchik, by whom he 
has one child, named John; by her for- 
mer husband she had two children — Anna 
and Frank. Mr. Joseph Lauerman served 
in a Wisconsin regiment during the Civil 
war. 

The subject proper of these lines was 
reared in Muscoda, at the common schools 
of which place he received his elementary 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPinCAL RECORD. 



561 



education, which was supplemented with 
an attendance, one season, at the Second 
Ward Public School, Milwaukee. His 
first business experience was in a print- 
ing office at Muscoda, passing his school 
vacations there from the time he was 
twelve years old till he was fourteen, 
when he enteretl the general store of 
Jacob l.iremmer, in the same town, as 
clerk. In this line he continued, dili- 
gently applying himself to business, till 
1890, in which year he came to Mari- 
nette, and in April commenced, alone, a 
general mercantile business on a small 
scale. In June, same year, Donald Mc- 
Donald became associated with him in 
the business, which together they ci in- 
ducted till January, i<S92, at which time 
Mr. McDonald sold out his interest to 
Frank J. Lauerman, and the brothers oc- 
cupied the lower f^oor of No. I 517 Main 
street, till November of the same year. 
Their rapidly-e.xpauding business now de- 
manding more space, they added the 
lower floor of No. 1521, and in May, 
1894, bought out J. 1'". Boyd, adding his 
stock to their own, thereby having three 
stores in all. In March, 1895, the firm 
added the upstairs part of both No. 1517 
and No. 1521, which gave them an aggre- 
gate of some 9, 500 square feet (exclusive 
of basement, which is used for storing); 
in addition to which they have two sheds 
(30x20 and 15x20 feet, respectively), 
also used for storage. The store has a 
frontage of 75 feet, and runs back 80 
feet. The stock of Lauerman Bros, com- 
prises, in part, clothing, general furnish- 
ing, dry goods o{ all kinds, notions, hard- 
ware, tinware, crockery and glassware, 
carpets, rugs, curtains, etc., all in separ- 
ate departments, emjiloyment being given 
to from 30 to 60 clerks. Truly a wonder- 
ful metamorphosis from the modest com- 
mencement of our subject some five short 
years ago! 

In 1892, Joseph A. J. Lauerman and 
Miss Amelia Bezio were united in mar- 
riage at Marinette, the place of her birth; 
she is a daughter of John Bezio, an early 



settler of that city, where he is yet living. 
Two children were born to this union, 
both of whom are deceased — Oscar dying 
in March, 1893, and Edward in Septem- 
ber, 1894. The mother has also departed 
this life, her death having occurred March 
19, 1S94. In religious faith Mr. Lauer- 
man is a member of Our Lady of Lourdes 
Catholic Church, at Marinette; in his 
political predilections he is a Democrat, 
and in 1 884 he served as treasurer of 
Muscoda; socially he is affiliated with the 
Catholic Order of Foresters. Still a 
young man, possessed of superior business 
energy and cjualifications, Mr. Lauerman 
has a brilliant future before' him, and he 
enjoys the respect and esteem of a wide 
circle of friends and well-wishers. 



Ar.lAL RICHMOND, who is now 
living a retired life in (iillett, 
Oconto county, has been con- 
uectetl with the history of north- 
ern Wisojusin since the Territorial days 
of the State, and has been an important 
factor in the development and progress of 
this region, his name being inseparably 
connected with its history. All enter- 
prises and interests calculated to imjirove 
the county or State have received his sup- 
port, and he justly deserves to be num- 
bered among the valued residents of 
Oconto county. 

Mr. Kichmon<l was born in Lake 
comity, Ohio, in December, 18 14, and is 
a son of Thomas and Margaret (Boyce) 
Richmond, natives of Canada, who in an 
early day removed to Ohio. The father 
followed teaching for a time, but devoted 
his later years to agricultural pursuits, 
and both he and his wife spent their last 
days in Ohio. They had a family of 
fourteen children, of whom survive the 
following: Abial; Mrs. Julia Reed, of 
Lake county, Ohio; Mrs. Nancy Fos- 
dick, of Shawano, Wis. ; Mrs. Lucy 
Stewart, of Lake county, Ohio; Mrs. 
Abigail Westcott, who is living in Bra- 
zeau, Oconto county; Stephen N., of New 



562 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



York; and Danford, of Lake county, Ohio. 
The others have now departed this life. 

Our subject was reared in the county 
of his birth, and the public schools af- 
forded him his educational privileges. 
His residence in Wisconsin dates from 
1844, when he located in Spring Prairie, 
Walworth county, and in the midst of the 
forest began to hew out a farm. After 
two years he removed to Oshkosh, then 
a trading post containing two houses. 
Indians were still numerous in the neigh- 
borhood, and the region seemed almost 
beyond the borders of civilization. In 

1847 he went to Neenah, where he 
worked in a gristmill for a year, and in 

1848 he purchased eighty acres of land, 
partially covered with timber, on Bald 
Prairie, Winnebago county, which was 
his place of abode until 1849. In that 
year he secured emplo\-ment in a mill in 
Shawano, which contained, besides the 
building in which he worked, a boarding 
house. After two years he returned to 
Oshkosh, where he purchased sixteen 
building lots, and there made his home 
for two years, buying and selling land, 
and traveling over the country in search 
of good land for investment purposes. 
His ne.xt place of residence was in Wau- 
kechon township, Shawano count)', where 
he opened up a farm of 160 acres, and 
also kept the trading post at that place^ — 
a general supply store — which he con- 
ducted until 1 85 5, when he sold out and 
removed to what is now the city of 
Shawano. 

Again Mr. Richmond turned his atten- 
tion to real-estate dealing, and purchased 
1 128 acres of land surrounding the town. 
There he platted a portion of his realty 
and began selling lots, making the first 
sale — two acres — in 1855, the site on 
which now stands the " Murdoch House." 
He certainlj' deserves mention among the 
founders of Shawano, for no man took a 
more active part in its early development 
than he, and the county board of super- 
visors recognized his valuable service by 
naming the township of Richmond in his 



honor. He engaged in real-estate deal- 
ing there until 1863, when he enlisted, in 
the month of December, as a member of 
Company I, Thirty-second Wis. V. I., 
offering his aid for three years if needed. 
He was mustered in at Madison, Wis., 
and joined the Seventeenth Army Corps, 
army of the Tennessee. He was with it 
in the march from Memphis to Selma, 
Ala., whence the troops were driven back, 
destroying bridges as they went. Leav- 
ing Memphis, they joined Sherman's 
army, and Mr. Richmond participated in 
the celebrated march to the sea. He was 
also in the battles of Missionary Ridge 
and Lookout Mountain, and at Atlanta 
sustained an injury which forced him to 
remain in the hospital for two weeks. He 
was also in the Carolina campaign, taking 
part in the engagements at Goldsboro and 
Raleigh, and was in the grand review in 
Washington. At Madison, Wis., he was 
honorably discharged in August, 1865, 
and at once returned to Shawano. 

In that place, in March, 1856, Mr. 
Richmond was married, the ceremony 
being one of the first celebrated there. 
The lady of his choice was Miss Clarasa 
Wescott, a native of St. Lawrence 
county, N. Y., and a daughter of El- 
dridge and Hannah (Borgardes) Wescott, 
the former born in Vermont, the latter in 
Amsterdam, Montgomery Co., N. Y. 
The father came to the Empire State 
when a young man, and in 1812 married 
a daughter of Henry Borgardes, of that 
State. In 1853 he migrated with his 
family to Shawano, Wis., where his 
death occurred in May, 1864. His wife 
who survived him thirty-two years, al- 
ways remained true to his memory; her 
death occurred in Shawano. They were 
the parents of thirteen children — four 
sons and nine daughters — of whom three 
sons and si.x daughters survived them, 
viz.: Charles D., of Shawano; Hiram 
T. , also of that place; William E., of 
Oconto county; Mrs. Eva Swain and C. 
Winton, both of Michigan; Mrs. A. Col- 
burn, of St. Lawrence county, N. Y. ; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHWAL UECOllD. 



563 



Mrs. Richmond, of Gillett, Oconto coun- 
ty; Mrs. Fink, of Shawano; and Mrs. 
Lashay, of Angelica, Shawano county, 
whose death occurred in 1892. William 
E. Wescott enlisted, in 1861, in the 
Sixth Wis. V. I., at Shawano, that being 
his place of residence at the time. After 
serving nearly a year he contracted rheu- 
matism and received his discharge, but in 
1864 he re-enlisted, this time in the cav- 
alry, from which he received his dis- 
charge in 1865. Horace H. Wescott, 
one of the four sons, was married in St. 
Lawrence county, in 1856, and came to 
Shawano in 1859 with his wife and one 
child. At the time of his death, which 
occurred in 1882 at his farm in Angelica, 
Shawano county, he left a widow and 
five children to mourn his loss. 

Mr. and Mrs. Richmond had four chil- 
dren, three of whom are living: Maria, 
wife of Phineas Morriscjn, a resident of 
Stratford, Wis. ; Clara, wife of John 
Borden, of Brazeau township, Oconto 
county; and Helen M., wife of John Ma- 
gee, also of Brazeau township. The 
other daughter, Mary, died at the age of 
eight months. The family is one of 
much prominence in the conimunity, and 
their friends are many. Mr. Richmond 
in early life voted for William Henry 
Harrison, also supported James E. Bir- 
ney, the first Abolition candidate, and 
has been an ardent Republican since that 
party was formed to prevent the further 
e.xtension of slavery. He has served as 
a member of the town board, and was 
chairman of Angelica township. Socially 
he is a member of Shawano Post No. 81, 
G. A. R., and the Temple of Honor, and 
he and his estimable wife are consistent 
members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. 



WILLIAM CROSSE is a worthy 
representative of one of the hon- 
ored pioneer families of Oconto 
county. He has lived in this 
locality since the early days, has seen its 



forests cleared away and replaced by wav- 
ing fields of grain, has witnessed the in- 
troduction of the railroad, and the suc- 
cessful establishment of many business 
industries, churches and schools. Of 
progress he has always been an advocate, 
and has ever borne his part in the work 
of advancement. 

Born near Potsdam, Germany, in 
1838, Mr. Grosse was the second son in 
a family of four children whose parents 
were G. A. and Caroline (Spiseke) Grosse. 
They were also born in that locality, and 
celebrated their marriage in their native 
land. In 1849 they bade adieu to the 
scenes of their childhood and the friends 
of their early life, and with their little 
family boarded a sailing vessel which ac- 
complished in safety the long voyage of 
three thousand miles, reaching New York 
after six weeks. Their destination was 
Green Bay, Wis., and there they lived 
until 1852, when the father took up land 
from the Government along the river, in 
Little Suamico township, Oconto county. 
He then turned his attention to farming 
and fishing, which pursuits he carried 
on until his death, in 1872. His wife 
passed away in 1877. Their children 
were John, a prosperous merchant of Lit- 
tle Suamico; William; G. A., who is a 
resident of the same place; and Charlie, 
who died in 1S94. 

The educational privileges which our 
subject received were those afforded by 
the public schools of his native land and 
at Green Baj', Wis. ; but a frontier region 
does not usually provide excellent oppor- 
tunities along that line, and his knowl- 
edge has been largely gained by self-ap- 
plication and experience. Nevertheless 
he has become a well-informed man. 
His life work has been farming, and he is 
to-day the owner of 750 acres of good 
land in Little Suamico township, and the 
200-acre tract which is cleared and im- 
proved yields to him a good return for his 
care and cultivation. He also follows 
fishing, which has been a profitable source 
of income. 



564 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



In 1862, in Oconto county, Mr. 
Grosse was joined in wedlock with Miss 
Ernestine Fisher, a native of Germany, 
and a daughter of Christian Fisher, who 
brought his family from that country to 
America in 1849, locating on a farm in 
Scott township, Brown Co., Wis., where 
he carried on agricultural pursuits until 
his death, in 1867. His wife passed away 
in 1 888. Three children have been born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Grosse: Frank and Will- 
iam, engaged in the fishing business at 
Green Bay, and Martha. The Demo- 
cratic part)' claims the political support 
of our subject, and he has capably served 
as chairman of the township in which 
much of his boyhood was passed, and 
which has witnessed his successful efforts 
of manhood. 



0\\\ BLOCH, the highly popular 
and no-less efficient county clerk 
of Oconto county, is one of those 
energetic German-Americans who 
form a no-small portion of the backbone 
of this country, and so many of whom 
are entrusted with the guidance of public 
affairs in some capacity or other. 

Mr. Bloch was born in Saxony, Ger- 
many, in 1835, a son of John Theodore 
and Elizabeth (Langkop) Block, the for- 
mer of whom was a native of Sa.xony, 
the latter of Hanover, Germany; she died 
in Sa.xony, in 1889, at the advanced age 
of eighty-seven years; the father, who was a 
postmaster in Saxony, died there in 1843. 
Mr. Bloch was educated in the Fatherland, 
and reared to mercantile pursuits, till the 
age of eighteen, when he emigrated to the 
United States, arriving in Green Bay, 
Wis., in September, 1853. Here until 
the following January he was employed 
in a store, and coming to Oconto county 
took a position with the A. Eldred Lum- 
ber Co., at what is now Stiles, in that 
county; but not long afterward, probably 
in 1855, he moved into Oconto, and 
became interested in milling operations, 
in which he continued till 18C1. In that 



year he enlisted in Company H, known 
as the " Oconto River Drivers, " of which 
he was elected lieutenant; but the com- 
pany not being accepted at that time, 
Mr. Bloch went to Alton, 111., and en- 
listed in Company K, Twentj'-fourth 111. 
V. I., was appointed orderly-sergeant 
thereof, and served as such till August, 
1861. He was then promoted to com- 
missary-sergeant of the regiment, which 
was now attached to the army of the 
Ohio; on January i, 1862, he was com- 
missioned second lieutenant of Company 
B, same regiment; on July 25, 1862, was 
commissioned first lieutenant of Com- 
pany C, in the army of the Cumberland, 
under Gen. W. S. Rosecrans; and on Janu- 
ary 21, 1863, Lieutenant Bloch received 
his commission as captain of Company 
F. , same regiment. He served with his 
regiment in Missouri, Alabama, Kentucky, 
Tennessee and Georgia, and participated 
in the battles of Perryville, in the Stone 
River Campaign (while in the F'ourteenth 
Army Corps), at Tullahoma, Chickamauga 
(September 19 20, 1863), Chattanooga, 
Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain, 
and accompanied Sherman as far as Ma- 
rietta, Ga., when he returned homeward, 
receiving his discharge at Chicago, 111., 
August 6, 1864. In that citj' he was em- 
ployed in the post office until February, 
1 866, when he returned to Oconto. Here 
he accepted the position of bookkeeper 
for the Oconto Co., with whom he re- 
mained three years, after which he worked 
(or different lumber companies, in various 
capacities. He was appointed, by Gov. 
J. M. Rusk, timber agent, and served for 
five years; was chairman of the Republic- 
an County Committee from 1 890 to 1894, 
four years. In 1894. he was elected, on 
the Republican ticket, county clerk of 
Oconto county, taking office on the 
seventh day of January, 1895. 

On January 8, 186S, Mr. Bloch was 
united in marriage with Miss Kate M. 
Slereth, who was born in Chicago, 111., a 
daughter of Joseph J. and Margaret A. 
Slereth, natives, the father (who is now 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



565 



deceased) of Frankfurt, Germany, the 
mother (who now resides in Lake View, 
Chicago), of Baton Rouge, La. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Bloch have been born eleven 
children, seven of whom are yet living, 
viz. : Otto C. (who resides in Oconto), 
Walter, Lincoln, Bernard, ^famie, Meta 
and Jennie. Politically, as has already 
been suggested, our subject is a Republi- 
can; he served on the county board thir- 
teen years; was member of the city coun- 
cil three years, and of the building com- 
mittee when the court house at Oconto 
was erected in 1891. Socially, he is 
affiliated with the L O. O. F., and of E. 
A. Ramsey Post, G. A. R. Having, with 
the exception of the time he was in the 
army, been a resident of Oconto county 
since 1856, Mr. Bloch has seen much 
and aided not a httle in the material 
growth of the county, its wonderful de- 
velopment and its vast resources, and he 
has won the esteem and respect of her 
citizens. 



REV. PETER PELE, pastor of the 
Church of St. John the Baptist, 
at Coleman, Marinette county, 
has, since entering the priesthood, 
had his field of labor in northern Wiscon- 
sin, having served various Churches and 
Missions in Florence, Waupaca and Mari- 
nette counties. 

Father Pele is a native of " La Belle 
France," born in 1849 in Brittany, son of 
August and Ann (Beaudry) Pele, who 
were born in France and passed their en- 
tire lives in that country, the mother 
dying in 1S84. Our subject was reared 
in Brittany, and there at St. Stanislaus 
College received his education. Having 
come to America, he in 1883 entered St. 
John's College, at Collegeville, Minn., 
from which he w'as graduated and shortly 
afterward was ordained by Bishop Katzer 
in the Cathedral at Green Bay, Wis. In 
1889 he entered upon the duties of his 
first charge, at Florence, Florence county, 
and was next stationed at Lebanon, Wau- 



paca county, where in addition to his 
regular duties he had charge of the mis- 
sions at Manawa and Northport. Meeting 
with an accident there, however, he re- 
signed his charge, and in 1891 came to 
Coleman, Marinette county, where he 
has since been pastor in charge, at first 
having also all the missions as far north 
as Amberg. 

The Church of St. John the Baptist, at 
Coleman, Marinette county, was estab- 
lished as a mission in 1881, and the Con- 
gregation, then comprising but ten or 
twelve families, was served by Rev. John 
Seubert, of Peshtigo, where they had 
previously attended. From 1876 Father 
P. C. Menard, of Menominee, Mich., had 
also administered to the spiritual needs of 
the few Catholics here, and for a number 
of years mass was said in the schoolhouse, 
two miles east of Coleman. Father Seu- 
bert was succeeded by Father Renter, 
and he in turn, in 1882, by Rev. Charles 
Hoogstoel, from Stiles, Oconto county, 
who attended to the growing congregation 
for some years. Application was made 
to the Right Rev. Bishop Katzer to come 
and see to the building of a church edi- 
fice, and he, being unable to come, sent 
the Very Rev. Norc. Kersten. They 
were undecided in regard to the location, 
whether it should be at Coleman or 
three miles east; but a small church was 
finally erected between the two places, 
one mile east of the railroad station, at a 
cost of $300, under the supervision of 
Father Hoogstoel. The congregation con- 
tinued to grow until the old church was 
found inadequate, and with the question 
of rebuilding the old question of location 
again came up. The West side was de- 
veloping, and the Bishop decided that 
the church should be erected in the neigh- 
borhood of the Chicago, Milwaukee & 
St. Paul railroad station. The first build- 
ing collapsed while in process of construc- 
tion, and one man was killed in the acci- 
dent, but the work was resumed and the 
building was put up in 1889. At that 
time Rev. J. A. Sclbach had charge of 



566 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



the missions of Wausaukee and Coleman, 
and as far north as Michigan, having his 
residence at Wausaukee. At the time the 
present church was built three acres were 
given by John Baptist Belanger for a 
priest's house and church, and three acres 
by August Beaudry for a cemetery. In 
1 89 1, as above stated, Father Peter Pele 
became pastor, and on his arrival he 
found a debt of $1,493; ^"t he has, by 
his untiring zeal and devotion to the in- 
terests of his congregation, placed the 
church in a most flourishing condition. 
In the year of his arrival he erected the 
priest's residence, a fine two-story frame 
dwelling, at a cost of $2,500; a fine main 
altar and two smaller ones have been 
added, and an organ has been purchased. 
He also prosecuted diligently the work of 
completing the yet unfinished church 
building at Wausaukee, which at that 
time was not even plastered; under his 
efficient management, however, the work 
was completed, a steeple was erected and 
provided with a bell, the main altar and 
two smaller ones have been added, an 
organ has been purchased, and numerous 
other improvements made thereto. On 
June 17, 1895, the church steeple was 
struck by lightning. In 1890 a church 
fair was held, by which the sum of $556 
was added to the treasury, and the con- 
gregation then agreed to be incorporated 
under the law of 1883, organizing Decem- 
ber I with Sinai Brault, secretary, and 
Louis Dupuis, treasurer. The church 
now numbers about 125 families, includ- 
ine those at Pound, and Father Pele's 
labors are not confined to the people at 
Coleman and Pound, for he also says 
mass at Beaver, Ellis Junction and Wau- 
saukee. He has served various missions, 
at first having charge as far north as Am- 
berg, and under his auspices the church 
at Amberg was erected from the founda- 
tions in 1893, and the same year was 
blessed by the Bishop. Father Pele is a 
member of the Catholic Foresters at 
Oconto. 

When Father Pele came to the now 



flourishing village of Coleman it contained 
but threehouses, and though his labors have 
been directed toward advancing the spirit- 
ual welfare of the community, he never- 
theless has watched with interest the 
development of its material resources and 
the vast improvements which have been 
and are being made in this section. — [Since 
the above was written, Father Pele, ex- 
hausted by too much work, in October, 
1895, f^^ll sick, and was obliged to stay 
three weeks in St. Vincent's Hospital, 
Green Bay. After that time, his health 
improving, his Bishop offered him St. 
Joseph's Church, West De Pere, Brown 
county, where he is now stationed, having 
charge there of St. Joseph's congregation. 



REV. THEODORE J. RICHARD, 
pastor of the Church of Our Lady 
of Loundes, at Marinette, has 
during the past twenty years 
labored unceasingly and untiringly, faith- 
fully and devotedly, for the spiritual wel- 
fare of the congregations placed under his 
charge in Wisconsin. 

He is a native of Switzerland, born 
December 17, 1851, in Arlesheim, Canton 
Basel, a son of George and Mary Ann 
(Gross) Richard, both also born in Basel. 
The father, who was a well-to-do merchant 
in Switzerland, came to the United States 
in 1872, settling in Appleton, Wis., where 
he lived retired the rest of his days, dying 
April 7, 1 891; his widow is now passing 
her declining years with her son, the sub- 
ject of these lines. George and Mary Ann 
Richard were the parents of five chil- 
dren — four sons and one daughter — as 
follows: Robert, cashier of the First Na- 
tional Bank of Appleton, Wis. ; Theodore 
J., subject of sketch; William, book- 
keeper in the Commercial Bank at Apple- 
ton; Alfred, in the boot and shoe business 
at Beaver Dam, Wis. ; and Mary, wife of 
Charles Mayer, proprietor of a boot and 
shoe store at Wausau. 

In his native land Rev. Father Rich- 
ard attended the St. Mary Institute at 



I' 



r 



"^k 



VI 



\^ 





<«€^'^<^'X- (_^t<>^^-''^ --^ 



£^'^t<n<y 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



567 



Einsiedeln, Canton Schwytz, until he was 
prepared to enter the University of Frei- 
burg, Germany, which he did in 1870, 
when nineteen years old, graduating there 
in the theological course in 1871. This 
completed his education in Europe, for in 
the latter year he came to the United 
States, with the rest of the family, and 
to Wisconsin, entering St. Francis Col- 
lege near Milwaukee, at the end of a year 
leaving there and completing his course at 
the University of Our Lady of Angels, at 
Suspension Bridge, N. Y. In January, 
1875, he was ordained a priest by Bishop 
Foley, at Chicago, and in March, same 
3'ear, was appointed to the pastorate of 
St. Mar3''s Church at Wausau, Wis., his 
first charge. When he took up his work 
there the congregation numbered some 
forty families, which, during his incum- 
bency of some nineteen years, he saw with 
pleasure grow to about three hundred 
families, although a large portion of the 
members had withdrawn to form St. Mi- 
chael's Polish Church, in order that they 
might have a pastor to address them in 
their mother tongue. St. Mary's Church 
was poor and in debt when Father Rich- 
ard took the helm of affairs; but this did 
not daunt the young pastor, and he at 
once set about placing his charge on 
a sound financial basis. The Catholic 
school, opened in 1883, was secured 
through his efforts. To him is also due 
in the main the founding and erecting of 
St. Mary's new Church at Wausau, one 
of the most beautiful structures of the 
kind in northern Wisconsin, and by far 
the handsomest church building in Wau- 
sau — a monument to the indefatigable 
zeal and assiduous energy of its founder 
and late pastor. 

On August 17, 1894, Rev. T. J. Rich- 
ard assumed pastoral charge of the Church 
of Our Lady of Lourdes at Marinette, and 
is continuing here the same good work 
he accomplished at Wausau. He has 
ample field for his labors, as the congre- 
gation is the largest in Marinette, num- 
bering nearly 400 families — a field for 



which a pastor of Father Richard's activ- 
ity and ability is well adapted. 

The Congregation is one of the earliest 
in Marinette. In 1868-69 the first Cath- 
olic Church building was erected, and in 
1870 a priest's house and school building 
were added, but the fire of 1871 swept 
everything away. In the spring of 1872 
the present fine edifice was commenced, 
and completed in 1874, the Sisters' House 
being in the meantime used as a church, 
at which time Rev. Father Pernin was in 
charge of the congregation. The foun- 
dation of the church was laid by Bishop 
Melcher in the spring of 1872, and a year 
later the priest's residence was erected. 
In 1885 the school building was completed 
at a cost of $6,000, under the pastoral 
work of Rev. Joseph J. Fo.\. Exclusive 
of the Convent, which belongs to the Sis- 
ters (having been built by them in 1892 
at a cost of $8,000), the entire church 
property is now valued at not less than 
$30,000. 

Although yet a young man. Father 
Richard has filled a well-rounded career 
of pastoral life, covering a couple of dec- 
ades, with honor and dignity, and has 
well earned the distinction of being pastor 
of one of the wealthiest congregations of 
northern Wisconsin. Socially, he is a 
member of the Catholic Order of Knights, 
also the Catholic Order of Foresters, and 
he is honored and respected by all de- 
nominations. 



LEM J. BOVEE, a well-to-do 
farmer of Pensaukee township, 
Oconto county, has lived there 
for nearly thirty 3'ears, and has 
seen this section of Wisconsin transformed 
from a forest, where railroads and other 
improvements of civilization were yet un- 
known, to a busy lumbering and agricul- 
tural district. 

Mr. Bovee came to Wisconsin in 1843 
with his parents, Philip and Charlotte 
(Pittman) Bovee, both of whom were na- 
tives of New York State, where they were 



568 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



reared and married. When the family 
came to Wisconsin it was still a Territory. 
They remained in Milwaukee three 
months, after which they went to Eagle, 
Waukesha county, and settled on a new 
farm in the woods of that county, where 
the parents passed the remainder of their 
lives, the father dying in 1873, the mother 
in 1879. Mr. Bovee was an energetic, 
progressive man, and took an active part 
in the affairs of the county in which he 
made his home. He practiced law in the 
justice courts, and for two terms was reg- 
ister of deeds. In politics he was origin- 
ally a Democrat, later a Republican, and 
he was a loyal Union man during the 
war of the Rebellion, in which he served 
nine months, enlisting from Waukesha 
county. Mr. and ^^rs. Bovee were the 
parents of eight children, \\z.: Eliza, 
who died in Waushara county. Wis. ; 
Thomas P., who resides in Waushara 
county; Sarina, who died in Kansas; 
Lem J. ; Mary, who died in \\'aukesha 
county; John I., who resides in Gould 
City, Mich., engaged in the cedar business 
(he came to Oconto in 1 867, was a teacher 
at Brookside, clerked for F. B. Gardner, 
and was in the mercantile business at 
Brookside, where he also served as post- 
master; he was chairman for five years, 
and treasurer one year); E^ugene C., liv- 
ing in Denver, Colo.; and Kate (^frs. 
Parsons), of Eagle, Waukesha county, 
Wisconsin. 

Our subject was born in 1836 in Am- 
sterdam, Montgomery Co., N. Y. He 
was educated in the public schools of the 
neighborhood of his home in Waukesha 
county, and after leaving school engaged 
in agricultural pursuits until after he 
reached man's estate. In 1858 he jour- 
neyed to California by water, via the 
Isthmus, and was engaged in mining in 
El Dorado county until 1861, when he 
went to Silver City, Nev., where he also 
followed mining, returning to Waukesha 
county. Wis., in 1866. In 1867 he was 
married, in Waukesha count}', to Miss 
Susan A. Betts, a native of that county, 



and in the same year came to Oconto 
county, locating on a partly-improved 
farm of eighty acres, situated in Section 
18, Pensaukee township. Here he has 
since resided, devoting himself principally 
to the improvement and cultivation of his 
farm, which he has also added to until it 
now comprises 120 acres, si.\tj'-five of 
which are cleared and stumped. When 
he settled on this place but twenty acres 
had been cleared, and the present con- 
dition of the farm is a credit both to the 
industry and taste of the owner. In ad- 
dition to his agricultural work Mr. Bovee 
scaled logs for si.\teen winters on the riv- 
ers. He is a Republican in politics, and 
is active in local public affairs, having 
served as town clerk five years, and as 
assessor for four consecutive years. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Bovee have been 
born seven children, five of whom are liv- 
ing, viz. : Wilbert, married, and residing 
at Fort Howard, Wis. ; Jonathan, mar- 
ried, and residing at Gould City, Mich. ; 
Elmer, Bessie, and Charles. Two 
daughters are deceased — Amy, who died 
when four weeks old, and Minnie, who 
became the wife of Charles Tuttle, and 
died in 1894, at the earlj- age of nineteen 
years. Mrs. Bovee is the daughter of 
Jonathan and Lucina (Ewer) Betts, who 
were natives of England and New York, 
respectively. Mr. Betts came to the 
State of Illinois in 1833, and in 1835 to 
Wisconsin, settling at Eagle, Waukesha 
count}'. There he married and passed 
the remainder of his days, dying in 1891; 
Mrs. Betts still lives in Waukesha countv. 



ANDREW H. COLBURN has spent 
the greater part of his active life 
in Marinette county, having taken 
up his residence there in 1873, and 
during those busy years has witnessed 
many remarkable changes, not onl\- in his 
adopted county, but in the entire sur- 
rounding region. 

Born in 1847 in Jefferson count}, N.Y., 
he was reared to manhood in his native 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



569 



State, receiving his education in the com- 
mon schools of Jefferson and Oswego 
counties. He learned the carpenter's 
trade, and during his early manhood also 
went before the mast, sailing on the lakes 
for nine years, between Montreal and 
Chicago, in the employ of the Northern 
Transportation Company. On January 
I, if^73, he arrived in Peshtigo, Mari- 
nette Co., Wis., here following his trade 
for a time, after which he worked in the 
general store of S. D. Newton. He next 
engaged in business in partnership with 
R. O. Philbrook, they building the first 
store in Iron Mountain, where they con- 
ducted a general mercantile business for 
sometime, Mr. Colburn eventually dispos- 
ing of his interest in same to Mr. Philbrook. 
In 1884 he settled on his farm, which 
lies in Section 28, Grover township, in 
the "Lower Sugar Bush," and which, 
under his faithful and efficient manage- 
ment, has become a well-improved, pro- 
ductive tract, Mr. Colburn devoting his 
time to general farming. 

Our subject was married in 1876, at 
Peshtigo, to Miss Eliza Bartels, a native 
of Marinette county, born in the "Sugar 
Bush," daughter of Henry and Dora 
(Bakeman) Bartels. Mr. and Mrs. Bartels 
were both natives of Germany, emigra- 
ting from that country to the United States 
and becoming early pioneers of this section 
of Wisconsin, where they opened up a 
farm and made a permanent home. The 
father died in 1892, the mother in 1891, 
leavingafamily of nine children, viz. : Fred, 
who resides in Stephenson, Mich. ; Eliza, 
Mrs. Colburn ;Henry, who lives in Tennes- 
see;Charles, living in Marinette ;Louisa, re- 
siding in Tennessee; John, of Marinette; 
Sophia, (Mrs. Parthy),of Grover township; 
George, living on his father's farm near 
his sister's, in Marinette county; and 
Christ, who is in the employ of Mr. Col- 
burn. To Mr. and Mrs. Colburn have 
come two children, both daughters, viz. : 
Ida (who died in infancy) and Ruby. Mr. 
Colburn has always taken a lively interest 
in the public as well as the business wel- 



fare of his section, and has served his 
township four years as supervisor, and si.K 
years as member of the school board. 
In political affiliation he is a Republican. 
Phineas and Mary Ann (Johnson) 
Colburn, parents of Andrew H. Col- 
burn, were natives of New York State, 
where they passed their entire lives, the 
father, who was a farmer, passing away 
there in about the year 1845, the mother 
in 1S58. They reared a family of three 
children: Austin, who died in New York; 
Hiram, who came to Wisconsin, locating 
first in Peshtigo, and in 1887 in Iron 
Mountain, where he now resides, holding 
the position as overseer of the poor there; 
and Andrew H., whose name introduces 
these lines. 



ARCHIBALD McAllister is 
one of the most popular and 
respected residents of Marinette, 
and a worthy representative of 
the lumber interests of the city. His 
pleasant, social manner has gained him 
many friends, and we therefore feel as- 
sured that the record of his life will prove 
of interest to many of our readers. He 
has resided in Marinette since 1865, com- 
ing to the place from New Brunswick. 

Mr. McAllister was born in Kilmar- 
nock, Ayrshire, Scotland, June 27, 1838, 
and is a son of Daniel and Flora (Mc- 
Kelvie) McAllister, also of Scottish birth, 
having been born on the Island of Arran. 
They were reared and married in their 
native country, and there the father 
learned the trade of shoemaking. He 
subsequently came to New Brunswick, 
where he followed farming, and worked at 
his trade until his removal to Marinette. 
He died in Marinette February 12, 1S92; 
his wife passed away May 20, 1888. In 
their family were six children, Archibald 
being the eldest. John came from New 
Brunswick to Marinette, where he spent 
one winter, and the following spring 
crossed the Plains; he now resides in 
Tacoma, Wash. Daniel J. is numbered 



57° 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPEICAL RECORD. 



among the early settlers of Marinette. 
William is living in the same cit_v. Peter 
is engaged in merchandising here. Mary 
is also living in Marinette. 

In his native land Archibald McAllis- 
ter spent the days of his boyhood and 
youth, and acquired his education. On 
the emigration of the family to New 
Brunswick he aided in opening up a farm, 
and afterward turned his attention to 
work in the lumber woods, being thus 
employed in Canada until his removal to 
Marinette, in the fall of 1865. Here he 
entered the employ of the N. Ludington 
Lumber Co., driving a team for a month, 
after which he went into the woods. He 
continued in their employ for eight years, 
and for some time occupied the responsi- 
ble position of foreman, after which, in 
1873, he embarked in lumbering in his 
own interest, building up an e.xtensive 
jobbing business. He also successfully 
deals in real estate, and is the owner of 
a good two-story brick block on Main 
street, which was erected in 1884. To 
this he made an addition in 1893, and in 
dimensions it is now 70 feet front by 66 
feet deep, and it is one of the substantial 
business blocks of the city; the lower iloor 
is occupied by the Bell Clothing Com- 
pany, and the upper floor is used for office 
purposes. Mr. McAllister also owns a 
good farm adjoining Marinette. 

In New Brunswick our subject married 
Miss Catherine Adams, a native of Can- 
ada, and to them were born two children: 
John, who died at the age of twenty-one in 
Marinette; and Catherine, wife of L. A. 
McAlpine, of Marinette. The mother 
died in 1872, and Mr. McAllister was 
married in Oconto, Wis., to Jane Mc- 
Millan, a native of New Brunswick, and 
a daughter of William McMillan, who 
was born in Scotland, and went to New 
Brunswick in an early day. Mr. and 
Mrs. McAllister are members of the Pio- 
neer Presbyterian Church, and socially 
he is connected with the Masonic Frater- 
nity, belonging to the Blue Lodge, Chap- 
ter and Commandcry of Marinette. In 



politics he is a Republican, and has served 
as assessor of the city for nine years. He 
has witnessed the entire development of 
this section of the State, and has ever 
borne his part in the work of public pro- 
gress. The architect of his own fortunes, 
he has built wisely and well, and a sub- 
stantial structure in the shape of a hand- 
some competence now stands as a monu- 
ment to his enterprise. 



Ri:V. L. A. S. CARON, pastor of 
the St. Joseph's French Catholic 
Church, Marinette, has done a 
wonderful work in the five years in 
which he has been there engaged. The 
first church erected by that body was in 
November, 1890, the organization having 
been effected in the previous month of 
May. The first building was a tempo- 
rary structure, now used for school pur- 
poses. In May. 1891, the erection of the 
present imposing church building was 
commenced, and in due time completed 
at a cost of $22,000. It is located on 
the corner of Mcnekaunee and Stanton 
streets, and attracts the attention of every 
passer-by. St. Joseph's Church was sepa- 
rated from that of Our Lady of Lourdes 
in the spring of 1890, and under the wise 
ministration of Father Caron has rapidly 
grown until it has a present membership of 
three hundred and sixty families. In con- 
nection there is a good parochial school, 
which was established in 1893, and has 
now an average attendance of some one 
hundred pupils. The church property is 
valued at about $30,000. 

Father Caron was born near the city 
of Quebec, Canada, January 5, 1S47, and 
is the son of L. M. and Appoline (St. 
Peter) Caron, both of whom were born 
in the same parish. The father is by 
occupation a farmer in L' Islet, in the 
county of L' Islet, which has always been 
his home. He is still living, now at the 
advanced age of eighty-three years; the 
mother died many years ago, when thirty- 
six years old. Their family consisted of 




^i^dC€>-zt^^ JT. 0. '■&, 



e^ ^^^>^_^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



S1^ 



four children: J. E., married and living 
in L" Islet county, Canada, is the father 
of seventeen children, thirteen of whom 
are yet living; L. A. S., our subject; 
Mary, who married Phineas Aforin, and 
died in 18S7 in Montniagny county, Can- 
ada; and Mary Rosa Delima, tiie wife of 
Elzear Bernier, the first intcndent of the 
Government prison in the city of Quebec, 
Canada. 

Our subject was reared in his native 
country, and educated at St. Ann's Semi- 
nary, diocese of Quebec, where he spent 
seven years. After leaving the seminary 
he read law with an eminent practitioner, 
and attended a law school in Ouebec one 
year (1874). In the fall of 1875 he was 
admitted to the bar at Montreal, Canada, 
and began practicing at L' Islet, wliere 
he remained three years as public notary. 
Having resolved to abandon the profession 
of law for the priesthood, he entered the 
college of Chicoutimi, graduating three 
years and a half later, and was ordained 
priest. His first work was at St. Prime, 
Lake St. John, Lake St. John Co., Prov- 
ince of Quebec, having been sent there 
as assistant to Rev. Father F. X. Belley, 
now Vicar General of the Diocese of Chi- 
coutimi. His presence in that place was 
more in order to attend three missions 
farther away — St. Felicien, St. Methode 
and St. Cyrille — than to work for St. 
Prime. In the latter part of his second 
year there he conducted the works of the 
new Church in the Mission of St. Feli- 
cien. From that place, at the expiration 
of two years, he was sent to St. Croi.x, 
Tadousac, Saguenay Co., Canada, where 
he spent four years of very great and use- 
ful labor; he had there to attend two 
missions farther than his parish — St. 
Firmin and the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 
In addition to his regular ministerial du- 
ties, he built a handsome stone church in 
Tadousac, and a wooden church in the 
Sacred Heart of Jesus mission. At the 
end of his four years an accident to his 
right arm obliged him to take a rest of 
six months, after which he had charge as 



pastor of the Church of the Sacred Heart 
of Jesus with the mission of Anse St. 
Etienne, Saguenay county, for nearly two 
years. He was then sent to Little River, 
St. Francis Xavier, Charlevoix Co., 
Province of Quebec. His I^ishop sent 
him thither with the hope that he might 
be there long enough to build a new 
church; but as the parishioners were not 
ready to begin the work of the new 
church during the year, he decided to 
leave for the States at the end of the year. 
So, the year being over, and with the con- 
sent of his Bishop, who saw him leave his 
Diocese with great regret. Father Caron 
came to Marinette, where he has accom- 
plished, as stated, a great work, and is uni- 
versally esteemed for his good word and 
works. The parishioners of St. Joseph's 
Church desire to see him work many 
years more in the midst of them for the 
welfare of the Congregation. 

Father Caron is a member of the 
Catholic Knights of Wisconsin, of the 
Catholic Foresters, of the Catholic Be- 
nevolent Association, and of St. John the 
Baptist Society, all of which are con- 
nected with his congregation. 



J A. BRIEN, M. D., has been a resi- 
dent of Marinette for the past four 
years, and in that short period of 
time has already built up an exten- 
sive practice, one of which he may well 
be proud. He is a native of Montreal, 
Canada, born in 1869, and is a son of A. 
L. and Adeline (Masson) Brien, both of 
whom are also natives of that city, where 
they yet reside, the father being a notary 
public there. 

Our subject grew to manhood in Mon- 
treal, and received his education in the 
schools of that city, graduating from 
Montreal College, and also, in 1891, from 
Laval University, Montreal, with the de- 
gree of M. D., with great distinction. 
On graduating from the university he be- 
came associated with the medical staff of 
Notre Dame Hospital, Montreal, where 



572 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



he remained until coining to Marinette, 
in 1S92. In the spring of 1893 the 
Doctor returned to Montreal, and there 
married Miss Eveline Giroux, a native of 
that city, and a daughter of Hercules and 
Albina (Lamoureux) Giroux, who were 
also natives of Canada. Her father, who 
was a wholesale dry-goods merchant in 
Montreal, died in 1885; her mother is yet 
residing there. To Dr. and Mrs. Brien 
two sons have been born — Andre and 
Paul. 

Dr. Brien is a member of the French 
Catholic Church of Marinette, in which 
he has always taken an active interest. 
Fraternally he is aftiliated with St. Jo- 
seph's Court No. 301, Catholic Order of 
Foresters; Court No. 372, of our Lady of 
Lourdes, C. O. F. ; Branch No. 5, Catho- 
lic Knights of Wisconsin; Council No. 
454, Catholic Benevolent Legion, and of 
St. John the Baptist Society. In each 
of these he is medical examiner. In 
politics he is independent. As a physi- 
cian he ranks among the best in the com- 
munity, and is frequently called in con- 
sultation by other phj'sicians of the city 
and county. He is a member of the 
Menominee River Medical Socictj', and 
takes an active interest in the proceed- 
ings of that body. 



ROBERT M( WILLIAMS, who has 
been postmaster at Porterfield, 
Marinette county, since the office 
was established there, in 1S86, 
has been identified from early manhood 
with the interests of the county, both 
mercantile and agricultural. 

Mr. McW'illiams came to Wisconsin 
from Prince Edward Island, Canada, 
where he was born July 21, 1854, son of 
John and Mary (Hillman) McWilliams, 
natives of the same place. The father, 
who has always been a farmer by occu- 
pation, still resides in Canada; the mother 
passed from earth in 1868. They reared 
a family of seven children, all yet living, 
viz. : Mary Ann, wife of George More- 



side, Louise (Mrs. Robert Harris), and 
Rose (wife of Robert Harris), all three 
living in Canada; Maggie (wife of John 
Nobin), of De Pere, Wis. ; Jane (Mrs. 
Harris), who lives in Canada; William,- 
who resides in Marinette, and Robert, 
whose name introduces this biography. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in his native place. When a young man 
he went before the mast, and engaged in 
sading in the Gulf of St. Lawrence until 
1879, the year of his coming to Wis- 
consin and to Marinette county. For 
about two years after his arrival in the 
county Mr. McWilliams was in the em- 
ploy of I. Stephenson, and in 1 884 he 
came to Porterfield, where he has since 
made his home, engaging successfully in 
the grocery business, and also, up to 
1895, having charge of a section on the 
Milwaukee & St. Paul road. He took up 
land crossed by that railroad, and now 
owns eighty-one acres, a well-improved 
and productive tract. Though his pri- 
vate affairs have never suffered for lack of 
attention, Mr. McWilliams has also found 
time to devote to the interests of his 
township and county, having served faith- 
fully in the positions of township treas- 
urer (two years) and postmaster. He as- 
sisted in forming Porterfield township, 
and is a loyal, progressive citizen in every 
sense of the word, furthering the interests 
of the community in which he resides in 
every possible way. He is independent, 
politically, supporting the men and meas- 
ures which he considers most worthy of 
his support. Socially he is a member of 
Marinette Lodge No. 18, F. & A. M., and 
of Marinette Chapter No. 53. R. A. M. 

In 1884 Mr. McWilliams and Miss 
Marj' Egan were united in marriage, in 
Marinette, and their union has been 
blessed with three children : Jennie, 
George and Melvin. Mrs. McWilliams 
was born in Providence, R. I., daughter 
of F^rank and Ann (Cannon) Egan, also 
natives of Rhode Island, who now reside 
in Menominee, Mich., where they came 
in an early day. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



573 



FRANK WAKING, postmaster at 
Morcnce, Florence county, was 
born, in iS6i, in Lebanon, 111., 
son of Thaddeiis R. and Hester 
C. fWaterbiiry) Warinj:;-, who were of 
New York and Connecticut, respectively. 
Thaddeus R. Waring died in Mobile, 
Ala., and Mrs. Waring now resides in 
Noroton, Fairfield Co., Ccnn. They 
reared a family of five sons, all living, 
namely: Frederick, of Connecticut; 
Charles W., of Waltham, Mass.; Henry 
F., postmaster at Noroton, Conn. ; Frank, 
whose name opens this sketch; and Will- 
iam G., who resides at Noroton, Connect- 
icut. 

Frank Waring, who is the fourth 
son in his father's family, was reared in 
Connecticut, receiving his education in 
the schools of Noroton, and in 1881 came 
from there to Commonwealth township, 
Florence Co., Wis. For five years he 
was in the employ of the Commonwealth 
mine, and was then elected town clerk of 
Commonwealth, holding that office two 
years. In 1887 he located at Florence, 
Florence county, where in the same year 
he was united in marriage with Miss 
Emma Sherman, who was born in Port- 
age, Columbia Co., Wis., and they have 
had three children: Eleanor, A. Frances 
and Winifred. The parents of Mrs. 
Waring, H. I. and Anna (Fardell) Sher- 
man, were early pioneers of Wisconsin, 
and came to Florence, where Mrs. Sher- 
man now lives. H. I. Sherman resides 
in Mil.vaukee. 

In 1887 Mr. Waring was appointed 
clerk of the court, to fill a vacancy, and 
was subsequently elected three times, con- 
tinuing in that offlce seven years. For 
four years he was town clerk of Florence 
township, and on Marcii 23, 1893, was 
appointed postmaster at Florence, in con- 
nection with the duties of which office he 
also does a small law business. The post 
office at Florence was established in 1879, 
H. D. Fisher being the first postmaster. 
It was a third-class office up to July, 
1895, since when it has been a fourth- 



class office, in fact, since its inception it 
has changed from third to fourth grade at 
various times. Mr. Waring has also held 
other public positions, having served as 
circuit clerk, township clerk, etc. In 
politics he is a Democrat, and socially he 
is a member of Fisher Lodge No. 222, F. 
& A. M., having been made a Mason in 
1885, and has Ijeen secretary for nine 
years; he is also a member of Badger 
Tent, No. 12, K. O. T. M., and was 
commander in 1894. Mr. Waring has 
been identified with Florence county for 
years, and has seen many changes in this 
part of Wisconsin. 



DW. JOHN, druggist. No. 1331, 
Main street, Marinette, has been 
in business in that city since No- 
vember I, 1884. He carries a 
full and complete line of drugs, paints, 
oils, and in fact everything comprised in 
a first-class drug store, together with 
school books and stationery. 

He is a native of Dayton, Ohio, born 
in 1849, and is a son of John and Sarah 
(Van Winkle) John, the former born near 
Dayton, Ohio, the latter in Preble coun- 
ty, Ohio. They grew to manhood and 
womanhood in their native State and 
there married. The father was a gradu- 
ate of a medical college at Cincinnati, 
Ohio, and began the practice of medicine 
near Dayton, Ohio, where he remained 
for some years and then removed to Car- 
roll county, Ind., where he still con- 
tinued in the practice of his profession. 
During the war he was quite active in re- 
cruiting men for the Ninth, Twentieth, 
Twenty-first and Forty-sixth Regiments 
I. V. I. In 1863 he returned to Ohio 
where lie remained until 1867, and in 
the fall of that year removed to Caldwell 
county, Mo., locating at Kingston, where 
he again engaged in practice until a few 
years ago. He is now living a retired 
life in that city. His wife, the mother 
of our subject, died in Kingston in 1893. 
They reared a family of four children: 



574 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



D. W. , our subject; Jennie, who died in 
1893; Ella, wife of John Borst, residing 
near Mason City, Iowa; and Anna, wife 
of W. A. W'ood, an attorney at Kingston, 
Missouri. 

The boyhood and youth of our sub- 
ject were spent in Ohio and Indiana, and 
his education was received in their public 
schools. When eighteen years of age, 
he went with his parents to Kingston, 
Mo., where he engaged in teaching, and 
later accepted a position in a drug store 
in Kingston, and also at other points in 
Missouri. In 1873 he went to Fox Lake, 
Wis., was there engaged as clerk in a 
drug store, going from thence to Tomah, 
Wis., and there remained until his com- 
ing to Marinette in 1884, where he has 
since continued to reside, and where he 
has been actively engaged in business. 

Mr. John was married in Dodge coun- 
ty, Wis., in 1877, to Miss Fannie K. 
Handy, born in Dodge county, and 
daughter of Hale and Laura (Wood) 
Handy, both of whom were natives of 
New York, but who were numbered with 
the pioneers of Dodge county. Wis. Her 
father, by occupation a farmer, removed 
from his native State to Dodge county in 
1844, where he has since continued to 
reside. To Mr. and Mrs. John have 
been born si.x children: Morton, Allen, 
Jesse, William, Laura and Harold. 

In his political views Mr. John is a 
stanch Republican, and is at present 
chairman of the Marinette City Republic- 
an Committee, a position which he has 
filled since 1892. He has ever taken an 
active interest in political affairs, and is 
well posted in the political history of the' 
country. For some years he has been 
alderman of the Third ward of the city, 
and has served with fidelity and credit to 
himself and his constituents. Frater- 
nally he is a member of Marinette Lodge, 
No. 189, I. O. O. F. ; he has been treas- 
urer of the lodge, and also served as sec- 
retary. He is a member of Brasted En- 
campment No. 81, I. O. O. F., and has 
passed all the principal chairs. In the 



Grand Encampment of the State, he has 
served as outside sentinel. In matters of 
religion he is a member of the Baptist 
Church of Marinette, and is one of its 
trustees. 

Mr. John is numbered among the 
most active and enterprising business men 
of Marinette. He is ever ready to do his 
part in anything tending to advance the 
interest of his adopted city. As a busi- 
ness man, he enjoys the confidence of his 
business associates, and of the community 
in which he lives. In everything he en- 
deavors to live up to the Golden Rule, 
doing unto others as he would they 
should do unto him. In connection with 
his business, he has a branch agency for 
the American Express Money Order De- 
partment. When he commenced busi- 
ness, he had just an even one hundred 
dollars in gold, and all that he now has 
is the result of his own efforts, and his 
success has been equal to his most san- 
guine expectations. 



GEO. LAYCOCK RI DSD ALE, 
agent for the "Domestic" and 
••Standard" Sewing Machines, 
has been a resident of Marinette, 
Marinette county, since December, 1871, 
but came to the State previous to that 
date. 

He was born in Wetherby, Yorkshire, 
England, July 17, 1838, of the marriage 
of William and Dorothea (Ridsdale) Lay- 
cock, who were also natives of Yorkshire. 
The father was a teacher by profession, 
and in 1856 emigrated to Scott county, 
Iowa, locating in Le Claire, where he 
was employed as a ship carpenter. He 
there held the position of postmaster from 
1 86 1 until 1892, an honored and faithful 
official; he is now register of deeds, while 
for a number of jears he has been pension 
agent and justice of the peace. He is 
still living at the advanced age of eighty- 
two years. His children were (i) George, 
L. , the subject of this sketch. (2) Thomas 
F. , who came to Marinette, Wis., in 






-^ t^/fe^ 



cX- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



575 



icS73, and here followed the printer's 
trade; he graduated from the Cooper 
Institute in New York; durin^; the war he 
was in the naval service, entering the 
navy as master's mate January 28, 
1863, and was honorably discharged 
at Washington, D. C, December 27, 
1865, as acting master (relative rank 
first lieutenant) on board the U. 
S. Monitor "Tonawanda," and com- 
manded her after turret; he was on 
board the U. S. Steam Frigate "Susque- 
hanna" at the bombardment of Fort Fisher 
and commanded her quarter-deck division 
of six quick-firing guns in that battle. (3) 
Joseph E. came to Marinette in 1869, and 
after following carpentering for some time 
engaged in the hardware business in com- 
pany with the subject of this sketch, un- 
der the firm name of Ridsdale & Laycock; 
he was quite a young man at the time of 
the Civil war, but joined Company H, 
Twenty-eighth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, 
and served with the army of the West, 
participating in the siege of Vicksburg 
and many other important engagements 
till the close of the war; in 1875 he 
moved to what is now the village of Ste- 
phenson, Mich., of which place he was 
the founder; since 1892 he has resided in 
Wichita, Kans. (4) Robert, who enlisted 
in a Maine regiment, was with the army 
of the Potomac, and was killed at the 
battle of the Wilderness. The mother of 
the above named children died in England 
in 1852. The father, William Laycock, 
Sr. , was afterward married in that coun- 
try to Ellen Longbottom. The children 
of the second marriage are as follows: (5) 
Alice, wife of George Tromley, captain of 
a Mississippi steamer. (6) John Henry, 
also a river captain, and (7) William, clerk 
on river steamer. All are living in Le 
Claire, Iowa. 

Our subject was born, reared and 
educated in Yorkshire, England, and 
during his youth shipped before the mast, 
sailing from Liverpool and London. He 
was seven years on the ocean, and has 

sailed around the globe, among other 
33 



countries having visited Japan, China, 
India, Africa, West Indies, South Ameri- 
ca, Australia, and many parts of Europe. 
In 1858 he was shipwrecked off the 
coast of China, and the vessel was lost 
(in this shipwreck he sustained an injury 
to the knee joint, and, although it did 
not incapacitate him for work, resulted 
twelve years after in the loss of the right 
leg above the knee; the operation was 
performed by the late Dr. Henry Palmer, 
surgeon-general of Wisconsin, at Janes- 
ville, Wis., in 1870). He came to 
America in August, i 860, and after arriv- 
ing in this country he sailed on the lakes 
from the port of Chicago for one year. 
In 1862 he arrived in Wisconsin, locating 
in Madison, and followed the trade of 
machinist, after which he removed to 
Watertown, thence to Jefferson, and sub- 
secjuently to Janesville, from which city 
he sent the first bo.x of relief goods that 
cai/u- tlirough to Marinette after the 
Peshtigo fire. While residing in Janes- 
ville he had his name changed, or, more 
properly, transposed from Geo. Ridsdale 
Laycock, to Geo. Laycock Ridsdale, by 
Act of the Board of Supervisors of the 
County of Rock, State of Wisconsin, 
passed November 15, 1871. In Decem- 
ber, 1 87 1, he came to Marinette, and en- 
tered the employ of the Marinette Iron 
Works; subsequently, in 1872, engaged in 
the hardware business in company with 
his brother, Joseph E. Laycock, carrying 
on operations along this line for some 
years. He began busmess on the same 
lot where his building now stands. In 
1876 he embarked in the shoe trade, 
which he continued two years, then 
turned his attention to the sewing ma- 
chine business, and being a practical ma- 
chinist he has continuously followed same 
with good success since 1878. In 1888 
he began the erection of the Ridsdale 
Block, a fine brick building with forty 
feet frontage on Main street and running 
back to the depth of sixty feet. In 1893 
he built an addition, and the building is 
now a two-story brick front, and from 75 



5/6 



COMyiEMORATIYE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



to 1 20 feet deep. It contains five store 
rooms below and living rooms above, and 
the rental is a material source of income 
to the owner. 

Mr. Ridsdale was married in Milwau- 
kee, Wis., in 1873, to Mrs. E. L. Wright, 
a native of Salem, N. J., and a daughter 
of William L. and Ann (Shepherd) 
Cleaver, who were also born in New Jer- 
sey, of English ancestry. Her father 
came in i860 to Milwaukee, and there 
served as deputy clerk for a number of 
years, also engaging in the practice of 
law. His death occurred there in 1S77, 
while his wife died in New Jersey in 1850. 
They had seven children, of whom three 
are living — John L. , who is engaged in 
the insurance business in Falls City, Neb. ; 
T. J., of North Chicago; and .Mrs. Rids- 
dale. Both the brothers were soldiers in 
the Civil war, John L. being a member 
of Company K, Twenty-first Wis. V. I., 
and Thomas J. of Company A, Twentieth 
Wis. V. I., and served until the close of 
the conflict. For his second wife the 
father married Hannah O. Harris, who 
died in Milwaukee in 1876, leaving three 
children — Emma Cleaver, who is a nurse 
in the Baltimore school; Howard, at Hud- 
son, Wis. ; and Edward, in Montana. 
Mrs. Ridsdale first married E. L. Wright, 
who, at Brodhead, Wis., joined the 
Eighteenth Wis. V. I., and served until 
after the battle of Shiloh, when he was 
discharged. They were married in Mil- 
waukee, Wis., in 1864, and Mr. Wright 
died in Faribault, Minn., in 1872. They 
had two children — Elbert L. , who was 
married in St. Louis, and has two chil- 
dren, Ethel and Lawson; and Adelle, wife 
of R. W. Winton, of Waco, Texas, who 
has two children, Edith and Willard. 

In politics Mr. Ridsdale is an ardent 
Republican, and keeps well informed on 
the issues of the day. He is now serving 
as alderman of the Fourth ward, and 
chairman of the Committee on Finance. 
He and his wife are members of the 
Pioneer Presbyterian Church, in which he 
has served as trustee. He is a member 



of the Business Men's Association, and is 
one of the leading citizens of Marinette. 
His wife possesses superior musical talent, 
and for eighteen years has been a mem- 
ber of the choir of the Presliyterian 
Church. They are most highly-esteemed 
people, and in social circles occupy a high 
position. 



FRED W. BRIGGS, dentist, one of 
the most active professional men 
of Oconto Falls, Oconto county, 
is a native of Wisconsin, born at 
Markesan, Green Lake county, in 1869. 
He is the son of Edwin F. and Susan 
(Miller) Briggs. 

Edwin F. Briggs was born at Earlville, 
111., in 1843. When but a boy, in 1853, 
he came to Wisconsin, where he learned 
the carpenter's trade, also becoming a 
millwright. In 1861 he enlisted from 
Princeton, Wis., in Company A, Twenty- 
first Regiment Wis. V. I., and was to 
join them at Berlin; but on his arrival 
there he learned that the Twenty-first was 
full, and he was consequently transferred 
to Company C, Thirty-second Wis. V. I., 
known as the "Truesdell Rangers," with 
whom he served thirty-two months. He 
started with Sherman on his famous 
march to the sea, but was unable to go 
through to the coast on account of ill 
health. In 1867 he was married to Su- 
san Miller, daughter of David and Lura 
Miller, the former of whom was a pros- 
perous farmer, residing in Marquette, and 
owned eighty acres of good farming land. 
Mr. and Mrs. Edwin F. Briggs have two 
children: Fred W. , our subject, and 
I Frank M., unmarried, proprietor of the 
tonsorial parlors and bath rooms at Wau- 
toma, Waushara Co., Wisconsin. 

On August 14, 1894. Dr. Briggs was 
married to Rosa M. Trecartin, daughter 
of Thomas T. and Elizabeth Trecartin, 
of Maple \'alley, the former of w hom is 
a well-to-do farmer, having a farm of 
eighty acres, forty of which are under 
cultivation; he was formerly a seafaring 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



577 



man, sailing for many years on both the 
Atlantic and Pacific oceans. Our sub- 
ject commenced his studies with Dr. J. S. 
Mowe, of Berlin, Wis., and finished with 
Dr. H. R. McComb, of Shawano, on 
January 29, 1895, passing his examina- 
tion before the State board. He came 
directly to Oconto Falls and opened an 
office, and is meeting with well-deserved 
success. Politically, he is a Republican, 
but not an active party man. Socially, 
he is a member of the K. of P., the I. O. 
O. F., and the Modern Woodmen of 
America, in the latter organization hold- 
ing the office of trustee in Hemlock Camp 
No. 2 1 Co. 



PETER J. BOMAN is one of the 
pioneers of Marinette, dating his 
residence here from the 12th of 
August, 1865. He has since been 
deeply interested in its improvement, ever 
bearing his part in the work of develop- 
ment, and his devotion to its best interests 
has numbered him among its leading 
citizens. He was born in Sweden, in 1849, 
a son of Peter John and Anna (Johnson) 
Boman, who were also natives of that 
country. His father was an iron manu- 
facturer at Gefle, Sweden, and made that 
place his home until his death, which oc- 
curred in 1885. His wife passed away 
in 1856, and their only daughter, Carrie, 
died at the age of fifteen years, so that 
our subject is now the only survivor. 

His early childhood was passed in his 
native land, and he secured a common- 
school education by a pursuance of the 
branches usually taught in public schools. 
He was a youth of fifteen summers when 
he left his native land and sailed for New 
York City. On landing at that port, he 
proceeded by boat to Albany, by rail to 
Chicago and Green Bay, thence by boat 
to Marinette, and has since been a resi- 
dent of Menekaunee, a period of thirty 
years. Marinette at that time contained 
little over 400 inhabitants. Mr. Boman 
had no capital, but was industrious, and 



resolved to win success. He secured em- 
ployment with Isaac Stephenson, with 
whom he remained for a year, and then 
entered the service of the New York 
Lumber Company, working in the woods, 
and continuing in that employ for about 
eight years. He next engaged in loading 
vessels through the summer months, while 
in the winter season, he resumed his labors 
in the woods and for some time past has 
been engaged in fishing. 

Mr. Boman was married in Mene- 
kaunee, in 1872, to Miss Gusta Amelia 
Settersten, a native of Sweden, and a 
daughter of Gus Adolph Settersten, a 
pioneer of Menekaunee, who has resided 
there since 1 869. Two children graced 
this union; Charley, who died at the age 
of two years, and Ella May, still with her 
parents. Those who know the family 
have a high regard for them. 

In his political views, Mr. Boman is a 
stanch Republican, but has never sought 
or desired the honors and emoluments of 
public office. He is a member of Mene- 
kaunee Tent, No. 2, K. O. T. M., and 
belongs to the Lutheran Church, of which 
he is now serving as trustee; is an earnest 
worker in its interest, aud devoted to all 
that pertains to its welfare. In his busi- 
ness affairs he has met with success, and 
his life is an example of what can be ac- 
complished by steadfast purpose, honor- 
able dealing and enterprise. To-day there 
stands as a monument to his well-directed 
efforts and business ability a pleasant and 
beautiful home, which was erected in 1893 
at the corner of Bay and Chestnut streets, 
and standing in the midst of three lots. 



THOMAS A. DICKIE, owner of a 
well-improved farm in Porterfield 
township, Marinette county, is one 
of the most active and progressive 
citizens of his locality, where he has 
gained an enviable standing by his honesty, 
integrity and thorough worth. 

Mr. Dickie is a Canadian by birth, 
having first seen the light June 22, 1850, 



578 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



in Canada East, now Province of Quebec. 
James and Elizabeth (Rose) Dickie, his 
parents, were born, respectively, in Aber- 
deen, Scotland, and Prince Edward Isl- 
and, Canada, and made their home in 
Canada East, where the father followed 
farming, and also the trades of millwright 
and cooper. He is now in his eighty- 
second year; Mrs. Elizabeth Dickie joined 
"the silent majority" in 1890. They 
were the parents of ten children — seven 
sons and three daughters — (of whom si.x 
sons and two daughters are yet living): 
Robert, who lives in British Columbia; 
John and William, both of Canada East; 
Ann (Mrs. Alexander), also of Canada 
East; Jabez, who lives in Cumberland 
Mills, Maine; James, a resident of Boston, 
Mass.; Thomas A., subject of this 
sketch; Sarah (Mrs. Carr), of Ashland, 
Wis.; Sampson, who is in Canada East; 
and Jane, the third child, who died in 
Canada East. 

Thomas A. Dickie was reared and 
educated in the neighborhood of his place 
of birth, engaging in farming until he 
reached his majority, when, in the year 
1 87 1, he migrated to Wisconsin. He 
arrived in Marinette September 8, 1871, 
and first entered the employ of the N. 
Ludington Co., later for two years work- 
ing for Hamilton & Merryman. He en- 
gaged in lumbering until 1879, when he 
settled on his present farm, homesteading 
160 acres situated in Section 18, Porter- 
field township. No road led to the tract, 
which was then included in Peshtigo town- 
ship, and was a complete wilderness, 
covered with a dense growth of timber, 
and the many improvements which beau- 
tify and enhance the value of the land 
have all been made by Mr. Dickie. Seventy 
acres are cleared and under cultivation, 
and a comfortable residence, one-and-one- 
half stories in height, 18x26 feet, with a 
one-story "L" 28x16 feet, adorns the 
premises. One barn which our subject 
erected was destroyed by fire, and in 1 894 
he put up a barn 78 x 40 feet, with i 8-foot 
posts; the other improvements are on the 



same scale, and the appearance of the 
property proclaims the owner to be a 
thrifty, go-ahead man. 

When Porterfield township was formed 
he assisted in the organization, and was a 
member of the first board of supervisors, 
serving three or four years, and he has 
also served as school treasurer four or 
five years, ever taking a deep interest in 
the welfare and progress of his town and 
county. On June 14, 1876, he was united 
in marriage, in Marinette, with Miss Mary 
Coulter, who was born in Philadelphia, 
Penn., daughter of one of its earliest 
pioneers, John Coulter, who now resides 
in Porterfield township. Eleven children 
have blessed this union, namely: Mary Jane, 
James Archibald, John Alexander, Eliza- 
beth, Katie, Robert, William Henry, 
Anna, Walter Carson, Thomas Arthur 
and Hugh Raymond. Mr. and Mrs. Dickie 
are Presbyterians in religious faith; so- 
cially he is a member of Marinette Lodge 
No. 182, F. & A. M. ; politically he is an 
ardent Republican. 



GEORGE W. BAIRD, who is en- 
gaged in general merchandising at 
Florence, came to that city in 
1 88 1 , at which time he was junior 
partner of McNair & Baird, which part- 
nership continued until 1888, when Mr. 
Baird purchased the interest of his part- 
ner, and for two years occupied the store 
building of the Iron Company. In 1890, 
he erected a two-story frame store-build- 
ing, having a frontage of twenty-five 
feet, and a depth of sixty-five feet, or, 
including the warehouse, a depth of one 
hundred and twenty feet. 

Mr. Baird was born in East Troy, 
Walworth Co. , Wis. , March 9, 1 848, and 
is a son of George W. and Ann (Hilton) 
Baird, the former a native of New York, 
born of Scotch ancestry, the latter of Lin- 
colnshire, England. The father came to 
Wisconsin in 1840 and located at Racine, 
but later removed to Walworth county, 
where he opened up a farm, and engaged 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPnWAL RECORD. 



579 



in farming until 1852, when, with an ox- 
team, he removed to Green Bay, Wis., 
and settled on a farm of 600 acres, in 
what is now the town of Rockland, fn 
1859 he removed to De Pere, where he 
remained four years, and then went to 
Neenah, but now resides at Menasha, 
Wis. 1-fis wife died in the town of Clay- 
ton, Winnebago Co., Wis., August 6, 
1S87. Of their family of nine children, 
eight are yet living: Mrs. Sumerton, of 
Neenah; George W., our subject; R. L. 
and Mrs. Howard, both of Neenah; Peter 
T. , superintendent of a mine at Horton- 
ville. Wis. ; Mary, a teacher in the public 
schools at Neenah; Clara, a teacher in 
the high school at Neenah; and Thad- 
deus, who is a bookkeeper in Florence. 

Our subject grew to manhood in his 
native State, and received his educa- 
tion in the schools of De Pere. In 
his youth he learned the carpenter trade, 
working at same for a time, and then 
learned the wagon-makers' trade, at 
which occupation he was engaged during 
the first two years of the war. In 1863 
he enlisted at Green Bay, Wis., in Com- 
pany G, Forty-first Wis. V. I., for three 
years, and was mustered into the service 
at Camp Washburne, Wis., and soon after 
was sent to the front. His regiment was 
assigned to the Third Division, Six- 
teenth Army Corps, and was engaged in 
battle at Holly Springs; was on the For- 
rest raid, and in the battles at La Grange 
and Memphis, Tenn. ; it was then sta- 
tioned at Fort Pickering. In the battle 
of LaGrange, Mr. Baird received a gun- 
shot wound, and for a time was confined 
in the Overton Hospital, at Memphis, 
Tenn. In 1865 he was honorably dis- 
charged at Camp Washburne, near Mil- 
waukee, Wis. On receiving his discharge 
Mr. Baird went to Neenah, Wis., at 
which place his parents were then resid- 
ing. He there worked at his trade until 
his removal to Florence, with the excep- 
tion of about five years he was engaged in 
handling sewing machines and farm ma- 
chinery. On coming to Florence, as 



already stated, he engaged in the mercan- 
tile business, at which he still continues, 
and in which he has been very successful. 
His trade extends for many miles in every 
direction, and he is known and recog- 
nized as a thoroughly reliable and honor- 
able merchant. In 1869, in Winnebago 
county. Wis., Mr. Baird was united in 
marriage with Miss Henrietta Bailey, and 
to their union one child was born, Lulu 
M. Two years later he was called upon 
to mourn the death of his wife, who was 
a lovely, accomplished Christian woman. 
In 18S4 Mr. Baird again married, taking 
as his wife Miss Beatrice Tiffay. Her 
death occurred in 1887, and Mr. Baird 
was again married, this time, in 1889, at 
Florence, Wis., to Miss Capitola G. 
Drake. They have one child, George W. 
Mr. Baird has ever taken an active 
interest in political affairs, and since ar- 
riving at legal age has voted the Repub- 
lican ticket. He is at present town treas- 
urer of Florence, which position he has 
occupied three years; in 1885 he was 
elected county clerk, and served one term 
of two years. He is a member of Du- 
Pont Post No. 268, G. A. R., and was 
its commander in 1894; is a member of 
Fisher Lodge No. 222, F. & A. M., of 
which he has served as junior warden; 
he was made a Mason in Kane Lodge, at 
Neenah, Wis., from which he was demit- 
ted, that he might unite with the lodge at 
that place. Mr. Baird came to Florence 
with teams, and was in business before 
the railroad was built to the place. In 
all the changes and the developments 
which have since taken place he has 
been an active participant. 



JOSEPH POCQUETTE, furniture 
dealer and undertaker, of Oconto, 
Oconto county, is a native of Canada, 
born March 5, 1859, in Alfred town- 
ship, Ontario, son of Poscal and Julia 
(Langlois) Pocquette. 

The parents of our subject were also 
born in Canada, the father in (Quebec, 



5 So 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



the mother .in the Province of Ontario, 
of English ancestry. They had a family 
of nine children (seven of whom are liv- 
ing), viz.: Joseph; Poscal, of Rockland 
township, Ontario; Armadus, who lives in 
Green Baj-, Wis, ; Exelda (Mrs. Leon 
Thebeau), who died March 24, 1891, at 
Oconto; Michael and Moses, who live in 
Oconto; Julia (Mrs. Degarden), who 
died in August, 1895; Emma (Mrs. C. 
Pecor), who lives in Oconto; and Xavier, 
who lives in Oconto township. The 
mother of these passed from earth April 
I, 1888, in Canada, and in 1890 the fa- 
ther came to Oconto, where he now makes 
his home. 

Joseph Pocquette was reared in Can- 
ada, received his education in the com- 
mon schools, and when a young man 
learned the carpenter's trade there. In 
1880 he went to Alpena, Mich., and in 
the fall of that year (1881) came to 
Oconto county, arriving m Oconto Octo- 
ber 3, where for seven years he followed 
his trade, and also worked for the Oconto 
Lumber Co. In 1888, in partnership with 
his brother, Armadus Pocquette, he bought 
a lot and built near the Chicago & North 
Western railroad depot, the brothers car- 
rying on a saloon business for two years, 
at the end of which time Joseph sold out 
his interest to Armadus. Our subject now 
rents the building and carries on the 
saloon. In 1891 he erected the building 
he now occupies, which is 24 x 70 feet 
in dimensions, and two stories in height, 
and the same year embarked in the furni- 
ture and undertaking business, in which 
he is meeting with gratifying success. 

On July 3, 1882, Mr. Pocquette was 
married, at Oconto, to Miss Lucy Be- 
langce, who was born in the Province of 
Quebec. Canada, daughter of Joseph and 
Margaret Belangee, also natives of Can- 
ada, who came to Oconto in 1881, and 
still reside there. Three children have 
been born to Mr. and Mrs. Pocquette, 
namely. William, Mary Lucy Lulu and 
N'orcne. Mr. Pocquette has been quite 
prominent in his community, where he 



has served as justice of the peace, and 
has taken an active interest in local af- 
fairs. He and his wife are members of 
the French Catholic Church, of which he 
has been one of the trustees, and socially 
he is a member of the Catholic Order of 
Foresters. 



THOMAS W. BROWN, who has 
been a resident of Marinette county 
for the past twenty years, is a na- 
tive of New Brunswick, Canada, 
born in 1861. His parents, John and 
Jane (Dickie) Brown, were also born in 
New Brunswick, of Scotch ancestry, and 
the father was a merchant and farmer. 
He died in 1871, being accidentally shot, 
and the widowed mother came with her 
son Thomas to Marinette, \\'is. , where 
she still resides. Three children were in 
the family: Thomas W., Phyllis B. (Mrs. 
A. M. Fairchild), of Marinette, Wis., and 
Grace. 

Our subject received his education in 
the public schools of New Brunswick, 
where he passed his earlier years, and 
also attended school in Waupaca county. 
Wis., whither he came in 1873. In Jan- 
uary, 1875, he moved from Fremont, 
Waupaca county, to Marinette, and for 
some eight or ten years thereafter was in 
the employ of the Boom Co. there. For 
some eighteen months he was engaged in 
the grocery business, as a member of the 
firm of Clifford & Brown, and for the past 
three years he has been under sheriff, 
having served under Mr. Robert Hitchon, 
and two years with J. L. Murphy. He 
also served one year on the police force, 
and he has been an active citizen, ever 
taking a lively interest in the affairs of 
the city which has so long been his home. 
When he came here, over twenty years 
ago, Marinette was less than half as large 
as it is to-day, and he takes a loyal pride 
in the progress which the city and county 
have made. 

In 1882 Mr. Brown was married, in 
Marinette, to Miss Ella White, who was 



COMMEMORATrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



5S1 



born in Sturgeon Bay, daughter of Parker 
and Emily (Crushein) White, early set- 
tlers, the former of whom was killed in 
1S80 in the H. Whitbeck mill; Mrs. 
White resides in Marinette. This union 
has been blessed with four children: 
Ethel, Edith, Ralph and Owen. Socially, 
Mr. Brown affiliates with the Modern 
Woodmen, as a member of the camp at 
Marinette. In political faith he is a Re- 
publican, an ardent believer in the princi- 
ples of his party. 



EBER L. WILLIAMS. In every 
community there is a class of 
wide-awake, enterprising and ener- 
getic men, to whom is due the 
progress and advancement of the locality 
in which they live, and to this class be- 
longs our subject, who is successfully en- 
gaged in the insurance business in Mari- 
nette. 

A native of Somersetshire, England, he 
was born in 1851, and is a son of Joseph 
and Sarah N. (Cavell) Williams, who 
were also natives of that county. In 1855 
they crossed the Atlantic to America, 
locating in Palmyra, Jefferson Co., Wis., 
where the father engaged in merchan- 
dising. Subsequently he removed to 
Waterford, Racine county, this State, 
and still later went to Menominee, Mich. 
His wife died in 1879, and his own death 
occurred in Marinette in 1889. They 
reared a family of four sons and three 
daughters: Caleb, superintendent of the 
N. Ludington Company, of Marinette; 
Minerva, wife of Charles A. Chapman, of 
Waupaca, Wis.; E. B., of Ironwood, 
Mich., Eber L. , our subject; E. C, a 
hardware merchant of Waupaca; Ella, 
wife of William Erancis, of Minneapolis; 
and Florence, employed as a type-writer 
in Minneapolis. 

Our subject, who was four years of 
age when brought by his parents to the 
New World, was reared and educated in 
Palmyra, Wis., and there learned the 
trade of a tinsmith, which he followed 



for a number of years. He came from 
Racine county to Marinette in 1870, and 
here worked at his trade until 1S71, when 
he embarked in the hardware business at 
Peshtigo. In October of that year a dis- 
astrous fire swept over the city in which 
his store was destroyed, and he then re- 
turned to Marinette. He afterward went 
to the Lake Superior country, then to 
Hannibal, Mo., and in 1876 was again 
numbered among the citi;?ens of Mari- 
nette. Once more he established a hard- 
ware store, which he successfully carried 
on for fifteen years, lieing one of the pio- 
neer merchants in his line in the city. 
He succeeded in building up a good trade, 
and derived therefrom a comfortable 
competence. His connection with the 
insurance business began in 1891, and he 
is now representing the Security Mutual 
Company of Binghamton, N. Y. , and 
Traveler's Life & Accident Company. 

In 1879, in Marinette, Mr. Williams 
was joined in wedlock with Mrs. Mary 
Jane Cook, a native of Canada, and a 
daughter of John Swalwell, a pioneer 
settler of the city, where he yet resides. 
To their union were born si.x children, 
five of whom are living, namely: Eber J., 
Robert A., Antoinette, Jennie L. and 
Ralph A. The parents and children are 
members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and take a prominent and active 
part in its work, Mr. Williams having 
served as trustee and steward for many 
years. He attended the dedication of 
the first Methodist Church in Marinette, 
and has always given his support to en- 
terprises calculated to advance the moral 
interests of the community. In politics 
he is a stalwart Republican, is now serv- 
ing as a member of the board of super- 
visors from the Fourth ward, and is also 
justice of the peace. He holds member- 
ship with Marinette Lodge, No. 189, 
I. O. O. F., and in all the relations of 
life has been found true and faithful to 
every trust, winning and retaining the 
confidence of both young and old, rich 
and poor. 



5^= 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



CA. LIND, proprietor of one of 
the leading photograph galleries 
in this section of the State, is 
one of the well-known citizens of 
Marinette, Marinette county. His work 
will compare favorably with that of any 
of our larger cities, and he has as fine a 
studio as can be found anywhere in the 
northwest, outside of Chicago or Mil- 
waukee. 

The earliest knowledge wc have of 
the Linds in Ger^)any dates back to King 
Gustavus II (Adolphus) of Sweden, who, 
with an army of 15,000 men, in the 
year 1630, invaded Germany to aid the 
Protestants in their struggle against the 
Emperor. 

Louis Lind, father of our subject, 
was a native of Frankfort, Germany, a 
son of John Lind, a collector of inland 
revenue in the Fatherland, under the 
German government. He, John, had a 
family of four children, named respect- 
ively — Louis, John, Christian and Bertha, 
of whom, Louis was the father of our 
subject; John resides in Frankfort, Ger- 
many; Christian came to America, and 
died in Fond du Lac, Wis. ; Bertha died 
in Germany. John Lind, the father of 
this family, was a son of Louis Lind, who 
was a lieutenant in the Hessian army, a 
portion of which, during the American 
revolution, was sent to this country to 
serve in the pay of the British govern- 
ment, Louis Lind being among them. 
He, however, along with the majority of 
the Hessian troops, deserted to the Ameri- 
can lines, and served with Washington at 
the capture of Trenton. He was the 
eldest son in his father's family, and was 
the rightful heir to a large estate near 
Frankfort; but owing to his deserting his 
colors in America he was disinherited, 
the property being given to his next 
younger brother. Through the influence 
of this brother, Louis received a free 
pardon from the German government, 
and was allowed to return to and again 
live in his native land. He was appointed 
a revenue officer, an incumbency that 



remained in the family until the absorp- 
tion of Hesse-Darmstadt into the King- 
dom of Prussia. 

Louis Lind, father of C. A., was by 
profession a designer and engraver on 
metal, and on coming to this country in 
about 1850 — about the same time as 
Carl Schuss — he located in New York, 
entering the service of the world-famed 
jewelry firm of Tiffany & Co. In 1859 
he left New York City and came to W^is- 
consin, locating at Fond du Lac, where 
he engaged in farming until 1877, when 
he went to Chicago and resumed his pro- 
fession, following same until the close of 
the World's Columbian E.xposition in 
that city, where he was awarded a 
World's Fair medal for superiority in 
designing work for W. M. Freund & Son. 
He then retired from active business, and 
took up his abode in Milwaukee, Wis. 
His wife (the mother of C. A. Lind) was 
Miss Sophia Dittmar, a native of the city 
of Munich, Bavaria, and was a member 
of a very wealthy and influential family 
of high standing among the nobility of 
that country, who lost nearly all their 
property through the destructive convul- 
sions of war. Mrs. Sophia Lind's father, 
Henry Dittmar, after the loss of his 
estate, came to America with his family, 
numbering twelve children. To Louis 
and Sophia Lind were born seven chil- 
dren, of whom Henry lives in San An- 
tonio, Texas; Charles, in Milwaukee, 
Wis. ; John, in Marinette, Wis. ;' Louis, 
in Milwaukee; Albert, in San Antonio, 
Texas; Louise, in Milwaukee, with her 
father; and C. A., in Marinette. 

C. A. Lind, the subject proper of 
these lines, is a- native of Wisconsin, 
born March 6, 1S60, in Fond du Lac, at 
the public schools of which city he re- 
ceived a liberal education, and upon the 
completion of his studies he went to She- 
boygan to learn the art of photography. 
In 1879 he commenced business in P'ond 
du Lac, and after carrying it on there 
eight years moved, in 18S7, to Marinette, 
where he has since been proprietor of the 



CnMMKMORATlVH BIOORAPI/ICAL ItECOHD. 



5«3 



IcailinL; plidtn^iMpliic studio in this sor- 
tion of the State. In liis business lie has 
a partner - Mrs. ICstlier ("auiphell Wat- 
rous — a lady possessed of business <]uali- 
fications of a high order, and exceptionally 
well lilted for the position she occupies. 
At the Artists' Convention held at St. 
Paul, Mr. IJnd received a diploma, and 
in 1SS3 ho was awarded a .uolil medal, by 
tlu> Wisconsin State I'^air, for best ]>or- 
tiait work. Mr. I.ind is a mend)er of 
Marinette Lodge No. 1S2, 1'. & A. M., 
of the I. C) O. F., in wiiich he is noble 
grau<l, and of the Modern Woodmen. 

In iSS^ C". .\. I.ind was married to 
Miss Ina |. Marten, daughter of \. W. 
Marten, an early pioneer of b'ond du 
Lac. and two children have come to 
brighten their home — Jennie and Nina. 
Mr. Linil votes with the Republican parly 
on all strictly political (piestions. Al- 
though a comparatively young man, he 
has seen great changes in this jnirt of 
Wisconsin, and he has great laith in 
Marinette, as is well evidenced by the 
fact of his having built three houses in 
the city (luring the past season. He is a 
thoroughly representative business man, 
possessed of a social iiatine, and ex- 
tremely i)opular. 



Nil. IMDDLI'.COM, pcjstmaster ,it 
iMenekaunec, has been a resident 
of M,iiini;ttt> comity since July, 
iSjj. He was apiioiiited to his 
present position in July, 1S93, and took 
possession of the office May 1, same year. 
His appointment was the first one made 
for Wisconsin afliu" the in;iuguration of 
President Cleveland. 

Mr. Biddlecom is a native of Utica, 
N. Y., born )aiiuary 17, 1S23, and is a 
son of Orrin and Harriet (Pratt) Biddle- 
com, both born and reared in Oneida 
county, N. Y. The father was a farmer 
near Deerlield, N. Y., and followed that 
occupation until his death in iS27or 1S2.S; 
tlie mother lived to the age of ninetj'-six 
years. In the war of 1812, Orrin Biddle- 



com servetl as sergeant in a New ^'ork 
eompaiiv, for wiiich he received a laiicl 
w.'irranl, and wliicli was located by his 
youngest son at |acksonville, I'la. To 
Orrin and Harriet HiddliM-om were born 
children ;is follows: lulwiu, who died in 
Oneida county some years ago; Nancy, 
who married Woodward Warren, and 
died in Oneida county about iSfiS; N. II., 
our sufjject; Altliea, who married William 
HaddiMi, of Oneida, and died abc >ul I SS.| ; 
]olin P., who died in I'dorida; Augustine, 
who di(-d in I'dorida in iS()5; Orrissa, the 
wife of Ignatius Myers, exchange mer- 
(li.int, of Utica, N. Y. ; and Lucy, the 
wife of William Stone, residmg near 
Utica, N. Y. The paternal grandparents 
of our subject, Daniel and Caroliiii; l>id- 
dlecom, weri' born in Tontine, Mass., 
and migrated to Oiuuda county, N. Y., 
about 1785; the grandfather was a soldier 
of the Rcvohitioiiar)' war, and lived and 
di('d on the farm which he locatiul in 
( )neid a county, N.Y. 'Idle malernal grand- 
parents of our subject, Jonathan and 
Caroline Pratt, were also natives of Mass- 
achusetts, and likewise pioneers of Oneida 
county, N. Y. lonathan Pratt was of 
ICnglish ancestry, and was also a soldicu" 
in the Kevolutionary war. I lis death oc- 
curred on the farm which he located in 
Oneida count)'. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in his native county, and there educate(l 
in the subscription schools. When about 
eighteen years old, he went to Utica, 
N. Y., and engaged in staging from that 
place to Biiighamton, in the same State. 
On July 5, 1845, he started with WVdch 
iS: Mann's National Circus at iifleen dol- 
lars per month, and in the fall received 
sixty doll.-irs per month. In iS^Ci he 
drove theband ti;am of ten horses through 
the ICast, and in 1847 drove for the 
Crreat Oriental Circus, of which Crane cS: 
Howe were the pro|nietors, through the 
West. In 1841; he went South with Rob- 
inson & ICldred, and located at Charles- 
ton, S. C., where for ten years he was 
agent for various stage lines. In 1852 



584 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOKAPUICAL RECORD. 



he began dealing in trotting horses, and 
in 1853 took a hne of coaches and stages 
to Augusta, F"la. , where he estabhshed a 
stage line. In 1855 he went to Augusta, 
Ga., and engaged in the trotting-horse 
business, until the breaking out of the 
war. He then went to Utica, N. Y., 
where he remained until the close of the 
war and returned to Charleston, S. C, 
January i, 1866. He subsequently en- 
gaged in the livery business at Savannah, 
Ga., and established trotting stables. 
From Savannah he went to Macon, Ga. , 
where he remained until 1872, when he 
came to Marinette, and in 1874 again en- 
gaged in the trotting business. He 
erected the first building of note on the 
fair grounds, and has been associated 
with the Fair Association since coming to 
Marinette. 

While residing in Charleston, S. C, 
Mr. Biddlecom was united in marriage, 
November 7, 1857, to Dulcina Carven. 
They have no children. He is numbered 
among the early settlers of Marinette; 
has witnessed its steady growth and de- 
velopment, and takes a special pride in 
its having attained front rank among the 
counties of northern \\'isconsin. As may 
be inferred, he is a great lover of horse- 
flesh. He has owned and trained many 
of the most noted horses in this section 
of the country. " F"urnace Charley," 
one of his horses, won twenty-one races out 
of twenty-two. He was also the owner 
of "Isaac G.," a noted horse, which he 
purchased from Major Scofield. He has 
visited many States, and has taken part in 
many races throughout the Northwest 
and South. In his political views he is a 
Jacksonian Democrat. When he came 
to Marinette, his party polled but se\enty- 
one votes, and he is proud of the fact 
that he has lived to see it poll over one 
thousand votes in Marinette count}'. 

During the war for the Union, Mr. 
Biddlecom was with the Kighteenth Army 
Corps, under Gen. P. H. Stannard, as 
veterinary surgeon, looking after the 
horses of the staf? officers. He was at 



Bermuda Hundred, Cold Harbor, Peters- 
burg (V'a.), and remained there until the 
fall of 1864, when he returned to New 
York. 



HENRY BAKEMAN. a well-known 
and prosperous farmer of Grover 
township, Marinette county, is 
the oldest living settler of that 
township, having resided there since 1853, 
and his home has been in Marinette coun- 
ty since 1843. 

The parents of our subject, John and 
Sophia (Wenkstand) Bakeman, were born 
and reared in Germany, and in 1841 
emigrated with their family to the United 
States, for about two years making their 
home in western New York. In 1843 
they migrated thence to Wisconsin, 
where they passed the remainder of their 
lives, settling in Peshtigo, Marinette 
county. The father was accidentally 
killed, in May, 1863, a log rolling on him 
while he was building a log house; the 
mother survived until 1891, when she too 
passed to the home beyond, at the ad- 
vanced age of eighty-three years. Of 
their children, Sophia is the wife of Ed. 
Kittner, of Green Bay, Wis. ; Henry is 
the subject of these lines; John resides in 
the State of Washington; Dora became 
the wife of Henry Bartels, of Grover 
township, and died in 1892; and Eliza is 
Mrs. Heidenworth, of Peshtigo. 

Henry Bakeman was born in 1831, in 
Mecklenburg, Germany, where he re- 
ceived his early education in the public 
schools, in 1841 coming with his parents 
to New York State, where he worked out 
by the month. In 1843 he came with 
the family to Wisconsin, and in 1S53 took 
up eighty acres of government land in 
Section 2 1 , Peshtigo township, whereon 
he erected a log house and commenced 
clearing, making his home on this tract 
for a long term of years. On the night 
of October 8, 1871, he was burned out. 
but succeeded in saving his own family 
and five of his neighbor's children. Re- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOUAl'UIC'AL liECORD. 



585 



building, he continued to reside at that 
place until 1889, when his home was 
again laid in ashes, and he then removed 
to his present location in Grover town- 
ship, then owning an eighty-acre farm in 
Section 28, where he conducts a general 
farming business. Having made his 
home in the immediate vicinity for so 
long a time, he has witnessed and aided 
in the almost complete transformation of 
what was once a wilderness into fertile, 
well-conducted farms, and has seen the 
establishment and growth of the two 
thriving towns of Marinette and Menomi- 
nee. When Mr. Bakeman commenced 
to clear his land he had no team, and he 
brought his first stock — some cows and 
calves — from Chicago. 

In 1853, at Milwaukee, Mr. Bakeman 
was married to Magdalena Kratz, who 
was born in Germany and came to Amer- 
ica, when twelve years old, with her 
father, Adam Kratz, who became an 
early settler of Washington county. Wis. ; 
he is now deceased. To this union came 
thirteen children, seven of whom are 
living, namely: John, who resides in 
Portland, Oregon; Henry, married, who 
lives in Marinette; Adolph, at home; 
August, married, a resident of Marinette; 
Martha, wife of Charles May, of Grover 
township; Arthur, and Frank, l^olitically 
Mr. Bakeman supports the Republican 
party. Socially he is a member of Pesh- 
tigo Lodge No. 85, I. O. O. F., and a 
charter member of the Encampment, 
while Mrs. Bakeman is a member of the 
Daughters of Rebekah. Both were reared 
in the Lutheran faith. 



LEWIS GRAM is one of the esteemed 
Danish-American citizens of Mari- 
nette, prominent in business affairs, 
and one of the most honorable, 
straightforward business men of this sec- 
tion of the State. He was born in Den- 
mark in 1829, and is a son of Christian 
Peter and Karen Gram, who were also 
natives of that country. The father was 



reared a sailor, and followed the sea dur- 
ing the greater part of his life. Both he 
and his wife always lived in Denmark, and 
the latter survived her husband six years. 
Their eldest son, B. Peter Gram, was a 
wheelwright. Peter (second son) was a 
sailor, becoming captain of a vessel, and 
followed that life throughout his business 
career; he met his death by drowning. 
Martin, also a sailor, died in a hospital in 
New York. Andrew came to this coun- 
try in boyhood, and now resides in Me- 
nominee; during the Ci\il war he en- 
listed at Green Bay, and served for three 
years. Martin resides in Minneapolis, 
Minn. Nelson is living in Menominee, 
Michigan. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in Denmark, acquired his education in 
the public schools, and learned the trade 
of blacksmith and machinist. In i 849 he 
crossed the Atlantic to America, and after 
about two months spent in New York con- 
tinued his westward journey to Wiscon- 
sin, locating in Green Bay. He was there 
employed for about three years in a boiler 
factory and foundry, after which he went 
to Chicago and worked at blacksmithing 
and boiler making for some time, when he 
again went to Green Bay, which was his 
place of abode until 1858. He was ne.xt 
employed as an engineer in a mill in Mar- 
quette, and in 1861 he came to Marinette, 
where he entered the employ of the N. 
Ludington Company, working in the 
machine shops as engineer. In 1866 he 
commenced a partnership business, as a 
member of the firm of Stephenson & 
Gram, his partners being Andrew Ste- 
phenson and Daniel Wells, Jr., of Milwau- 
kee. A lumber mill was erected on the 
river, which is now the property of the 
H. Whitbeck Company, and in 1868 Mr. 
Gram sold out to Daniel Wells, of Mil- 
waukee. He is now a member of the 
firm of N. Ludington cS: Co., and is recog- 
nized as a wide-awake, enterprising busi- 
ness man, whose success in life is entirely 
due to his own efforts. 

Mr. Gram was married in Marinette, 



586 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



in 1870, to Miss Hannah Merryman. a na- 
tive of Maine. Her mother is now residing 
in Marinette at the advanced age of eighty- 
seven years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Gram 
are highly esteemed people, and have 
many warm friends. They hold member- 
ship with the Methodist Church, of which 
Mr. Gram has served as trustee and class 
leader for some years. In politics he is 
a Republican, and has been alderman of 
the Third ward. Socially, he is a mem- 
ber of the Blue Lodge, Chapter and Com- 
mandery, of the Masonic fraternity in 
Marinette, and is a progressive, public- 
spirited citizen, devoted to all enterprises 
which he deems worthy of public support. 
His residence in Marinette, covering more 
than a third of a century, has made him 
widely known, and a well-spent life has 
gained him high respect. 



SAMUEL G. MAY, a prosperous 
farmer and old resident of Grover 
township, Marinette county, is a 
son of Anson and Caroline (Moore) 
May, and was born in St. Lawrence 
county, N. Y. , in 1839. 

Anson May was born in Vermont, and 
was a farmer by occupation. He came to 
Wisconsin in 1855, locating in Section 21, 
in what is now Grover township, pre-empt- 
ing and entering 160 acres of land, which 
he improved, and there made his home. 
At the time he came there were no roads. 
He assisted in forming the school district, 
and took an interest in what he considered 
for the good of the county. He died Jan- 
uary 8, 1887, and his wife, who was born 
in New York, passed from earth May 22, 
1894. They reared the following chil- 
dren (two of whom are now living): Le- 
nora, widow of James Shaver, residing in 
Grover township; Samuel G., subject of 
this sketch; Nathaniel, who was burned 
in the Peshtigo lire of October 8, 1871, 
on the farm where Samuel G. now resides, 
his wife and one child also perishing; 
Eli/a Jane, who married Franklin Bailey, 
and died some years ago; Freddie, who 



died before the Civil war; Caroline, de- 
ceased wife of Harvey England; Olive, 
who died about 1883, wife of Asa Cass; 
and Rebecca, who was the wife of Henry 
Hayes, and who with her child was burned 
in the fire of October 8, 1871. 

Samuel G. May was reared in St. 
Lawrence county, N. Y. , and educated in 
the schools of that county. He came in 
his sixteenth year to Marinette county, 
Wis. , and aided in clearing up the home 
farm. In Marinette county, August 17, 
1863, he was united in marriage with 
Miss Helen M. Jacobs, daughter of Will- 
iam Jacobs, who was an early settler of 
Marinette county, and now resides in 
southern Wisconsin. Mr. and Mrs. May 
have two children, namely: Charles, who 
is married and resides in Grover township, 
and Lacy, also married, residing on the 
old farm. In 1886 Samuel G. May mar- 
ried, for his second wife, Mrs. Jennie Mc- 
Laughlin (widow of Lindsay McLaughlin), 
born in Canada, and they have had two 
children — Mabel and Samuel. 

Mr. May is one of the oldest pioneers 
of what is now Grover township. In Sec- 
tion 29 he owns a good farm of 227 acres, 
of which 147 acres are well improved, and 
carries on general farming, giving some 
attention to the raising of stock. He has 
improved his place since 1872, erecting a 
good residence and barns. In addition to 
his farm labors he has engaged in lumber 
jobbing for thirty-two years. Mr. May 
votes with the Republican party, and has 
held the office of town treasurer. He has 
seen much of the growth and develop- 
ment of the county, and has ever taken 
an active interest in the general welfare. 



ANDREW PETERSON, who is 
engaged in general merchandising 
in Marinette, belongs to that 
class of worth)' Swedish-American 
citizens who, in limited circumstances, 
came to the New World, and have here, 
through their own exertions, arisen to 
positions of afHucnce. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHIGAL RECORD. 



587 



Mr. Peterson was born, in 1S42, in 
Horby, Sweden, twenty-five miles from the 
town of Malmo, Mahnohus county, a 
son of Peter and Christine (Paulsonj Peter- 
son, who were both also natives of that 
country. The father was a soldier, for 
some years as a member of the Swedish 
army. He now resides in the land of his 
birth, at the age of eighty-five, but liis 
wifediedin 1854. They reared five chil- 
dren: John, Mrs. Carrie Nelson, and 
Mrs. Nellie Anderson, all living in Sweden; 
Andrew, subject of this sketch; and Mrs. 
Anna Anderson, who died in Sweden in 
1893. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in his native land, and after leaving school 
worked in Colmar, Sweden, for some 
years. He heard much of the privileges 
and advantages afforded in the New 
World, and at the age of twentj'-si.x, with 
the hope of bettering his financial condi- 
tion, sailed for New York, where he ar- 
rived after a voyage of twenty days. 
From that city he proceeded direct to 
Chicago, and thence came to Wisconsin, 
locating in Marinette, July 10, i86g. He 
was industrious and ambitious, and soon 
secured a position with the N. Luding- 
ton Company, working in their employ 
until 1875, when he engaged in jobbing 
for himself in the woods. After four 
years thus passed, he removed to Sister 
Bay, Door Co., Wis., where in four years 
he cleared and improved a good farm of 
forty acres. On selling that property he 
returned to Marinette, and with the capi- 
tal he had acquired through his earnest 
and persistent labors, he established a 
general mercantile store in 1882, at the 
corner of Oak and Thomas streets. 
Three years later he erected a fine two- 
story frame building, 25x50 feet, at the 
corner of Pierce avenue and Grant street, 
and moving his store to that place has 
since conducted a successful and con- 
stantly-increasing business as a general 
merchant. He has a large and well-se- 
lected stock of goods, and his careful 
management, courteous treatment of his 



patrons and honorable dealing have se- 
cured a large trade. 

At Marinette, in 1871, Mr. Peterson 
was united in marriage with Miss Matilda 
Watman, a native of Sweden, and a 
daughter of William Watman, who spent 
his entire life in tliat country. She has 
one brother, Fred Watman, a pioneer 
settler of Marinette. Four children grace 
this union: Axel, a mail carrier, married 
and residing in Marinette; Adolph, who is 
employed in his father's store; Amanda 
and Oscar. His political support Mr. 
Peterson gives to the men and measures 
of the Republican party, and his religious 
faith is that of the Swedish Lutheran 
Church. He is one of the pioneers of 
Marinette, having witnessed its entire de- 
velopment from a mere village to its pres- 
ent magnitude. His life demonstrates 
what can be accomplished through in- 
domitable perseverance, careful super- 
vision and a strong determination to suc- 
ceed, and his career is certainly exem- 
plary. 



HOR.\TIO G. THOMPSON, Mene- 
kaunee, Marinette county, is a 
thoroughly practical druggist, one 
who understands his business in 
every department. 

Our subject is a native (jf Derbyshire, 
England, born in 1S58, and is the son of 
John and Mary (Nelson) Thompson, who 
were also natives of " Merrie England," 
the former, however, being of Scotch an- 
cestry. In 1 87 1 the father and two sons, 
J(jhn T. and Horatio G., came to the 
United States and located in Providence. 
R. I., where the father worked at his 
trade of gunsmith for a time, and later 
went to Minnesota. During ill health he 
returned to his native land, and there 
died, in 1880, at the age of fifty-two; the 
rest of the family never came to America; 
the mother is yet living. Mr. and Mrs. 
Thompson were the parents of six chil- 
dren: Horatio G., our subject; John T., 
who is engaged in the clothing business 



588 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



at Minneapolis, Minn., where he located 
in 1877; Charles T., married; Travis B., 
married and residing in England; and 
Mary and Clara, at Manchester, England. 
Horatio G. Thompson was but thirteen 
years of age when he came to this coun- 
try with his father. He obtained his 
primary education in his native land, 
which was supplemented with a few terms 
at the schools of Providence, R. I. In 
1877 he went to St. Paul, Minn., and 
after a few months spent on a farm near 
that city entered the office of the St. Paul 
(jlolu-, as a " galley slave," to learn the 
art of printing. Later he abandoned 
that calling and turned his attention to 
the study of medicine, entering the Med- 
ical Department of the Minnesota State 
University and other colleges, and subse- 
quently received private instruction and 
practical experience in the practice of 
medicine under Drs. Brandt and Lewis, 
at Green Bay, Wis., until 1882, when he 
was licensed by the Wisconsin State 
Board of Pharmacy, and at once took 
charge of Doyen's Pharmacy at Fort 
Howard, Wis., now owned by James 
Tiernan. He remained in charge of that 
establishment until the fall of 1883, when 
he came to Menekaunee and took charge 
of Dr. Marriner's drug store. After a 
few months he was recalled by his pre- 
ceptors to practice medicine at Kobinson- 
villc, known as the "Belgium settlement," 
in Brown county, Wis. .where he remained 
during the winter of 1883-84; he then 
entered the Chicago School of Pharmacy, 
and at the final examination was one of 
four who averaged ninety-six in chemistry. 
In the spring of 1886, Mr. Thompson 
returned to Menekaunee, but remained 
only a few months, having secured a lu- 
crative position as prescription clerk for 
Dr. Vcnnema, in Menominee, Mich., re- 
maining there until the spring of 1887, 
when he again returned to Menekaunee 
and commenced business for himself on a 
small scale in a frame building on the site 
of his present brick store building. His 
business rapidly increasing, its erection 



was rendered necessary in 1 888, especially 
for Mr. Thompson's own use and accord- 
ing to his own plans. The building is a 
neat two-story structure 20 x 70, with fine 
salesroom 20 x 50, from which you pass 
into a laboratory fitted with all modern 
facilities for manufacturing and analyzing, 
Mr. Thompson making a specialty of this 
line of business. The store is lighted by 
electricity, with telephone connection, 
handsomely fitted up and well adapted to 
the business. A full line of drugs, drug- 
gists' sundries, etc. , are kept constantly 
on hand. 

Mr. Thompson is a well-informed man 
on the political issues of the day, and 
afifiliates with the Republican party. He 
is not an office-seeker in any sense of the 
term, but he has served three and one- 
half years as a member of the school 
board, being greatly interested in educa- 
tional matters. Under President Harri- 
son he served four years as postmaster at 
Menekaunee. Socially, he is a member 
of Olive Branch Lodge No. 250, F. & 
A. M. ; of Marinette Chapter No. 59, R. 
A. M. ; and of Marinette Commandery 
No. 26, K. T. ; of the first and last he was 
a charter member. He was the original 
promoter of the Caledonian Society, of 
which he was the second chieftain, and 
of which he is now treasurer. As a busi- 
ness man he is progressive, liberal and en- 
terprising; as a citizen he is well esteemed 
by all who know him. 



ALOIS B. ZOELLER is one of 
the worthy German citizens, who, 
leaving his native land with the 
hope of bettering his financial 
condition in the New NN'orld, adapted 
himself to his new conditions and sur- 
rountiings, and has worked his way up- 
ward, acquiring a comfortable competence 
as the reward of his labors. He was born 
in the Fatherland in 1834, and was a son 
of Alois and Catherine (Zoeller) Zoeller, 
who spent their entire lives in Germany. 
There our subject was reared and educa- 



aOMMEMORATTVE BTOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



589 



ted, and in course of time he sailed from 
Havre, France, for tlie United States, 
landing at New York after a voyage of 
seven weeks. 

Mr. Zoeller has been a resident of 
Oconto county since 1S58, at which time 
he located on his present farm in Section 
7, Little Suamico township, purchasing a 
tract of eighty acres of timber hind. Now 
began the arduous work of developing 
a farm. All day long might be heard the 
ringing blows of his a.xe as tree after tree 
fell before his sturdy strokes. He now 
has forty acres all cleared and improved, 
and has upon his place good buildings. 
Moreover he has the consciousness of 
knowing that he has not a dollar which 
he has not himself honestly earned. 

In December, 1861, Mr. Zoeller re- 
sponded to the call of his adopted coun- 
try for aid in crushing out the Rebellion, 
becoming a member of Company F, Four- 
teenth Wis. V. I. He was assigned to 
duty with the Western army, and .partici- 
pated in the battle of Shiloh and the 
siege of Vicksburg. He was then de- 
tailed for service at Gen. Blair's head- 
quarters, and in 1863 re-enlisted in the 
same company and regiment, with which 
he served until the close of the war, 
when he was honorably discharged at 
Mobile, Ala., October 9, 1S65. He made 
for himself an honorable military record, 
and the country owes its salvation to 
such valiant soldiers as our subject. 

During a furlough given him in 1863, 
Mr. Zoeller married Miss Christina Baker, 
who died in 1880, without issue. In 1881 
he was again married, his second union be- 
ing with Miss Delia Durant, a native of 
Canada, and a daughter of Lewis Durant, 
one of the early pioneers of Oconto 
county. Six children grace this union, 
namely: Katie, Oliver, Lucy, Adeline, 
Ale.xander and John. Mr. Zoeller gives 
his political support to the men and meas- 
ures of the Republican party, and has 
served as a member of the school board. 
He belongs to Howe Post, No. 124, G. 
A. R., of Green Bay, and he and his wife 



are members of the Catholic Church. 
His long connection with Oconto county, 
and his honorable life, have made him 
one of its esteemed citizens. 



PH. MCALLISTER. A leader 
among the general merchants of 
Marinette, Mr. McAllister has 
carried on a general store since 
June, 1892, and now has a large and 
complete stock of goods, while from the 
public he receives a liberal patronage. 
He is a popular and pleasing merchant, 
and his earnest desire to satisfy the wants 
of his customers has brought him a large 
and well-merited trade. 

Mr. McAllister is a native of Resti- 
gouche county, New Brunswick, Canada, 
born October i, 1856, and is the young- 
est of the six children of Donald and 
Flora (McKelvie) McAllister, natives of 
the Isle of Arran, Scotland, who in an 
early day crossed the Atlantic to New 
Brunswick. In 1881 they became resi- 
dents of Marinette, finding a pleasant 
home with our subject. Here the mother 
died in 1886, the father in 1889. Their 
children were Archibald, of Marinette; 
John, of Tacoma, Wash.; D. J., of Mari- 
nette; Mary, who is living with our sub- 
ject ; William, also of Marinette, and P. H. 
Under the parental roof P. H. McAl- 
lister spent the days of his boyhood, no 
event of special importance occurring 
during that period. He attended the 
public schools, and afterward engaged in 
teaching, which profession he followed 
until his arrival in Marinette, August i, 
1 88 1. Here he secured a situation as 
bookkeeper in the store of J. J. McGillis, 
and remained in his employ for one year, 
when he engaged with J. D. Smith & Co. , 
in whose service he remained for a num- 
ber of years, or until establishing a store 
of his own. 

Mr. McAllister is an esteemed member 
of Marinette Lodge, No. 182, F. & A. 
M., of which he is treasurer, and of the 
Royal Arch Chapter, of Marinette; is also 



590 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



a member of the Caledonia Society, in 
which he is now serving as secretary. He 
attends the Presbyterian Church, and is 
a gentleman of sterling worth, a thor- 
oughlj' representative business man, whose 
upright life has gained him high regard, 
while his pleasant and affable manner 
have made him most popular. 



OHN W. ^[INER (deceased) was 



one of the leading influential citi- 



^ I zens of Marinette, and those who 
knew him esteemed him highly for 
his genuine worth. He was born in New 
York City in 1840, and was only eight 
years old when he lost his parents, of 
whom he therefore knows but little ex- 
cepting that they were English people. 
He had one brother, Harry, who was 
killed at the battle of Gettysburg, and 
one sister, Mary, who was married in 
New York and moved to California, where 
she died while John was serving in the 
Civil war. 

Our subject obtained his education 
in the schools of New York City, where 
he continued until his enlistment in the 
service of the Union, at which time he 
was making his home with his uncle. He 
first enlisted in a New York regiment, but 
being rejected on account of his youth 
went to Connecticut and joined Company 
E, Si.xth Conn. V. I., serving faithfully 
for nearly four years in defense of the old 
flag and the cause it represented. He was 
wounded at the battle of Gettysburg, and 
for six weeks was in the hospital. When 
the war was over Mr. Miner returned to 
New York, subsequently going to Man- 
chester, N. H., and later to Boston, 
Mass., where he worked at the machinist's 
trade. 

In 1869 he was married, in the last 
named city, to Miss Adelia M. Ashland, 
who was a native of Clinton county, 
N. Y. , and a daughter of Francis and Ade- 
line (Baker) Ashland; they were also na- 
tives of New York, and were married in 
that State, but shortly afterward removed 



to Boston, where the father was engaged 
in merchandising. Subsequently he re- 
turned with his family to Clinton county, 
where his death occurred in 1887. His 
widow is still living on the old home farm 
in that county, and like her husband she 
has the high regard of all who know her. 
In their family were eleven children, eight 
of whom are still living, namely: Francis, 
who is now engaged in the dry-goods 
business in Manchester, N. H. ; Mrs. Dr. 
Ed. Carpenter, alsoof Manchester; Joseph, 
who resides in Essex county, N. Y. ; An- 
drew, who is living in Champlain county, 
N. Y. ; Mrs. Miner; Melvina, now the wife 
of Danford Mott, a resident of Clinton 
county, N. Y;. Gertrude, wife of E. B. 
Shut, of Champlain. N. Y. ; and Ezekiel, 
who resides in St. Albans, Vt. Anna be- 
came the wife of Frank Judkins, of Bos- 
ton, and died in September, 1894; Mattie 
became the wife of J. Henthorn, and 
died in Boston, Massachusetts. 

For two years after their marriage, 
Mr. and Mrs. Miner resided in Chicago, 
and in 1871 came to Marinette, making 
the journey by boat. Here our subject 
secured a position with the Marinette Iron 
Company, working as a machinist, and 
continuing as a trusted and faithful em- 
ploye in that establishment some fifteen 
years. When he severed his connection 
with the company he embarked in the 
real-estate and fire-insurance business, 
which he successfully carried on up to his 
death, which occurred August 24, 1893, 
securing a good competence which placed 
his widow in comfortable circumstances. 
He was a self-made and self-educated 
man, and no citizen was more highly re- 
spected. He was always interested in 
the welfare of the community in which 
he made his home, and gave his support 
and co-operation to worthy enterprises 
calculated to prove of public benefit, be- 
ing especially liberal to Churches and 
Church work. In politics he was a stal- 
wart Kcpublican. warmly advocating the 
principles of his party, and for two years 
served as city assessor. He held mem- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPUICAL UECORD. 



591 



bership with S. H. Sizer Post, G, A. R., 
and the Roj'al Arcanum, and lived a 
straightforward, honorable hfe, well worthy 
of emulation. Mrs. Miner still resides in 
Marinette, and is a most esteemed lady. 
She holds membership with the Pioneer 
Presbyterian Church, and has a host of 
warm friends. 



NAPOLEON NADEAU, millwright 
for Scofield, Arnold & Co., the 
extensive and well-known lumber- 
men of northern Wisconsin, is a 
native of Canada, born October 30, 1854, 
in the Province of Quebec. 

Joseph Nadeau, father of our subject, 
was born March 22, 1.S25, in Lower Can- 
ada (Province of Quebec), son of Joseph 
Nadeau, Sr. , who was the only son of 
Joseph Nadeau, a native of France, who 
came to Canada; he was a millwright by 
trade. Joseph Nadeau, Sr. , had ten 
children — six sons; of whom Joseph(father 
of Napoleon Nadeau), William and 
Wenceslas are living, and John B. and 
Onesime are deceased; and four daugh- 
ters: Emelie, Henriette, Florine Adele 
and Angele, all living but Henriette. 
Joseph Nadeau was reared in Lower Can- 
ada, and was there married to Miss Marie 
Olympe Leboeuf, also a native of that 
Province, by whom he had eleven chil- 
dren, ten of whom are living, as follows: 
Joseph, a resident of Canada; Sophie, a 
Sister in a convent at Green Bay, Wis. ; 
Lea, living in the city of Quebec, Canada; 
John, superintendent in the Box Factory 
at Marinette, Wis. ; Theodore, in Mon- 
treal, Canada, president of a Trust and 
Loan Company; Naixjleon, subject of 
sketch; Marie Olympe (now Mrs. Bech- 
ard), a resident of Quebec; Gedeon and 
Malvina, both in Marinette; and Archil, 
whose home is in St. Louis, Mo. The 
father of this fainil}' was a lumberman, 
and owned two mills in Canada. In 
1880 he came to Marinette with his son 
Napoleon (with whom he now resides), 

having first lived a short time at Green 
34 



Bay. The mother passed from earth at 
Marinette in 1887, a consistent member 
of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. 

The subject proper of these lines re- 
ceived his education at the public schools 
of his native place, and learned the trade 
of millwright, which he followed in Can- 
ada. About the year 1879 he came to 
Wisconsin, and for some twelve months- 
had his home in Green Bay, but having 
accepted the jiosition of millwright for 
Scofield, Arnold iS: Co., at Alarinette, he 
moved thither in 1880, and has held that 
responsible position ever since, with 
acknowledged care and ability. He built 
the first mill for that lirm on the bay 
shore (which mill has since 188S been 
owned by the Marinette Lumber Co. ), and 
in 1887 he erected the present mill for 
Scofield, Arnold & Co., at Marinette, 
which has a capacity of 150,000 feet 
every ten hours. 

Mr. Nadeau has prospered well and 
deservedly, and in 1892 he built on Main 
street, Marinette, a two-story frame block, 
wherein there are two stores, in addition 
to which he owns five residences in the 
city, which he rents. He takes a lively 
interest in everything pertaining to the 
welfare and advancement of the city, 
county and State of his adoption, and by 
industry and economy has secured a com- 
fortable competency. He is a leader in 
the social affairs of Marinette, a repre- 
sentative citi;;en, and a prominent mem- 
ber of St Joseph's Catholic Church, re- 
spected by all who know hini. In [x.ilitical 
faith he in a Republican. 

ERICK ERICKSON, one of the 
earliest settlers of Marinette and 
Menekaunee, cann' to .Marinette 
county in fuly, 1869. He was 
born in Sweden in 1847, the son of Erick 
and Johanna Christina Erickson, and re- 
ceived his education in his native land. 
His father was a ship carpenter by trade, 
and followed that occupation until his 
tieath in 1886. The mother of our sub- 



592 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ject is still living in Sweden. Mr. Erick- 
son is the youngest in a family of six 
children, all living but one: Johanna, 
Christian, Carrie, Lena, John (deceased), 
and Erick. 

Mr. Erickson learned the carpenter 
and pattern-making business in the Old 
Country, working mainly at the latter 
branch of his trade until he came to 
America. On coming to Menekaunee he 
worked for the New York Lumber Co. 
for two or three years, then engaged with 
S. V. D. Philbrook in the shipyards 
where he was employed until 1895, when 
he commenced business for himself, build- 
ing boats and small crafts generally. Mr. 
Erickson was married in 1S73 to Miss 
Hilda Scttersten, and four children have 
been born to them: Agnes, Esther, Gus- 
toph (deceased), and Irving Grant. 

Mr. Erickson is a Republican, but 
does not take an active part in political 
affairs. Socially, he is a member of Mene- 
kaunee Tent No. 2, K. O. T. M. Being 
a very early settler the kaleidoscopic 
changes which are incident to all new 
countries — "all of which he saw and 
part of which he was" — have inspired 
him with great interest in all progressive 
movements relating to Marinette county 
and her people. 



R 



EV. CARL O. OLANDER is the 
popular pastor of the Swedish 
Zion Lutheran Church at Mari- 
nette. Said church building is lo- 
cated on the corner of Terrace avenue 
and Eighth street, and the society was 
organized August 22, 1875. with a mem- 
bership of seventy-five communicants. 
The parsonage is at No. 732 Terrace 
avenue. Before that time a church which 
was composed of Swedish, Norwegian and 
Danish members, had been organized; 
but now the Swedes are organized for 
themselves. The house of worship was 
burned August 31, 1876, and the present 
church edifice erected during the same 
year. It was, however, remodeled and 



made larger in 1893, and now has a seat- 
ing capacity of nearly eight hundred peo- 
ple. The first church building cost 
$2,500, while the additions, made in 
1893, cost $3,300 more. The member- 
ship of the church has gradual!}' increased 
until at present it has 274 communicants 
and 1 02 children. Those who have offi- 
ciated as pastors of the church are Revs. 
C. O. Olander, 1876-79; M. Erykman, 
1881-82; F. A. Linder, 1883-85; P. M. 
Lindberg, 1889-90; A. A. Dahlberg, 
1 891; C. O. Olander, 1S92 to the present 
time. During the years 1885-89 there 
was no regular pastor employed, the pul- 
pit being filled b}- supplies. The officers 
of the church (1895) "i^e C. W. Sunstrom, 
O. W. Person, P. J. Bowman, Ola Lar- 
son, John B. Johnson, Charles A. John- 
son, trustees; Nels Nelson, secretar}*; 
George Person, Albert Erickson, Peter 
Johnson, E. G. Johnson, John B. John- 
son and N. J. Peterson, deacons. The 
church is in a highl}' prosperous condi- 
tion, and is doing a good work in the 
conununity. 

Rev. C. O. Olander is a native of 
Sweden, born in Malmhack, February 23, 
1850, and is a son of Olaus Olander and 
his wife, Anna Catharina F. Sail, both of 
whom were natives of that country. The 
father was a tailor by trade, but later in 
life became a dairy farmer. He died in 
1854, the mother dying in 1873. Of 
their eight children, seven are yet living : 
Andres Johan and Claes Magnus, farmers, 
residing in Malmback, Sweden; Rita 
Christina, wife of Johannes Young, 
residing at Husgvarna, Sweden; Eva 
Sophia (widow of S. J. Okerberg), re- 
siding at Marathon, Iowa; Anna Maria 
(widow of John Jarl), of North Grosvenor 
Dale, Conn. ; Johanna Ulerika, wife of 
A. O. Olander, also of North Grosvenor 
Dale, Conn. ; and Carl Otto. 

When nineteen years of age, the sub- 
ject of our sketch resolved to come to 
America that he might enter college and 
prepare for the ministry, a calling which 
he had an irresistible desire to follow. 



COMMEMORATIVE UIOaRAPHICAL RECORD. 



593 



On arriving in this country, June i. 1S69, 
he at once proceeded to Paxton, Ford 
Co., 111., and entered Augustana College 
and Theological Seminary (then at that 
city, but in 1875 moved to Rock Island, 
111.). For five years he pursued his studies 
in that institution in the collegiate de- 
partment, graduating in the class of '74. 
Two years later he graduated from 
the Augustana Theological Seminary at 
Rock Island, 111., and was ordained at 
the Synodical Convention at Jamestown, 
N. Y., June 25, 1876. Prior to his ordi- 
nation he had spent some time in Mari- 
nette, and had received a call to the pas- 
torate of Marinette and Peshtigo. Thither 
he moved as pastor July 21, 1876. After 
spending three years here, he resigned, 
but was recalled in 1892, since which 
time he has ministered to the church in a 
very acceptable manner, completing the 
addition to the church building, and ma- 
terially increasing its membership. That 
he is very popular with the church and 
people is attested not only by his recall, 
but by the necessity of increasing the 
seating capacity of the church. 

On July 13, 1876. at Des Moines, 
Iowa, Rev. Olander was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Mathilda Christina 
Bengtson, also a native of Malmback, 
Sweden, and daughter of Abraham 
Bengtson and his wife, Christina Cath- 
erine Magnuson, born in the same county 
and parish in Sweden. Both her parents 
are now deceased, her mother dying in 
1872, her father in 1894. By this union 
sevenchildren have been born: Joshua Ed- 
win Emanuel, who intends to graduate from 
the Augustana College at Rock Island, 
111., 1896; Carl Martin Constantine, Es- 
ther Mathilda Roselia, Helga Elizabeth 
Jubilia and Lydia Christina Cecilia now 
attending the public schools at Marinette, 
and two infants, deceased. 

When Rev. Olander first came to 
Marinette his field of operation was cer- 
tainly a wide one. It included Peshtigo, 
Oconto and other places, as far north as 
Escanaba, Mich., for mission work. 



After being here for a time he called for 
an assistant, the work being too much for 
one man. Leaving Marinette, he went 
to Calumet, Mich., and remained three 
years, when he received a call to Alta, 
Iowa, where he located, doing mission 
work. From Alta he was called to Orion, 
Henry Co., 111., where he remained 
nearlj' eight years as pastcjr of a very 
large church. From that place he re- 
turned to Marinette, where in 1876 he 
first began his ministry, and where he 
had many warm friends who earnestly 
desired his return. That the work ac- 
complished is satisfactory can not be ques- 
tioned. Eternity alone, however, will 
reveal the good done in its entirety. For 
many years he has been, and still is, 
president for and the mission's superin- 
tendent of the Green Bay Swedish Lu- 
theran Mission District in Wisconsin, and 
a part of northern Michigan. He has 
lately been called to other parishes, but 
has not accepted any of them. He may 
stay at Marinette for some time yet. 



KESSANDER LUNDBERG, gen- 
eral merchant at Marinette, came 
to that place in 1872, and entered 
the employ of J. O. Lindquist, with 
whom he remained nine years, and then 
went to Fish Creek, Door Co., Wis., 
where he engaged in the mercantile busi- 
ness, in which he continued until 1886, 
when he returned to Menekaunee, now 
city of Marinette, and purchased the stock 
and building of his old employer, located 
on the corner of Morgan and Hosmer 
streets. The building is 24 x 90 feet, two 
stories in height, filled with general mer- 
chandise. 

Mr. Lundberg was born in Milwaukee. 
Wis., in 1858, and is the son of Charles 
and Catherine (Polsen) Lundberg, the 
former a native of Sweden, the latter of 
Norway. They were married in Norway, 
and about the year 1850 left that country 
direct for Milwaukee, Wis. The father 
was a carpenter by trade, and followed 



594 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



that occupation in connection with coop- 
erinj:; on coming to this country. In 1 867 
the family removed to Fish Creek, Door 
Co., Wis., where they yet reside, and 
where the father follows his trade. Of 
the family of eight children, four are yet 
living: Charles A., a merchant of P'ish 
Creek, Wis. ; Theresa, widow of Charles 
Lund, residing in Marinette, whose eldest 
daughter is the wife of C. J. Noel, of the 
Argus Paper Company; Kessander, our 
subject; Ruth S., who is the wife of 
Charles Settersten, resides in Marinette. 

Our subject was nine years of age 
when the family removed to Fish Creek, 
Wis. His education was received in the 
public schools of Milwaukee and Fish 
Creek, and when but fifteen years of age 
he left home for Menekaunee, where he 
entered the employ of Mr. Lindquist as 
already stated. In 1887 he was united 
in marriage at Marinette, Wis., with Miss 
Catherine Statin, a native of Sweden, and 
daughter of Daniel and Dorothea (Obery) 
Statin, who were also natives of that 
country, and who came to the United 
States and located at Marinette about 
1872. Her father was a tailor by trade, 
and followed that occupation both before 
and after coming to this country. His 
death occurred in 1889, and that of his 
wife in 1883, both dying at East Mari- 
nette, Wis. Of their family there are five 
children yet living: Catherine, now Mrs. 
Lundberg; John and Anna, who reside in 
Chicago; Alice and Eddie, who live with 
our subject. To Mr. and Mrs. Lundberg 
have been born four children: Julia 
Marian, William Orlando, Irene Dorothy, 
and Cassander Catherine. 

In politics Mr. Lundberg is a Repub- 
lican, and for three years was alderman 
from the First ward of the city; during 
the Harrison administration he was col- 
lector of customs. Fraternally he is a 
member of Marinette Lodge No. 189, I. 
O. O. F., and also of the Order of For- 
resters of Marinette. Religiously he is a 
member of the Pioneer Presbyterian 
Church of Marinette, and is one of its 



trustees. In the twenty-eight years in 
which he has been a resident of this 
section of the country, he has witnessed 
many changes, and has taken an active 
part in its development. 



CHARLES EPARVIER has been 
a resident of Oconto county for 
nearly twelve years, and during 
that time has taken an active 
part in its affairs, becoming prominent in 
business, agricultural and political cir- 
cles. A native of " La Belle France," he 
was born in July, 1858, at Lyon, in the 
Department of the Rhone. 

Mr. Eparvier was educated in the 
schools of his native town, Lyon. When 
eighteen years of age he volunteered for 
service in the French army, and for the 
next five years of his life was a soldier in 
the cavalry, stationed at Marseilles. At 
the expiration of his military career, then 
twenty-three years old, he left his native 
countrj- for America, coming first to the 
city of Chicago, and the same year ar- 
rived in Brussels, Door Co., Wis., soon 
afterward finding work on a farm in that 
county. Here he also engaged in news- 
paper work for J. H. Martin, canvassing 
and soliciting. In March, 1884, Mr. 
Eparvier came to Oconto, and for several 
years afterward was employed by others, 
and also embarked in the meat business. 
In 1S89 he opened the Frenchtown 
market, in 1S90 erecting the building in 
which the business was carried on, and 
he himself conducted this market up to 
July, 1895, when he rented the building. 
In 1892 our subject invested in a 120- 
acre tract of land in Oconto county, of 
which about eighty acres are now cleared, 
and on which he has made numerous im- 
provements; he also bought 160 acres of 
cleared land from the Holt Lumber Co. 
In 1892 he erected the tine residence in 
Frenchtown. which he and his family now 
occupy. During his residence in Oconto 
he has also been engaged in the grain 
business, building an elevator at French- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmC'AL RECORD. 



595 



town, and he is at present giving his at- 
tention to real-estate dealing, though 
agriculture claims the greater part of his 
time. Mr. Eparvier has been alderman 
from the West ward of Oconto for four 
years, discharging the duties of his office 
with his customary efficiency and faith- 
fulness. In political faith he is a Demo- 
crat, and he is an acti\'e worker in local 
public affairs. 

In 1S83 Mr. Epar\'ier was married, in 
Brussels, Door Co., Wis., to Miss Kate 
Kirb\', who is a native of Wisconsin, 
born in Suamico, l^rown county. Her 
parents, Michael and Mary (DoranJ Kir- 
b)-, were earlj' pioneers of Brown county, 
settling there in 1S49; the father is now 
deceased, and the mother resides in Door 
county. Six children have blessed the 
union of Chafles and Kate Eparvier, viz. : 
Anna Elizabeth, Jane, John, Ernestine, 
Alphonse and Marius. In religious faith 
the family are identified with the Erench 
Catholic Church, of which Mr. Eparvier 
is trustee. Socially he is a member of 
the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin. 



ALOXZO Y. HOWE, one of the 
early settlers of Marinette, came 
there in 1879 from Hampshire, 
Kane Co., 111., and entered the 
service of the Marinette Iron Works, in 
which he remained for several jears. 

Oursubject was born in Marengo, 111., 
September 12, 1842, son of Phineas and 
Mary (Woodford) Howe, both of whom 
were natives of Randolph, N. Y. His 
grandfather. Nelson Woodford, was one 
of the early pioneers of McHenry county, 
111., and was a soldier in the war of 181 2. 
Alonzo \. Howe enlisted, in 1S61, in 
Company D, Fifteenth 111. \'. I., being 
made corporal, and was raised to the 
rank of first sergeant. Under the com- 
mand of Gen. J. C. Fremont he went 
through the Missouri campaign; was at 
the engagements at Rolla, Mo., Fort 
Donelson, Pittsburg Landing (Shiloh), 
and participated in the battles in and 



around \'icksburg. He was a prisoner 
of war for about four months at Jackson, 
Miss. ; was on skirmish duty at Cairo (111.), 
Clifton (Tenn.), and Huntsville (Ala.), 
and served his full term of three years. 
He took part in all the hardships and 
vicissitudes which his company was called 
upon to undergo, and was honorably dis- 
charged, re-enlisting February 9, 1865, 
and being stationed at Springfield, Illi- 
nois. 

Mr. Howe was reared in McHenry 
and Kane counties. 111., educated in Ma- 
rengo, and was a laborer in the Marinette 
Iron Works Co.'s shops at Marinette, 
Wis. He was married at Woodstock, 
111., August 28, 1865, to Miss Josephine 
Chatfield, a native of McHenry county, 
111., and daughter of Oliver and Charlotte 
(Kimball) Chatfield, natives of New York 
and Ohio, respectively, who came in an 
early day to McHenry count}-. The 
grandfather, Silas Chatfield, was a cap- 
tain in the war of 1812. The father of 
Mrs. Howe in an early da}' came to Illi- 
nois, settling on a farm which he made 
his home during his life. Mr. Howe's 
grandparents on both sides settled in the 
same count}'. Her father died in Mc- 
Henry county, March 12, 1870, and her 
mother at Marinette, Wis., Aj)ril 15, 1872. 
They had twelve children, all of whom 
are still living: Louisa, Mrs. William 
Tibbitts, residing in Iowa; Martha, Mrs. 
Buss, in San Diego, Cal. ; Solon, also 
living in California; Jane, Mrs. Smith, in 
Dakota; Nelson, in Missouri; Laura, wife 
of Judge Amos Holgate, of Marinette ; Silas, 
of Dakota; Josephine, Mrs. A. V. Howe; 
Cornelia, Mrs. Morris, of Marengo, 111. ; 
Oliver, living in Menominee, Mich.; 
Lowell, in Kansas; and Fremont, in Ne- 
braska. 

Mr. Howe had been adjutant of Sam- 
uel H. Sizer Post No. 207, G. A. R., for 
several years before his death, which oc- 
curred in Marinette November 16, 1894. 
He was an active Republican, and took 
great interest in politics. To Mr. and 
Mrs. A. V. Howe three children were 



596 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



born: Devillo and Charlotte May, both of 
whom died at two 3ears of age, and John 
H., who is a traveling salesman for E. 
C. Prescott, dealer in mill and mining 
supplies. He is a stenographer by pro- 
fession, and took court notes when he 
was but seventeen or eighteen years of 
age. Mrs. Howe is a member of the 
Women's Relief Corps, was one of the 
charter members of same, and has held 
various ofTices. She has seen many eventful 
changes in Marinette during the past six- 
teen years, is a lady of refinement, and 
much respected in the community. 



HENRY P. CHRIST is the oldest 
general merchant of Wausaukee, 
Marinette county, of which flour- 
ishing little tovvh he is a repre- 
sentative, wide-awake citizen, and has 
spent the greater part of liis life in Wis- 
consin. 

Mr. Christ was born in i8Co in Mar- 
quette county, Mich., son of Henry Christ, 
a native of France, who emigrated to 
America in early manhood, and located in 
Michigan. There he married Miss Mary 
Sprecher, a native of Switzerland, and 
they became the parents of five children, 
viz. : Frank, who resides in Brown county. 
Wis.; Henry P., whose name introduces 
this sketch; John, who resides in New 
York, near Buffalo; Amos, who is assist- 
ing his brother in the store at Wausaukee, 
and Josephine, Mrs. Brochtrup, of Calu- 
met county. Wis. While in Michigan 
the father of this family worked in the 
copper mines, but on his removal to De- 
Pere, Wis., in 1869, he followed the oc- 
cupation of a collier until 1882, when he 
settled on a farm in Rockland township. 
Brown county, where he and his wife are 
yet living. 

Henry P. Christ received the greater 
part of his education in the schools of 
Rockland township. Brown county, and 
commenced business life in Calumet 
county, where he remained until coming 
to Marinette county. For some time he 



was employed by John Hoff, as clerk, at 
Hoff's Siding, and in 1889 engaged in 
business on his own account in Wausau- 
kee, embarking in general merchandising, 
in which he has since successfully con- 
tinued. He carries a full line of all goods 
usually found in a general store, and does 
a large business, his careful attention to 
the wants and wishes of his customers 
having more than a little to do with the 
patronage accorded him. In addition to 
this he handles the greater part of the 
cedar shipped from this point, and does a 
general delivery business for the accom- 
modation of his customers. On coming 
here he purchased a good one-story frame 
building, which he has since used for a 
store-room. 

In 1890 Mr. Christ was married, in 
Brown county, to Miss Catherine Ryan, 
who was born in Rockland township, 
that county, daughter of Thomas Ryan, 
an early pioneer of Rockland township. 
To this union have been born four chil- 
dren: Margaret, Evelyn, Catherine and 
Harold. In religious faith, the family are 
members of the Catholic Church. Mr. 
Christ is a Democrat in politics, and he 
takes as active an interest in the public 
welfare of his community as in the develop- 
ment of her business interests. Though 
he never neglects his private interests, he 
takes a loyal pride in the progress and im- 
provement of his town and county, and is 
ever ready to support any worthy project 
to that end. He has served as super- 
visor of his township. 



SINAI BRAULT, who, since 1S93, 
has served as commissioner of 
Coleman township, Marinette 
county, is one of the oldest settlers 
of the township, having made the second 
settlement there. His residence dates 
from 1875, eight years before the advent 
of the railroad, and he has always dis- 
played a lively interest in the improve- 
ment and progress of his adopted county, 
taking a leading part in all movements 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



597 



which he had reason to believe were for 
the good of the community in general. 

Mr. Brault was born in 1S57 in Joliette 
county, Canada, son of Eli and Marceline 
(Goudettes) Brault, natives of the same 
place, where the father was engaged in 
the lumber business. Later for nine years 
he was a policeman on the police force 
of Montreal. He also taught school in 
Joliette county. In 1875 he and his wife 
came to Marinette county. Wis., where 
he passed away in 1887; Mrs. IJrault now 
makes her home with our subject. Of 
their famil}- of five children, Ozarie has a 
tailoring establishment in the city of Mon- 
treal; Azarene (Mrs. Edmund Richard) 
lives in Coleman township, Marinette 
county; Isaac resides in Coleman town- 
ship, and is a teacher in District No. lO; 
Octavie is the wife of Joseph Lantern, of 
Coleman township; Sinai is the subject of 
this sketch. 

Sinai Brault was reared and educated 
in the country of his birth, finishing his 
literary training at a college in Montreal, 
and at the age of about eighteen came 
with his parents to Wisconsin, their fam- 
ily being the second one to settle per- 
manently in Coleman township, Marinette 
county. They purchased i 20 acres from 
the Peshtigo Company, lying in Section 
13, the farm on which our subject yet 
makes his home, and of which sixty acres 
are now cleared. He has devoted him- 
self almost exclusively to the care and 
improvement of his land, and conducts a 
general farming business, which by his 
industry and superior management yields 
him a good income. For the past eight 
years he has also operated a threshing 
machine, and has recently provided him- 
self with a steam-threshing outfit, being 
now well equipped in this respect to do a 
large business. 

Mr. Brault was married, in iSSi, in 
Coleman township, to Miss lirmine 
Granger, also a native of Joliette county, 
Canada, where her parents, Marc and 
Julia (Marion) Granger, were also born. 
The mother died in Montreal, Canada, 



and the father subsequently came to Wis- 
consin, taking up a homestead in Cole- 
man township, Marinette county, where 
he died three years later. Seven chil- 
dren have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Brault, namely: Emile, Eugene, Lucien, 
Octavie, Helbertine, Eva and Fred. The 
family in religious connection are identi- 
fied with the Church of St. John the Bap- 
tist, Coleman, of which Mr. Brault is a 
trustee. Politically he affiliates with the 
Republicans, and takes an active interest 
in politics and public affairs in general, at 
present serving as connnissioner of Cole- 
man township and as a director of District 
No. 2. As a citizen who takes a genuine 
interest in the general welfare and pros- 
perity, he is respected and valued through- 
out the township in which his active life 
has been passed. 



JE. UTKE is the most extensive con- 
tractor and builder of Marinette, and 
on all sides are buildings which stand 
as monuments to his enterprise, skill 
and business ability. He is numbered 
among the most esteemed of Wisconsin's 
native sons. 

His birth occurred in .Manitowoc coun- 
ty, December 28, i860, and his parents, 
William and Ernestine (Zetlow) Utke, 
were natives of Prussia. Their marriage 
was celebrated in that land, and in about 
1853 they em'igrated to the New World, 
locating in Milwaukee, Wis. In 1855 
they became residents of Manitowoc coun- 
ty, their home being in the midst of a 
forest, where the father erected a brush 
shanty and began the development of a 
farm, continuing its cultivation until he 
now has a valuable property, upon which 
he and his wife are still living. They 
have reared four children: Anna, wife of 
A. Bruce, a resident of Peshtigo, Mari- 
nette Co., Wis.; Theodore, who is living 
on the old homstead; J. E., subject of 
this sketch; and Ernestine, wife of Jacob 
Brockmann, of Hilbert, Wisconsin. 

Mr. Utke, whose name introduces this 



598 



COMMEMORATIVE BWOBAPJIICAL RECORD. 



review, was reared by an uncle in Rock 
Island, 111., and acquired his education 
in its public schools. He learned the 
trade of carpentering in his native city, 
and in 1880 went to Menominee, Mich., 
where he was employed on government 
work. The following year he went to 
Florence, and took charge of the carpen- 
ter work in connection with the Florence 
mine, where he continued until 1883. In 
the fall of that year he turned his atten- 
tion to bridge work, and in 1884 he came 
to Marinette, where he had charge of the 
bridge work of the Chicago. Milwaukee 
& St. Paul railroad, the Chicago & North 
Western, and the "Soo" road, building 
the wooden bridges for these roads. His 
thorough knowledge of the business, his 
e.xcellent workmanship, and his faithful- 
ness to the interests cf the companies con- 
tinued his service in their employ until 
1 89 1, when he resigned in order to en- 
gage in general contracting. He now 
furnishes employment to twenty-five or 
thirty men, the largest force engaged by 
any one contractor in the city. He now 
has the contract for the erection of the 
new •' Marinette Hotel," on which he be- 
gan operations January i, 1895. It is a 
sixty-three room building, erected in a 
modern style of architecture, at a cost of 
$75,000. He also had the contract for 
the Park schoolhouse, $25,000. also an 
$8,000 addition to the Union school, and 
he has done all the carpenter work in con- 
nection with the schools for the past four 
years. He also erected the McMpine 
residence valued at $7,000, the McDcr- 
mott residence ($2,500), the McAllister 
home ($3,800). the Methodist Episcopal 
parsonage ($4,000), the Porterfield Block 
($12,000). the Kedling flats ($4,000). and 
many other of the finest buildings of the 
city. 

Mr. Utke was married in Florence in 
1883 to Miss Mary V'anAble, a native of 
Oconto county. Wis., and a daughter of 
John VanAble, of Oconto City. They now 
have an interesting family of five chil- 
dren — Charley, Bertha, Raymond. Min- 



erva and Gracey. Socially, Mr. Utke is 
a member of Lodge No. 72. K. P., and 
theTurnverein. He is a reliable, straight- 
forward business man whose success in 
life is largely attributable to his faithful- 
ness to every trust reposed in him. to his 
energy and to his capable management. 
He has persevered in the pursuit of a 
persistent purpose, and gained a most sat- 
isfactory reward. His life is exemplary 
in all respects, and he has the esteem of 
his friends and the confidence of those who 
have business relations with him. 



HJ. PLACE, of the firm of Place 
& Smith, is one of the prominent 
and influential men of Marinette, 
a leader in business and society 
circles, very popular in every way. and 
has an extended acquaintance throughout 
the county. He is the son of Anson J. 
and Caroline (Jackson) Place. 

Anson J. Place was born, in 1833, in 
Hinesburgh, Vt., of English descent. His 
parents, Anson and Frances Mary (Jack- 
son) Place, were farming people, and 
their family consisted of eight children, 
all sons, viz.: Anson J., Clement, Emer- 
son, Alonzo. Dr. Sidney. Andrew, and 
two who died in infancj'. Anson J. 
Place married Caroline Jackson, who was 
born, in 1838, in St. Lawrence county, 
N. Y. , only child of Eliza and Caroline 
(Kinion) Jackson, the former of whom 
was a farmer. Mrs. Jackson died when 
Caroline was six weeks old, and Mr. 
Jackson subsetiuently married Lorena 
May, five children being born to the 
second union, viz. : Ezra, John, George 
W. , Clamania and Cornelia. In 1855 
Mr. Place removed with his family to 
Peshtigo. Wis., obtaining employment 
with the Peshtigo Lumber Co., and there 
remained until 1869. 

In 1857 he opened the first hotel in 
Peshtigo. a log building with a flat roof, 
and still later he erected a more spacious 
and stylish frame building, in which he 
conducted the hotel business for about 





M 


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V 


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i^'"' 


w 


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commemorative: bioorapiiical record. 



599 



nine years. He then disposed of his hos- 
telry, and undertool-; the development of 
a farm near Peshtigo, which, in a new 
and heavily-timbered country, involved 
much personal hardship and courag;e of 
no mean order, as all pioneer farmery 
know (the place is now known as the Con- 
stine farm). In the great fire of 1871 all 
his buildings, grain, stock, implements, 
machinery, etc., were destroyed, and he was 
compelled to take refuge in the Peshtigo 
river during the entire night of that terri- 
ble calamity, the news of which he was 
the first to send forth to the world. His 
family were then living in Marinette. In 
1869 he commenced the butcher business 
in Marinette, opposite Dunlap Square, 
near the bridge, continuing there a num- 
ber of years, when he moved to the cor- 
ner of Wells and Main streets, and there 
established himself in what is now known 
as the Kigsdale property, remaining there 
nntil his death, November 16, 1S75. He 
was a Republican, and took great interest 
in politics. His widow still resides in the 
city of Marinette. Four children were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Place, in the order 
named: Harry J. ; Frances Mary, wife 
of George T. Johnstone, of Marinette; 
William H., who is now conducting a 
boarding stable in Marinette; and Hattie 
Jeannette. 

Harry J. Place was born JuK i<), 
1854, in St. Lawrence county, N. Y., 
and came west with his parents when 
only about one year old. He was edu- 
cated in the schools at Peshtigo, and com- 
menced life on the farm near the city. 
He was fifteen jears of age when his 
father moved to Marinette and engaged 
in the butcher business, buying out Henry 
Bentley, and he always remained at 
home, assisting his father. After the lat- 
ter's death, in 1875, our subject assumed 
full charge of the business, and in 1876 
he erected a building on what was then 
the I. O. O. Y. block, and for some three 
years conducted two markets. He then 
moved to the Perkins block, where he re- 
mained until 1886, and then retiring from 



the firm engaged in shipping stock to the 
West for two years. In 18S8 he resumed 
the butcher business in company with his 
present partner, Mr. Smith, and they 
have the leading market in the city. 
Prior to this, from 1S82 to 1885, he and 
his brother, William H. Place, carried 
on a market in Peshtigo, William H. 
taking charge of same. In 1S90 he com- 
menced handling buggies and carriages, 
in which he still continues, also dealing 
in horses and doing a general business in 
that line. In 1895 he established a wood- 
yard, of which his brother William has 
charge. Mr. Place owns a good, im- 
proved farm in Peshtigo township, ha\-ing 
300 acres in Marinette county, forty acres 
adjoining the city of Marinette. 

In 1877 Ml'- I'lace was married to 
Miss Christina A. Barclay, a native of 
New Brunswick, and they have had 
a family of nine children, two of whom 
are deceased ; those living are : Anson 
Hugh, Mabel Irene, Sadie Barclay, 
George Sidney, Margaret Ethel, Harry 
Royal and Nellie Bloomeretta. The 
family attend the Presbyterian Church, 
of which Mrs. Place is a member. Hugh 
Barclay, father of Mrs. H. J. Place, was 
born in Bathurst, N. B., in 1817, of 
Scotch parentage, and he was the young- 
est of nine children born to Hugh and 
Jane Barclay. He was a carpenter by 
trade. In 1846 he married .Ann Mcin- 
tosh, who was also of Scotch parentage, 
born in 1824 in New Brunswick, daugh- 
ter of David and Margaret (Connacher) 
Mcintosh, both of whom were natives of 
Scotland; they had twelve children. In 
1866 Mr. Barclay came with his family 
to Wisconsin, settling in Menominee, 
where he followed his trade, carpentering. 
Here he died in February, 1891 ; his wife 
survives him. They had nine children, 
two of whom are deceased — Margaret, 
who died when twenty-one years old, and 
James when eighteen years old. Of the 
livintr, Christina A. is the wife of H. 
J. Place; David lives in Menominee; Rob- 
I ert resides at Ford River, Mich.; Hugh, 



6oo 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in Berkeley, Cal. ; Jennie is the wife of 
James Brace, of Mount Carmel, 111. In 
religious connection the entire family were 
Presbyterians. 

Mr. Place is a Republican in politics, 
but neither desires nor aspires to official 
life. Socially he affiliates with the Tem- 
ple of Honor and Lodge No. 182, F. & 
A. M., and he is also a member of the 
Marinette Business Men's Association, 
being one of the oldest business men in 
the city of Marinette. Having passed 
almost his entire life in this region, he 
has seen the cities of Peshtigo and Mari- 
nette grow from obscure lumber villages to 
busy marts of commerce, and the abode 
of civilization and refinement. 



CC. OLIN, grocer and meat dealer 
at Florence, is a native of Me- 
ilina count}', Ohio, born in 1841, 
and is a son of Peleg and Mar- 
garet (Graeff) Olin, the former a native 
of New York, the latter of Pennsylvania. 
In an early day Peleg Olin removed to 
Medina county, Ohio, where he opened 
up a farm near Liverpool, and where he 
resided until his death in 1853. His 
widow is now living in Wood county, 
Ohio. Of their family of seven children, 
four are jet living: Elizabeth, now Mrs. 
E. R. Beach, of Wood count}', Ohio; C. 
C. , our subject; George, who is married 
and residing in Petoskey, Mich. ; and 
Hattie (now Mrs. Hoffman), of Bradner, 
\\'ood county, Ohio. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
on the home farm, near Liverpool, Ohio, 
where he remained until the breaking out 
of the Rebellion, when, in 1861, he en- 
listed in Company C, One Hundred and 
Twenty-fourth O. \. I., for three years 
or during the war. He was mustered into 
the service at Cleveland, Ohio, and was 
with his regiment in the W'estcrn arm)'. 
Among the engagements in which he par- 
ticipated may be mentioned Franklin, 
Chickamauga, Mission Ridge, and Look- 
out Mountain; was also with Sherman on 



his march to the sea. He was wounded 
at Mission Ridge, but soon recovered and 
served his time, being discharged at 
Cleveland, Ohio, in 1865. On being 
mustered out of the service, and receiv- 
ing his discharge, Mr. Olin returned to 
Medina county, Ohio, remaining there 
until 1866, when he removed to Dane 
county, W^is., where he engaged in farm- 
ing, and teaching public school, and also 
in teaching singing school. He was there 
three years, and then removed to Eureka, 
Kans., and later to Shiocton, .Wis., from 
which place he came to Florence. On 
his arrival here, he found a place with 
one saloon and a shanty. He erected a 
store building and engaged in general 
merchandise, being the first dealer in the 
place. From that time to the present he 
has continued in active business, but at 
present is running a grocery store in con- 
nection with the meat market. Mr. 
Olin was married in Medina county, Ohio, 
in i860, to Miss Delia A. Terrell, who 
was born in Medina county, Ohio, a 
daughter of Mason Terrell, a pioneer of 
that county, who there lived and died. 
Three children were born of this union: 
Enmia, the wife of C. S. Hopkins; 
Charles, married, and residing in Flor- 
ence, engaged as bookkeeper in a lumber 
company; and Fred, also married, and 
clerking in Florence. 

In politics, Mr. Olin is an uncompromis- 
ing Republican, and takes an active inter- 
est in political affairs. He was chairman 
of Florence in 1884, and has served in the 
office of town treasurer. Fraternally, he 
is a member of Fisher Lodge, No. 222, 
F. & A. M., of which he is worshipful 
master, and has served in that ofiice for 
the last ten years; he is also a member of 
Florence Lodge, No. 31, K. of P., of 
which he is the present master. In the 
latter body he has served as a represent- 
ative to the grand lodge, and has passed 
all tlie chairs. Mr. Olin is a fine singer, 
and for some years has been a member 
of the Presbyterian choir. He has been 
identified with the county for a period of 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPHICAL RECORD. 



60 1 



fifteen years, and is one of the oldest 
settlers in his section. On the organi- 
zation of the county, he was appointed, 
by Governor Lewis, treasurer of the coun- 
ty. He also assisted in the organization 
of the town, and is the pioneer merchant 
of the locality. 



FI>:ANK E. SACKETT, who is agent 
at Marinette for tlie American Ex- 
press Company, is a native of 
Wisconsin, born at Appleton June 
26, 1857. 

His parents, H. C. and Sophia (Post) 
Sackett, were both born in New York, in 
which State they were reared and mar- 
ried, and came to Appleton, \\'is., in 
about 1849, settling among the early 
pioneers on what is now College avenue. 
Mr. Sackett followed carpentering, and 
engaged in contracting and building, being 
one of the well-known carpenters and 
builders in that region, and he had a wide 
acquaintance throughout Outagamie coun- 
ty. His death occurred at Appleton in 
1892; the widow still resides on the same 
lot where they settled in 1S49. They 
reared a family of nine children, of whom 
Charles M., a contractor and builder, re- 
sides in New London, Wis. ; George is 
manager of a sawmill and lives in Apple- 
ton; H. L. is also a resident of Appleton, 
and is a carpenter by vocation; Mary and 
Ida are both in Appleton; Clarence is in 
Fond du Lac, in the employ of the Wis- 
consin Central Railway Co. ; Lulu (Mrs. 
Urie) lives in Winslow, 111. ; Fred M. is 
connected with the Electric Light Co. at 
Stevens Point, Wis. ; Frank E. is the 
gentleman whose name opens this sketch. 

Our subject was reared in Appleton, 
Wis., and received his education in the 
public schools of that city. In 1876 he 
commenced life for himself, engaging with 
the American E.xpress Co., in whose em- 
ploy he has been ever since. During the 
first two years he was driver at Appleton, 
and then went on the road, acting as mes- 
senger for the greater part of the time for 



several years. For nine months he was 
employed as temporary agent at Menom- 
inee, Mich., in 1889 being transferred 
thence to Marinette, and being employed 
on the road from Marinette to Crystal 
Falls. Mich., until March, 1892, when he 
was appointed to his present position as 
agent. Mr. Sackett is well-known, in 
social circles, as a member of Marinette 
Lodge No. 182, F. & A. M., in which he 
is at present serving as Worshipful Mas- 
ter, anil of Marinette Chapter No. 57, R. 
A. M. 

Mr. Sackett was married in Marinette, 
Wis., in 1881, to Miss Jennie Van de 
Bogart, a native of that city, whose par- 
ents, John and Mary (McBride) Van de 
Bogart, were born in New York. They 
came in an early day to Wisconsin, jour- 
neying by boat from Green Bay, and first 
settled on the Michigan side, after a short 
time removing to East Marinette, Wis., 
where Mr. Van de Bogart was foreman in 
a sawmill for some years. He and his 
wife arc now residing in Menekaunee. 
Four children have been born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Sackett, viz.; Leima, Hattie, Will- 
ard and Ida. Our subject is a Republican 
in political sentiment, and is deeply inter- 
ested in the success of his part}\ 



ERIi; P. LAUGESEN, hardware 
merchant of I'lorence, I'lorence 
Co., Wis., was born in 1858, in 
Denmark, and is a son of L. C. 
Eriksen, and Mary Eriksen (Sorensen), 
who were both born in Denmark. The 
mother died in 1876. L. C. Eriksen was 
a miller by trade. The family consisted 
of four children — one son and three daugh- 
ters, namely: Erik P. is the subject of 
this sketch: Mariane, the wife of Peter 
Nielsen, is living in Denmark; Core died 
in Denmark in her young age; Sorine is 
yet in that country. L. C. Eriksen, the 
father of Erik P., came to this country in 
1890 to live his last days with his son, 
and is still here. 

Erik P. Laugesen was reared in Den- 



6o3 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOOEAPEICAL RECORD. 



mark, eilm ;ii( d in the schools of that 
country, and learned the trade of black- 
smith, working at that some three and 
one-half jears. In 1S79 he embarked for 
the United States, and landed in New 
York, thence taking the train to Philadel- 
phia, Penn. P'rom there he journeyed 
on foot to Chicago, 111., the journey tak- 
ing seven weeks, from April i to May 18, 
and came to Rolling Prairie, near Laporte, 
Ind., got a job, and his first work in this 
country was farming. He worked at that 
till October, and then went to Chicago, 
where he worked some in a lumber-yard. 
But the lumber business stopped and 
starvation stared him in the face; how- 
ever, he met a friend from Denmark, who 
lent him money enough to take him to 
Wisconsin. 

The first place in this State he reached 
was Appleton, Outagamie county, and then 
went into the employ of the Milwaukee 
and Lake Shore Railway Co., who were 
then building the road to Wausau, Wis., 
to which place Erik P. followed up the 
job. He then went to New London, 
Wis., where he followed his trade for 
nearl}- two \ears, there working for John 
Friburger. From New London he went 
to Waupaca, Waupaca Co., Wis., where 
he also worked at his trade for P. A. 
House; in 1882 he established his own 
blacksmith shop at Ogdensburg, Wis., 
and later moved his whole works to 
Symco, Waupaca county, where he after- 
ward went into the hardware business, 
which he sold out in 1887. 

In September, 1882, Erik P. Lauge- 
sen was united in marriage at New Lon- 
don, Wis., with Miss Ane Maggie Nielsen, 
who was born in Denmark. Her parents, 
Christian and Cora Nielsen, came to this 
country in 1872, settling in Wiscon- 
sin, where, in Deer Creek, Outagamie 
county, they bought a farm, and have 
since resided there. The family of Mr. 
and Mrs. Laugesen consisted of four chil- 
dren, namely: Mary, Laura, Emme and 
Christ. On July 25, 1S95, Mr. Lauge- 
sen lost his beloved wife, who for thirteen 



\i.airi had been his true helper, a loving 
mother to her four children, and a most 
kind wife; she was thirty years old when 
she died. 

In 18S7 Mr. Laugesen engaged in 
the general mercantile business at Cran- 
don. Forest Co., Wis., and later, in De- 
cember, 1890, sold out at that place, and 
moved to Florence, where he again em- 
barked in the general hardware trade, 
with a small capital of not over $500, 
which he has since increased, so that 
at this writing he carries a stock to 
the value of from $5,500 to $6,000; he 
now bujs for cash, and sells for cash. 
He handles farm machinery, shelf hard- 
ware, mining supplies, paints and oil. He 
devotes his entire time to his business, 
and speculates in nothing else. When he 
came to this country our subject borrowed 
his passage money from the man that 
learned him his trade in Denmark. 

Our subject is a Republican, polit- 
ically, but holds no public office, nor seeks 
any, and he belongs to no secret order of 
and kind. He goes to the Christian Mis- 
sionary Church in Florence, and believes 
in the Bible and in the works of God. He 
is recognized by all who know him as a 
thorough, practical, self-made business 
man, and as such has the respect and 
esteem of the entire communit}'. During 
his sixteen-years' residence in Wisconsin 
he has naturally seen many of the changes 
and improvements which have taken place 
in that locality, especially in his own sec- 
tion. 



D.Wll) B. BAUDER. who is now 
living a retired life in Abrams, 
has for many years been identified 
with Oconto county, and has long 
been numbered among its valued citizens. 
He was born in Canada in 1S36, and is a 
son of Henry H. and W'ealthy (Longj 
Bauder, the former a native of Herkimer 
county, N. V., the latter of Massachusetts. 
The father was a shoemaker by trade, and 
for some years resided near Kingston, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



603 



Canada, in I1S37 re in ov in,": to Jefferson 
county, N. Y., where he died in 1869. 
His wife afterward came to Oconto 
county, but her death occurred in Oswego 
county, N. Y., in 1S75. They iiad a 
family of nine ciiildren — Jerome, who 
was born in Canada, and served in the 
Mexican war, afterward went to Cah- 
fornia, and died in San Francisco about 
1850; Mrs. Martha Hill, who resides in 
Chicago, 111. : William, living in Oswego 
county, N. Y. ; John, a sailor, residing in 
Cleveland, Ohio; Jane, wife of John Tow- 
ner, died in Macon, Mo. ; Daviel \'>. is the 
ne.xt in the family; Mrs. Elizabeth Wil- 
cox, who resides in Oswego county, 
N. Y. ; Samantha, living in Massachusetts; 
George W., who served for three years 
in the Thirty-fifth N. Y. \' . I., and re- 
enlisted in Company H, Thirteenth N. Y. 
C, serving till the close of the war; he is 
now living in Marinette, Wisconsin. 

Our subject was reared in Jefferson 
county, N. Y., and educated in the pub- 
lic schools. At an early age he left home 
and went out into the world to earn his 
own living. He drove team on the Erie 
canal for four years, chen went to New 
York City, and shipped for a four-N-ear- 
cruise on whaling ship (the "Jenette") 
from New Bedford, Alass. They sailed 
around Cape Horn, made the port of 
Valparaiso, in South America, then sailed 
to New Zealand, for supplies; thence 
sailed for the Society Islands, for wood 
and water, and have a run on shore. 
Before sailing north they staid there two 
weeks, then weighed anchor,' and sailed 
for the Sea of Ochotsk, where they were 
caught in the ice for two weeks, but finally 
succeeded in making their way out to 
Behring Strait. After the whaling season 
was over they sailed for the Sandwich 
Islands, arriving at Honolulu port, fifteen 
months from the day they sailed from 
New Bedford. Fifteen of the crew being 
down with the scurvy, they had to leave 
eight of their men in the hospital and 
ship eight of the natives in their places. 
After staying there two weeks, they sailed 



for the Friendly Islantis to overhaul the 
ship — scrape, wash and paint her— and 
get wood and water and tropical fruit. 

On their second voyage north they 
sailed up the coast of China through the 
China Sea, the Yellow Sea and the Japan 
Sea into the Sea of Ochotsk. They 
captured many whales the second season, 
then sailed for the Sandwich Islands, 
where the men were given liberty on 
shore. Not wishing to go north another 
season, they ran away from the ship, and 
stowed away on the vessel "Petrel," 
homeward bound. On the way home 
they stopped at New Zealand for supplies, 
then sailed around Cape Horn, and ar- 
rived at New Bedford three years and 
eleven months from the time of first sail- 
ing. When paid off Mr. I?auder had just 
!f45 for three years' work, which was for 
wages on the passage home from the 
Sandwich Islands. 

He arrived at Albany August 15, and 
then shipped as steersman on the Erie 
canal. At the close of the season he vis- 
ited home, after being away nine years. 
He had heard from home only once since 
leaving. His father had no fatted calf to 
kill, but he killed the biggest hen. The 
next year our subject tried farming, but 
it did not pay at $I3 a month. From 
the spring of 1857 until the spring of 
1 86 1 he sailed on the lakes between Buf- 
falo and Chicago, as steward. On the 
breaking out of the war in 1861 he en- 
tered military life in Bond county, III, 
joining Company D, Twenty second 111. 
V. I., in the State service for the protec- 
tion of the border, his term lasting thirty 
days. At the second call of President 
Lincoln for 300,000 volunteers he joined 
the United States service at Ijelleville, 
III., went to Caseyville, 111., and joined 
the army of the West at Bird's Point, 
Mo. At the battle of Belmont, Mo., Mr. 
Bauder was wounded above the eye, and 
was sent to the hospital where he was 
discharged on account of disability. He 
then returned to Chicago, III., and again 
shipped as steward on the lakes; but his 



6o4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



health was so poor he went east to 
Watertown, N. Y. , and clerked in a store 
for one year. His health becoming much 
better, he went on the lakes again as 
steward, as wages were \evy high. 

In the following j'car, 1863, he was 
married at Watertown, N. Y., to Miss 
Jennie M. Fitzpatrick, a native of that 
place and a daughter of Mathew and 
Margaret i Farley) Fitzpatrick, early set- 
tlers of the Empire State. On October 
1 5 the vessel he was on was wrecked on 
Pilot Island, at Death's Door, on Lake 
Michigan, and our subject was lashed to 
the mast for twenty-four hours before 
rescued. That was the last of his sailing. 
Returning to Watertown, N. Y. , he went 
into Mr. Hoard's gun factory to help 
make guns for the government; worked 
there three months, and then went to 
Ilion, Herkimer county, and worked in 
the Remington armory until 1 869, when 
he came with his wife to Pensaukee, 
Oconto Co., Wis., where he purchased a 
farm of 160 acres, which he continued to 
cultivate until 1874, when he removed to 
Menominee, Mich. Here he and his wife 
were successfully engaged in merchan- 
dising for nine years. While there he 
invented and patented three valuable in- 
ventions. He then returned to his farm, 
and between his farm and his inventions 
he is a very busy man; but he is now retired 
from active business life, having, through 
his enterprise and energy in former years, 
acquired a handsome competence. Mr. 
Bander is an illustrious prototype of a 
self-made man; realizing that success is 
not a matter of family connection or for- 
tunate circumstances, but is the reward 
of earnest labor, he set himself to achieve 
it, and prospered. 

In politics our subject is a Republican, 
and he and his wife are members of the 
M. E. Church. He is acting as notary 
public. Socially he is a member of the 
T. O. Howe Post, G. A. R., of Green 
Bay, while his wife is a member of the 
Women's Relief Corps, the au.xiliary of 
Sizer Post, of Marinette, Wis. Their 



friends are many, and they are well 
worthy of the high regard in which they 
are held. 



EDG.AR O. THOMAS, a promi- 
nent citizen of Grover township, 
Marinette county, is a son of E. 
S. and Malvina (Beardsley) 
Thomas, and was born in New York in 
1851. 

E. S. Thomas and his wife were born 
in New York, and in 1849 migrated to Ou- 
tagamie county, Wis., settling in Horton- 
ville, where Mr. Thomas died September 
2, 1895; he was a filer by trade. Mrs. 
Thomas died in Hortonville in 1883. 
They reared three children, two of whom 
are now living — Edgar O., the subject of 
this sketch, and Oscar, who is a plumber, 
residing in Chicago; Elnora M. (Thomas) 
Leslie died December 29, 1880, at Hor- 
tonville. Edgar O. Thomas was reared 
in Hortonville, Wis., and received his 
education in the schools of that place. 
After leaving school he engaged in well- 
drilling in the surrounding country', in com- 
pany with C. A. Nye, and in 1872 he went 
to Sturgeon Bay, Door Co., Wis. , residing 
in that county until 1883, well-drilling in 
company with E. Bermingham. 

In Marinette county, in 1878, our 
subject was united in marriage with Eme- 
line McDonald, who was born in Mari- 
nette county, and they had two children: 
Ray and Jay. Mrs. Thomas died in 1S83. 
Her parents, John L. and Celina (Mac- 
Pherson) McDonald, were born in Can- 
ada, and now reside in Grover township, 
of which locality they were early pioneers. 
From Door county Mr. Thomas came, in 
1883, to Grover township, where he 
bought the farm on which he now resides, 
comprising 160 acres, of which forty were 
partly improved, and he has since erected 
a good one-and-a-half-story frame resi- 
dence and other buildings. In 1885, in 
Peshtigo township, Marinette county, 
Mr. Thomas married, for his second wife. 
Miss Linda Jackson, who was born in 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECOBD. 



605 



Oconto county, Wis., and they have had 
four chilch'en; Virf^il, George, Letha Belle 
and May. The father of Mrs. Thomas, 
janies Jackson (now deceased), was an 
early pioneer of Oconto county. 

Mr. Thomas has 160 acres of land, 
140 of which are under cultivation. He 
is also engaged in well-drilling, and has 
carried on this work all over the northern 
country. In political affiliation he votes 
with the Republican party; he is chairman 
of Grover township, having been elected 
in the spring of 1895, and has been on 
the town board three j'ears. He has 
seen much of the growth and development 
of Marinette county, and has taken great 
interest in what would be for the general 
welfare. 



M 



A. EGGLESTON. This gentle- 
man, although a native of an 
Eastern State, has spent almost 
his entire life in Wisconsin, and 
has been identified with the interests of 
Oconto county for over a quarter of a 
century. 

Mr. Eggleston was born October 25, 
1845, in Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co.,N.Y., 
son of James Madison and Louisa M. 
(Washburn) Eggleston, who were natives 
of Vermont and Massachusetts, respec- 
ively. They were married in Franklin 
county, Vt., thence removing to St. Law- 
rence county, N. Y., and thence, in 1849, 
to Milwaukee, Wis. In June, 1850, they 
came to Appleton, where he erected the 
first sash, door and blind factory, oper- 
ating same for eighteen years. In 1868 
he retired from business and removed to 
Ripen, Wis., where his death occurred 
in 1892; Mrs. Eggleston died there in 
1889. They were the parents of four 
children, viz. : Mary Jane, who died in 
Vermont; Seymour, who came to Oconto 
in 1866, and was employed by Holt & 
Balcolm (he now resides at Iron River, 
Mich.); Mrs. H. L. Tuttle, residing in 
Ripon, Wis. ; and M. A. 

The subject of our sketch was four 



years of age when his parents came to 
Wisconsin. He received his education in 
the schools of Appleton, and in 1864 en- 
listed there in Company E, Fortieth Wis. 
V. I., for one hundred days, or during the 
war; was mustered into the service at 
Madison, and was sent to Memphis, Tenn., 
where he remained during his entire term 
of service. He was honorably discharged 
September 16, 1864, at Madison, and 
returned to his home in Appleton. Dur- 
ing the following three years he clerked in 
a store in Appleton, spent the winter of 
1868-69 in Ripon, and in April, 1869, he 
came to Oconto, entering the employ of 
the Holt & Balcolm Lutnl)er Co., with 
whom he worked one summer. In 1.S70 
he was engaged by R. L. Hull, and re- 
mained with him three years, as deputy 
count}' survevor, after which lie followed 
land surveying many years. For over 
one year Mr. Eggleston was in the railway 
mail service, and has since been in the 
employ of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. 
Paul Railway Co., being warehouse and 
baggage man at Oconto. 

In May, 1872, Mr. Eggleston was mar- 
ried, at Oconto, to Susan A. Bowers, a 
native of Wisconsin, daughter of George 
W. Bowers, who came to this State in an 
early day, locating first in Green Bay and 
subsequently in Oconto. He now resides 
in Louisville, Ky. Socially, Mr. Eggles- 
ton is a member of Pine Lodge No. 188, 
F. & A. M., and of E. A. Ramsey Post 
No. 74, G. A. R. In political sentiment 
he is a Republican. 



ANTON H. LUCKENBACH, one 
of the most enterprising business 
men of Oconto, Oconto county, 
and proprietor of one of the finest 
and best-equipped drugstores in the State 
of Wisconsin, was born in Manitowoc, 
Wis., in 1 86 1. 

Michael Luckenbach, the father of 
our subject, was born in Prussia, and 
came to this country in 1852. He was 
married at Detroit, same year, to Mary 



6o6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



Ann Anheiiser, and in 1854 they moved 
to Wisconsin, settling at Manitowoc. They 
became the parents of eleven children, 
nine of whom are living, as follows: Will- 
iam, Anton H., John (married), Simon, 
Maggie (married), Katherine (married), 
Annie, Josephine and Maria. Our sub- 
ject came to Oconto in 1878, and com- 
menced work with Underbill & Mott, 
druggists, and in 1S83 he passed his ex- 
amination before the State Board of 
Pharmacy, at Madison. Mr. Luckenbach 
has been verj- successful in his business 
career, and he well deserves the prosper- 
ity which has come to him, for it is the 
result of perseverance and diligence. 

On August 6, 1882, Mr. Luckenbach 
was married to Catherine Strack, of 
Oconto, and they have had four children, 
three of whom are living: Walter A., 
Josephine S., and Edith M. One son, 
William, twin of Walter A., died in in- 
fancy. Mr. Luckenbach gives his polit- 
ical support to the Republican party. He 
has been active in city affairs, having for 
the past si.x years served as alderman, 
and he is at present on the school board. 



JH. McLaughlin, superintendent 
of the Marinette and Menominee 
Paper Co. , is an experienced paper 
manufacturer. The company oper- 
ates three paper mills, No. i at Marinette, 
No. 2 at Menominee, and the Park Mill 
at Marinette, in connection with which 
they operate one sulphite mill and two 
ground-wood pulp-mills. They give em- 
ployment to about two hundred and fifty 
men. The officers of the company are 
A. Spies, president (Menominee); A. C. 
Merr3inan, vice-president (Marinette); E. 
L. Hamilton, secretary; H. J. Brown, 
treasurer; Frank Silliman, assistant sec- 
retary and cashier; H. W. Hamilton, as- 
sistant superintiMident; Albert Spoor, fore- 
man of No. 2 Mill. 

Mr. Mcl-aughlin is a native of North 
Lee, Berkshire Co., Mass., born in 1851, 
and is a son of Miles and Mary (Glennon) 



McLaughlin, both of whom were also na- 
tives of Massachusetts, the former being 
of Scotch-Irish ancestry, and the latter of 
Irish. The father was engaged in the 
paper business at North Lee, Mass., with 
which industry he was connected all his 
life. He died in 1878, the mother in 
1893. Of their family there are seven 
living children: Katherine (now Mrs. J. 
M. Reedy), of Adams, Mass. ; J. H., our 
subject; Anna (now Mrs. Frank Ferris), 
of New York City; M. J., who resides at 
Lee, Mass. ; Mark, also residing there; 
Lillian, of New York City; and Rose, of 
North Lee. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in his native city and educated in its pub- 
lic schools. In his youth he commenced 
work in the paper-mills of the Smith Paper 
Co., with whom he served an apprentice- 
ship. He then worked at various mills in 
North Lee, Mass., and other places, and 
in 1882 came west to Appleton, Wis., in 
the employ of the Kimberly-Clark Co., 
and took charge of the Vulcan Mills, mak- 
ing book paper. He made the first fine 
book paper in the Fox River Valley. In 
1883 he left the Kimberly-Clark Co. 
to build the Ravine Paper Mills for 
the Fox River Paper Co., in which he 
had an interest. That company made 
the first fine writing paper in the 
West, and were therefore pioneers in that 
industry. After remaining with this 
company three and one-half years, Mr. 
McLaughlin severed his connection to be- 
come general superintendent of the Van- 
Nortwick Paper Co. This last company 
operated mills at Appleton and Kaukauna, 
Wis. , and Batavia, 111., and Mr. McLaugh- 
lin divided his time between the several 
pulp and paper mills. He remained with 
that company about four years, in 1893 
coming to Marinette where he took charge 
of the mills of the Marinette and Menom- 
inee Paper Co., with whom he yet re- 
mains. As already stated, he is a practical 
paper manufacturer, and has had experi- 
ence in every branch of the business. 

Mr. McLaughlin was married at Holy- 



^ 





^!^Z^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



607 



oke, Mass., in 1873, to Miss Mary Flood, 
who was born at Troy, N. Y. , and daugh- 
ter of Joseph and Catherine (Coffey) 
Flood, natives of Canada, who, in an early 
day, emigrated to Holyoke, Mass., where 
the father was engaged in the manufacture 
of paper, which business he learned in his 
youth, and which he has followed up to 
the present time. Both her parents are 
yet living at Holyoke, Mass., and are in 
the enjoyment of good health. By this 
union two children have been born: John 
Francis, who is attending college in New 
York City, and Katherine A. who makes 
her home in Milwaukee, Wis. Mrs. Mc- 
Laughlm died in July, 18S4. at Appleton, 
Wisconsin. 

Fraternally, Afr. McLaughlin is a mem- 
ber of Fo.x River Lodge, K. of P. , at 
Kaukauna, of which he is one of the char- 
ter members. He is a pioneer paper 
manufacturer in Wisconsin, and to him, 
as much as any one man, is due the de- 
velopment of that industry in the State. 



NELS OLSON, an enterprising and 
successful farmer of Gro\'er town- 
ship, Marinette county, is a son 
of Ole and Mary (Jacobs) John- 
son, and was born in Sweden October 
12, 1S34. 

Mr. Johnson and his wife were born in 
Sweden, and there remained, the father 
dying in 1877, the mother many years be- 
fore. Of their children, five sons came to 
Wisconsin: John resides in Minnesota; 
Nels is the subject of this sketch; Swen is 
married and resides in Grover township; 
Peter is in Peshtigo, working for a lumber 
company; and Jacob is also in Peshtigo, 
working for the Peshtigo Lumber Com- 
pany. Their sisters are in Sweden: 
Christina is Mrs. Swen, Anna is Mrs. Nel- 
son, and Carrie is Mrs. Anderson. 

Nels Olson was reared and educated 

in Sweden, and served in the drill in the 

army. For an occupation he followed 

farming. In Sweden, in 1864, he was 

united in marriage with Miss Anna John- 
35 



son, who was born in that country and 
they had four children, namely: Anna 
(now Mrs. Fried), of Marinette; Ole, who 
resides in Oshkosh; Christian and Nellie. 
In 1869 Mr. Olson came from Sweden to 
the United States, and for eighteen months 
worked in Marinette county. Wis., for A. 
C. Merr3-man. In 1870 he settled in 
Grover township, renting UukI, and in the 
Peshtigo fire of October 8, 1871, he was 
completely burned out, his wife and two 
of his children. Christian and Nellie, also 
perishing in the ffames. He was in com- 
pany with thirteen others, and was the 
only one of the fourteen left alive in the 
morning. In 1872 he bought forty acres 
of his present farm in Section 4, Cirover 
township, made improvements, and erect- 
ed a good house and barn. He now owns 
160 acres in a good state of cultivation. 
In Peshtig(j, Marinette count}', in 1873, 
Nels Olson again married, taking for his 
second wife Miss Jennie Jaciibson, who 
was born in Sweden May 1, 1842. To 
this union have been born two children: 
Anna (now Mrs. Frank Peck), who re- 
sides in Grover township; and Mary (now 
Mrs. Duncan Taylor). In politics Mr. 
Olson votes the Republican ticket. He 
assisted in forming Grover township, and 
was a member of the board of supervisors 
for si,\ years. He is a member of Pesh- 
tigo Lodge No. 185. I. O. O. F. Both 
he and his wife are members of the 
Lutheran Church. After the fire he com- 
menced anew, without a dollar, and has 
since acquired the property he now pos- 
sesses. He has e\er taken an active in- 
terest in the welfare of the conununity 
and the interests of the count\'. 



SH. JOHNSTON, of the firm of 
Johnston Brothers, general mer- 
chants, Marinette, has been en- 
gaged in business in that city since 
1872. The firm is one of the oldest and 
most successful in Marinette. They oc- 
cupy a portion of the Johnston block, 
which is a two-story brick structure, fa- 



6oS 



COM^ET^ORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



cing on Main street, with a frontage of 
154 feet, and a depth of 120 feet. The 
building was erected in 1SS7-S8, the 
lower floors being occupied for the mer- 
cantile work and the upper stories for 
their offices and flats. When the firm 
established the business, in March, 1S72, 
Marinette had a population of but two 
thousand five hundred. It has now a 
population of seventeen thousand. The 
firm have kept pace with the growth of 
the city, until their business is now one 
of the largest in northern Wisconsin. 

Mr. Johnston is a native of Canada, 
born in 184", and is a son of Samuel and 
Jane Johnston, both of whom were na- 
tivs of the same countrj'. Samuel John- 
ston, the father, was by occupation a 
farmer, and he followed that calling dur- 
ing his entire life. He died in Canada 
in 1S47. His wife, the mother of our 
subject, died in Vermont in 1890. They 
were the parents of two children: C. R., 
vice-president of the Stephenson National 
Bank, who located in Peshtigo in 1868; 
and S. H. The boyhood and youth of 
our subject were spent in Canada, and his 
education was obtained in the public 
schools of that country. He was reared 
to farming, which occupation he only fol- 
lowed during his youth, in early manhood 
going to Lowville, N. Y., where he learned 
the tanner's trade and remained until 
coming to Wisconsin, in 1S72. On ar- 
riving here he engaged in general mercan- 
tile trade, in which he has ever since 
continued. He has been very successful, 
and he is numbered among the most en- 
terprising and prosperous business men of 
Marinette. 

Mr. Johnston was married at Mari- 
nette, in 1875, to Miss Hattie Merryman, 
a native of Maine, and daughter of Hugh 
and Julia Merryman, both of whom were 
natives of Maine, but who in an early day 
migrated to Marinette, Wis. Hoth par- 
ents are yet living, residing in Marinette, 
and are honored as pioneers of the local- 
itv. In politics Mr. Johnston is a pro- 

iting for such 



men and measures as he thinks will best 
advance the interests of the State and 
Nation. Fraternally, he is a member of 
Olive Branch Lodge, No. 250, A. F. & 
A. M. ; of Marinette Chapter, No. 64, R. 
A. M. ; of Marinette Commanderj- and 
also of Marinette Lodge, No. 72, K. of P. 
In religious faith he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Episcopal Church; the}- both 
take an active interest in Church work 
and do all in their power to advance the 
Masters cause. Few men are better 
known in Marinette county, and none are 
more highly respected thanMr. Johnston, 
who has spent more than a quarter of a 
century in active business life in the beau- 
tiful city of Marinette. 



nounced Independent, 



THOMAS CALDIE, a representa- 
tive farmer residing in Section 23, 
Stiles township, Oconto county, 
has made his home on his present 
farm for thirty-one years. The history 
of frontier life in this locality is familiar 
to him, and he has ever borne his part in 
the work of upbuilding and development. 
There were no roads, no improvements 
and little indication of the progress of 
civilization when he located in his neigh-- 
borhood. He purchased eighty acres of 
wild timber land, built thereon a log 
house, i8.\24 feet, and began to clear 
the land. Slowly but surely he subdued 
the wild tract, transforming it into richl}' 
cultivated fields, and in 1879' the cabin 
home was replaced by a comfortable, 
two-story frame residence which to-da}- 
stands in the midst of a well-improved 
farm. 

Mr. Caldie came to Oconto county in 
1S63 from Ottawa, Canada, where he 
had located the year previous. He was 
born in Ayrshire, Scotland, December 20, 
1S24, and is a son of James and Agnes 
(Ross) Caldie. the former born in May- 
bole, Ayrshire, and the latter in Inver- 
ness-shire. She, however, was reared in 
the Highlands, and their marriage was 
celebrated in Ayrshire. The father there 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORArUWAL RECORD. 



609 



engaged in hdtjkkecping for tlic liriii of 
Campbell & Hunter, ami also followed 
teaching. In 1840 lie crossed the Atlan- 
tic to Canada, vvlune he engaged in teacdi- 
ing in the town of March until his death 
in 1S57. Mis wife, who survived him 
eight years, also passed away in Canada. 
Their family numbered six children: 
Mary became the wife of .Mr. Fisher, 
who for twenty-one years was an engineer 
in Scotland, and died on his engine; she 
now resides at Low Cross, in her native 
land. Thomas is the ne.xt younger. An- 
drew and |ames reside in Canada. Jane 
was married and died in Canada. 

Our subject spent his boyhood days in 
his native: land and attended school in 
Ayrshire. He then followed farming until 
1862, when, as before stated, lie crossed 
the Atlantic to America. In the same 
year he was married in Ottawa, Canada, 
to Miss Jane McFarland, who was born in 
Stirlingshire, Scotland, and is a daughter 
of James Mcl'"arland, also a native of that 
place. He spent iiis entire life in that 
country, but his family emigrated to Can- 
ada, his son Thomas now residing in To- 
ronto; William died in Ottawa. Shortly 
after his marriage, Mr. Caldie brought his 
bride to Oconto county, and they located 
in the midst of the wilderness. I'^ive chil- 
dren came to bless their pioneer home: 
Ed, the eldest, married Margaret Butter- 
field, by whom he has two children, - 
George and Theron, — and resides in 
Oconto. Thomas wedded Mary Duane, 
and is living in Stiles, in the same house 
where his father resided thirty years ago; 
he has tliree children — Thomas, Granville 
and Claude. Lizzie is the wife Azro 
Williams, of Oconto, and they have three 
children — Maude, Thomas and Ruby. 
James married Anna Hodgins, and they 
have a daughter — Jane. Andrew com- 
pletes the family. Mr. Caldie was called 
upon to mourn the loss of his wife who 
passed away March 14, 1890. 

In political views, our subject was for- 
merly a Republican, afterward becoming 
identified with the Democracy. He has 



served as su]>cr\isor of his township for 
two years, but has ne\'er been an office- 
seeker, preferring to elevote his time ami 
energies to his business. In matters of 
religion he holds meml)ershi|> with the 
Presbyterian Church. He l)elongs to that 
class of self-reliant and energetic men, 
who realizing the fact that success is the 
outgrowth of diligence and enterprise de- 
]iend upon their own resources for advanc- 
nient, and work their way upward to a 
|)ositioii of ailhu'iice. 



CR. KELSEY, one of the earliest 
settlers of Coleman townshiji, 
Marinette county, where he is ;i 
prosjuirous farmer, was born in 
1846 in Delaware comity, N. Y., where 
he was reared and educated. 

Dayton L. and Eunice (Walkerj Kel- 
sey, parents of our subject, were natives 
of Massachusetts, but passed the greater 
part of their lives in New York State, 
where the father followed the vocations 
of lumberman and farmer. They both 
ended their days in New York State, the 
mother in 1881, the father in. February, 
1888, when aged eighty-three years. 
They had a family of five childriMi, of 
whom John W. resides in New York; 
Olive (Mrs. Weed), resided in Peshtigo, 
Wis., where she died in 1886; Florelta is 
the widow of Charles Brooks, and resides 
at Ellis Junction, Wis. (Mr. Brooks was 
a homesteader in Marinette county); Mary 
(Mrs. Dougherty), died in Green Bay; C. 
R. is the subject of these lines, 

C. R. Kelsey learned the carpenter's 
trade in his native county, and in 1869, 
soon after reaching man's estate, migrated 
westward to Wisconsin, locating first in 
Peshtigo, Marinette ccnmty, where he fol- 
lowed his trade several years. In 1876 
lie came to what is now Coleman town- 
ship, and taking up an eighty-acre tract 
in the midst of the forest made a perma- 
nent settlement thereon, being the first 
settler in the western part of the town- 
ship. Of this farm, which lies in Section 



6io 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOGRAPITTCAL RECORD. 



4, Mr. Kelsey has cleared and improved 
sixty acres, and carries on a general farm- 
ing business which yields him a comfort- 
able income. He has also aided in the 
improvement and progress of the region 
in general, and was one of the organizers 
of Coleman township in 1893. 

In 1869 Mr. Kelsey and Miss Harriet 
Axteil, also a native of Delaware county, 
N. Y. , were there united in marriage. Of 
the children born to their union seven are 
deceased; the five living are Clarence, 
who is married and resides in Coleman 
township; Laura (Mrs. Stapleford), of Cole- 
man; Claude Duval, Alice and Maude. 
Mrs. Kelsey's parents, Abraham and Lydia 
(Baker) Axteil, were born in Delaware 
county, N. Y. ; the father died many years 
ago, and the mother, who subsequentlj' 
married a Martin Kelsey, died in October, 
1895. At the time of the conflagration 
of October 8, 1871, which swept Pesh- 
tigo out of existence, our subject and his 
little famil}' were living there, and he and 
his wife succeeded in saving themselves 
and their two children, Clarence and 
Charlie, by taking refuge in the Peshtigo 
river among the logs. Mr. Kelse)-, by 
virtue of his long residence in the town- 
ship, is entitled to be classed among its 
pioneers, and he is honored and respected 
throughout the community in which he 
makes his home. 



FIJIAN K LAPAGE. As a citizen 
who has taken a loyal and sub- 
stantial interest in the welfare of 
the community which he has se- 
lected for his home, and, while attending 
thoroughly to his own affairs, has also 
sought to promote the general advance- 
ment and progress, this gentleman de- 
serves prominent mention in these pages. 
Mr. Lapage was born, in 1835, in 
Quebec, Canada, of which country his 
parents, Amable and Sophia ('Lacasc) La- 
page, were also natives, the family being 
of French descent. The father, who was 
a carpenter, departed this life in 1891, in 



Quebec, where the mother still resides. 
C3f their family, Frank is the subject of 
these lines; Gilbert, who came to Wis- 
consin, now resides in Iron Mountain, 
Mich. ; John formerly resided in Oconto, 
\\'is. ; Felix lives in Marquette, Mich.; 
Lewis in Montpelier, Vt. ; four are in 
Canada — Selina (Mrs. Fortier), Mary 
(Mrs. Tongee), Sophia (Mrs. Leroy), and 
Sullivan, who is unmarried. 

Frank Lapage passed his youth and 
early manhood in his native place. In 
1855 he came to the United States, for a 



year living in Manchester, N. H., and 
1856, removing westward to 
n Kewaunee, Ke- 
Here he was engaged in 



thence, in 
Wisconsin, locating 
waunee county 
fishing for about three years, or until com- 
ing to Oconto, in 1859. He found em- 
ployment with what is now the Holt & 
Balcolm Lumber Co., then Norton, at 
$12 per month, continuing thus for sev- 
eral years, since when he has devoted 
himself to agricultural pursuits. In 1865 
he purchased, from the State, his present 
farm, consisting of 140 acres, in Section 
2, Oconto township, which was then all 
in the woods. In 1 866 he settled here 
permanently, in that year building and 
commencing to clear the land, and the 
work of improvement has progressed 
steadily ever since. Eighty acres are 
now cleared and under cultivation, and 
though he has been unusually prosperous 
his success is well merited, for he has 
worked hard for the comfortableproperty 
he now possesses. He came to Oconto 
county before the railroad, and he has 
witnessed the introduction of that and 
many other modern improvements and 
innovations. He has been a most faith- 
ful, public-spirited citizen, supporting 
every worthy enterprise intended to bene- 
fit the public in general. He was most 
instrumental in having School District No. 
1 formed, of which he is treasurer, and 
he has been school director nearly twenty 
years. He served his township several 
terms as supervisor. Mr. Lapage is treas- 
urer of the Creamery Company in Oconto 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



6ii 



township, being a stockholder and director 
of same. 

In i860 Mr. Lapiage was united in 
marriage, in Green Bay, Brown Co., 
Wis., with Miss Celesten Herrio, a native 
of Belgium, wiiose father, Manuel Herrio, 
came to Wisconsin in 1856, dying in 
Green Bay in 1877. Nine children iiave 
blessed this union, as follows: Celina 
(Mrs. Alfred Greenwood), of Florence, 
Wis. ; Frank, who is married and resides 
in Little River township; Gilbert, also 
married and residing in Little River town- 
ship; David; Samuel; James; Martha 
(Mrs. Jeffer), of Waushara count}-, Wis. ; 
Sarah, residing in Menominee, Mich., and 
Louise. In religious connection the fam- 
ily are Presbyterians, Mr. Lapage being 
an elder in the church, and he assisted in 
the erection of the church building. Polit- 
ically he is a Republican. 



CHARLES w. McDonald, a 
prosperous farmer of Pensaukee 
townshi[i, Oconto county, has 
lived in the county since 1851, 
coming here when a youth. He is a na- 
tive of Maine, born in Lubec in 1840, son 
of William and Love (Ramsdell) McDon- 
ald, who were also natives of that State, 
where they passed their earlier lives. 
The father was a mill man, and also 
owned a farm. He died in 1852, the 
mother in 1842. 

Our subject was but a child when his 
parents died, and he was reared b}- his 
brother William, who came from Maine 
in about 1849, locating in Berlin, W'is. 
William died in 1863, in Michigan. He 
was the father of the following named 
children: Catherine (now Mrs. Yenner), 
who resides in Rhinelander, Wis. ; James, 
who came to Berlin, thence to Oconto, 
and now resides in Rhinelander; and 
William, living in Chicago. In Decem- 
ber, 1 85 1, when about twelve years of 
age, our subject came to Oconto county, 
to work in the mill at Leighton, and also 
found employment with George Smith, 



doing chores. However, he was soon 
engaged in wliat was then a very popular 
vocation among young men, lumbering 
in the woods, and he continued thus for 
some years, until he reached the age of 
eighteen. He then engaged in sailing on 
Lake Michigan, from Milwaukee to Man- 
istee, for two years, and in 1865 returned 
to Oconto county and engaged in lumber- 
ing for John Leigh, for whom he worked 
some years. In 1871 he purchased forty 
acres of his jiresent farm in Section 6, 
Pensaukee township, which was then all 
in the woods, and he now has eighty 
acres all under cultivation, with good 
buildings and many other substantial im- 
provements. Mr. McDonald commenced 
life without capital, for when he came to 
Oconto from Berlin lie was obliged to 
walk the entire distance, and he has 
made the trip a number of times. But 
by dint of hard labor and perseverance he 
has succeeded in ac(juiring a comfortable 
property, which yields him a good income, 
and he has lived to see the forest-covered 
region, into which he moved, transformed 
into a fertile farming country. Though 
he has been prosperous, he has also had 
his setbacks, for the great fire which ^•is- 
ited this region in 1871 left him and his 
family with nothing but the clothing they 
wore. 

Mr. McDonald was married, in 
Oconto, November 21. i86g, to Ellen 
Glynn, wiio was born in Ireland and 
reared in Oconto count}'. Her parents, 
James A. and Susan (Reinhart) GI}'nn, 
were also natives of the Emerald Isle, and 
came in an early day to Dodge county, 
Wis., thence in 1853 moving to Oconto 
county. Here Mrs. Glynn died in 1855, 
in Oconto township, and Mr. Glynn now 
resides in Maple Valley township. To 
Mr. and Mrs. McDonald four children 
have been born, viz. : Edward; Lovetta, 
who is teaching in Pensaukee township; 
James and Charles. Mr. McDonald in 
politics votes with the Democratic party, 
and takes a loyal interest in public affairs; 
he is clerk of the school district. In re- 



6l2 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



ligious connection Mr. and Mrs. McDon- 
ald are members of the Presbjterian 
Church at Couillardville. 



w 



W. NOYES, general grocery 
merchant at Florence, Florence 
county, was born in Maine, near 
Hangor, and is a son of Charles 
C. and Eunice (Annis) Noyes, who were 
born in New Hampshire. 

Charles C. Noj'es was reared in New 
Hampshire, where he yet resides, in Lan- 
caster. B}' occupation he is a miller, 
and has been engaged in the sawmilling 
business. Ke married Eunice Annis, and 
they had four sons, namely: Charles, 
who resides in Florence, in the lumber 
business; John, residing in Berlin, N. H. ; 
Holman, in Lancaster, N. H. ; and W. W. , 
the subject of this sketch. Mrs. Eunice 
Noyes died in Lancaster, N. H., in 1892. 
\V. W. Noyes was reared in New 
Hampshire, and educated in the schools 
of Berlin, that State. In 1877 he came 
from New Hampshire to Shiocton, 
Outagamie Co., Wis., being at that time 
twenty-one years of age, and embarked 
in the grocery business there the same 
year. In 1 878 he was united in marriage, 
in Outagamie county, with Miss Clara 
Rynder, who was born in Outagamie 
county, and they have had three children: 
Arthur, Myrtie and William W. Mrs. 
Noyes' father, John Kynder, was an 
early pioneer of Outagamie county; he 
enlisted from that county as a soldier in 
the war of the Rebellion, and died in the 
service. 

In 1880 Mr. Noyes came from Shioc- 
ton to Florence, before the county was 
organized, built his present residence the 
same year, and engaged in the grocery 
business. He was one of the first men 
here, and is one of the oldest business 
men of Florence, having been in active 
trade here continuously since 1880, be- 
fore the railroad reached the town. In 
politics he is a Republican. He is chief 
of the Fire Department of Florence, and 



has served as township treasurer; is senior 
deacon of Fisher Lodge No. 222, F. & 
A. M. ; and a member of Florence Tent, 
K. O. T. M., of which he is past com- 
mander. Mr. Noyes is one of the oldest 
merchants of Florence, and has seen the 
growth and development of the county 
from its verj' beginning. 



nette 



CHARLES REINKE is a typical 
representative of that worthy 
class of Americans who, thrown 

upon their own resources in early 
life, become self-reliant and enterprising 
citizens, steadily working their waj' up- 
ward, and overcoming the obstacles and 
difficulties in their path by a persever- 
ance and energy that falters not until 
they have gained the plains of affluence. 
Mr. Reinke was born in Prussia, Ger- 
many, July 28, 1847, a son of Fred and 
Anna (Funk) Reinke, also natives of that 
country. Having crossed the Atlantic to 
the New World, they located in Sheboy- 
an. Wis., but are now residents of Mari- 

They reared a famii}' of three 
children, namely: Charles, the subject of 
this review; and Gustaph and Mrs. Au- 
gusta Stoltz, both also living in Mari- 
nette. In the Fatherland our subject 
spent the days of his childhood and youth 
attending the common school and acquir- 
ing a good education. In 1 867 he re- 
solved to seek a home in America, think- 
ing thereby to- better his financial condi- 
tion, and made his first location in the 
copper-mine region of Michigan, where 
he remained about eight years. He lived 
an industrious, frugal life, and in that 
way acquired the capital with which he 
was enabled to engage in mercantile pur- 
suits. In 1874 he went to Sheboygan, 
Wis., and the following year established a 
grocery store which he conducted until 
1 878. He then sold out and came to Mari- 
nette, where he opened a grocery, being 
the oldest merchant in his line of trade in 
the city. Erecting a frame building, he 
conducted his business therein until it 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGIiAPmCAL RECORD. 



613 



was destroyed by fire in 1887. With 
characteristic energy Mr. Keinl<e sought 
other quarters, at once recommencing 
business, and in the autumn of the same 
year he built a good two-story brick busi- 
ness block, 25 X 125 feet. Here he now 
carries on an extensive wlmlesale and re- 
tail grocery, the upper floor of his build- 
ing being used as a wareroom. Some- 
thing of the characteristic executive 
ability of ^^r. Reinke is apparent in the 
fact that his buih.ling was destroyed on 
October, 20, 1S87, and on January i, fol- 
lowing, he was ready to move into the 
new building — the first merchant to have 
a store completed in Marinette. He 
thoroughly understands his business, has 
studied the trade carefully, knows what 
will please his patrons, and his honorable 
dealing commends him to the confidence 
of the public. 

Mr. Keinke is a man of no small 
ability, his efforts being by no means 
limited to one line of trade, and he has 
dealt considerably in real estate — both 
city and country. He has been the pro- 
moter of various enterprises which have 
added to the general welfare as well as 
advanced his individual prosperity. He 
is a stockholder in the Stephenson Na- 
tional Bank, and also stockholder in, and 
director of, the "Hotel Marinette." 
When the Building and Loan Association 
was organized, December 2, 1895, he 
was elected president of saine. 

Mr. Keinke was married in Sheboy- 
gan, Wis., in 1877, to Miss Lizzie Kay, 
a native of that city, her father, Christ 
Kay, being one of its pioneer settlers of 
1847. Nine children grace their union, 
viz.: Otto, Gustoph, Fred, Julius, Wal- 
ter, Anna, Louise, Clara and Meta. 
Mr. Reinke and his famil}' arc members 
of the Lutheran Church, and in politics 
he is a stalwart Republican. He is a 
representative self-made man, has been 
the architect of his own fortune, is liberal 
and progressive, and ranks among the 
representative and honored citizens of 
Marinette. 



HENRY B. CONNERS, a pros- 
perous farmer and one of the 
best known men in Oconto coun- 
ty, is a native of Wisconsin, born 
November 24, 1S58, in the town of Ash- 
ford, Fond (hi I^ac county. 

Our subject is tiic son of Michael 
Conners, who was born in Count)' Gal- 
way, Ireland, and came to this country 
in 1846. He did not remain in the East, 
however, but came to Wisconsin, set- 
tling on a farm near New Cassel, Fond 
du Lac county. In 1855, the \'ear of his 
coming to Wisconsin, he was married, at 
Fond du Lac, to Mrs. Ellen Muloy, and 
they had four children, three of whom 
are living : Hannah, the eldest, died 
young; Henr}' B. was the second in order 
of birth; Ellen and Mary are both mar- 
ried. The mother of this family died in 
1869, and the father passed from earth 
in 1 89 1. On August 6, 1882, Mr. Henry 
B. Conners was married to Alice Darling, 
of Belle Plaine, Shawano Co., Wis., the 
eldest daughter of Erastus Darling, a 
well-to-do farmer of Shawano county. 
They have no children. Mr. Conners 
owns a farm in the town of Underhill, 
fifty acres being under the plow. During 
his younger days, before he settled on the 
farm, he worked in the woods and on the 
river, and was known as one of the best 
workers and strongest men that ever 
handled a pike pole. Mr. Conners is an 
ardent supporter of the Republican party, 
and takes an active part in local politics. 
He is popular in the community where he 
lives, and has held various town offices 
in Underbill and Howe township. At 
present he is serving as under sheriff. 



CHARLES H. HAHN, commander 
of A. H. Sizer Post No. 207, 
G. A. R. , Marinette, was elected 
to the office in 1894. The Post 
has seventy-three names on its roll of 
active membership. 

In September, 1861, in Center coun- 
ty, Penn., Mr. Hahn enlisted for three 



6i4 



COilMEUORATTVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



jears in the Fifty-sixth P. \'. I., and was 
mustered into the service of the Union 
at Harrisburg. His 



was as- 



signed 



to the Second Brigade, First 
Division, First Army Corps, Army of the 
Potomac, and took part in tiie battles of 
Gainesville, second Bull Run, South 
Mountain, Antietam and Gettysburg. It 
was the first to fire on the enemy in the 
last named action. During that fight 
Mr. Hahn received a gunshot wound in 
the thigh, and was then transferred to 
Company H, \'. K. C, Pennsylvania In- 
valid Corps. He was honorably dis- 
charged and mustered out of the army at 
Harrisburg, Penn., February 6, 1865, 
when he returned to his home in Center 
county, Pennsylvania. 

Mr. Hahn was born in Franklin, 
Center Co., Penn., September 2, 1844, 
and was there reared and educated. His 
parents were John and Mary E. (Kemp- 
ster) Hahn, both natives of the Keystone 
State, the former of whom, a farmer by 
occupation, lived in Franklin, Center 
county, until his death, which occurred 
in .Altoona, Penn., in 1887. The mother 
died in 1S71. They had four sons and 
four daughters, only four of whom are 
now living : Elizabeth, wife of James 
Rockey, of Altoona, Peim. ; Anna (Mrs. 
Fo.\), of Omaha, Neb. ; Charles H. ; and 
William Wesley, of Omaha. 

In 1S69 Charles H. Hahn came to 
Marinette, and found employment in 
McCartney's mill (now owned by Scofield | 
& Arnold) for a short time, when he went 
to work for the Peshtigo Co., at Peshtigo, 
remaining in their emploj' for six years. 
On the night of the fire of 1871 he was i 
burned out, and like many others was 
compelled to go to the river for safety, 
where he lay all night between two logs. 
In 1875 he returned to Marinette and 
again worked for Mr. McCartney. After- 
ward he was with the Menominee River 
Lumber Co. and H. Whilbeck Co. for 
thirteen years. In 1894 he embarked in 
the livery business with a partner, the 
firm name being Malmsted & Hahn. 



Mr. Hahn was married, in 1S70, at 
Peshtigo, to Miss Addie Stuart, a Cana- 
dian by birth, daughter of John Stuart, 
one of the early arrivals at Peshtigo. now 
deceased. They had but one child, Lil- 
lian, who died in infancy, and Mrs. Hahn 
died June 8, 1872. On January 23, 
1876, at Big Suamico, Brown county, 
Mr. Hahn for his second wife married 
Miss Sarah Witham, who was born in 
Milford, Maine, daughter of William 
W'itham, one of the pioneers of Brown 
county. Wis. Four children blessed this 
union, Mary Elsie, William \\'aldo, Alice 
Eva, and Charles Harrison (deceased). 
Mr. Hahn is a stanch Republican, and 
takes an active interest in political affairs. 
As his record shows, he is a man of 
prominence in G. A R. circles; is also a 
member of Marinette Lodge No. 181, 
I. O. O. F., and of Brasted Encamp- 
ment No. 86. He is one of the old- 
timers in his section of the State, and has 
noted its development as the years have 
fled by, more especially that of the cities 
of Marinette and Peshtigo, by whose 
people he is held in high regard. 



JOHN J. McGILLIS. an esteemed 
citizen of Marinette, holding the 
office of Justice of the Peace, was 
born in Cornwall. Canada, August 
22. 1833, and is a son of John A. and 
Margaret (Mcintosh) McGillis. The 
former, a native of Inverness, Scotland, 
emigrated to Canada when a young man, 
and there married Miss Mcintosh, who 
was born in Canada of Scotch parentage. 
He followed farming, and made Cornwall 
his home until his death, in 1S69; his wife 
had died at that place seven years pre- 
vious. They had a family of eleven chil- 
dren — four sons and seven daughters — of 
whom Catherine, the eldest, is now Mrs. 
McGilnery, of Burdette, Canada; Marga- 
ret, who was Mrs. McGilnery, of the 
same place, is now deceased; John J. is 
the suliject of these lines; A. J. died in 
Marinette; R. J. resides in Cornwall; A. 




^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



615 



F. in an early day located in Menominee, 
Mich., where he is now engaged in con- 
tracting and building (he also followed the 
lumber business there at one time); 
Anna, his twin sister, is now Mrs. McFee, 
of Minnesota; Mary resides in Marinette; 
Mrs. Flora Gillies is living in Fond du 
Lac, Wisconsin. 

The subject of this review was reared in 
Canada upon his father's farm, and the 
public schools of the neighborhood af- 
forded him his educational privileges. 
There he learned the carpenter's trade 
and also engaged in rafting, making three 
trips to Quebec on rafts. Ere leaving his 
native land he was married in Toronto, in 
1862, to Miss Isabel Campbell, a native 
of Canada, and a daughter of Ale.x and 
Jennie Campbell, who were born in Scot- 
land; her father is still living in Canada, 
but her mother is deceased. In their 
family was a son who served in the Union 
army during the Civil war. To Mr. and 
Mrs. McGillis have been born si.x chil- 
dren (five of whom are 3'et living), 
namely: John A., who is manager of 
the tailoring business for his father; Mrs. 
Maggie Ross, of Dakota; Frank, who 
died at Fond du Lac, Wis., when one 
year and nine months old; Fred, who is 
employed as traveling man with the Noble 
Bros. ; and Edmund Orlando, and Ed- 
M'ard Alex, who are at home. 

Mr. McGillis is one of the early pio- 
neers of Marinette. He came to Wiscon- 
sin in the fall of 1864, locating in Pesh- 
tigo, where for two months he was in the 
employ of the Peshtigo Lumber Co. In 
the winter he went to Negaunec, where 
he helped to build a sawmill for the Cliff 
Mining Co., but after operating it for four 
months he removed to Fond du Lac, 
Wis. He was there engaged in carpenter 
work for ten months in the employ of the 
Chicago & North Western Railway Com- 
pany, after which he engaged in carpen- 
tering on his own account and as real-es- 
tate agent for B. F. Moore. On May 5, 
1869, he made a permanent location in 
Marinette, then a town of 500 inhabitants. 



and here followed contracting and build- 
ing, doing a good business along that line 
for about fi\e j'ears. He then turned his 
attention to the real-estate business, 
which he now successfully carries on. In 
July, 1895, he bought cnit the Marinette 
Tailoring Co., and his son John A. is 
managing it for him. Mr. McGillis also 
carried on the grocery business in Mari- 
nette from 1876 till his election as sheriff 
in 1881, when he sold out. 

In politics Mr. McGillis is a Republic- 
an, and cast his first vote for Gen. Grant 
on his first election. He always takes 
an active interest in political affairs, and 
has been honored with a number of of- 
fices. He first served as constable, and 
was appointed deputy sherifi of Oconto 
county before Marinette county was es- 
tablished, serving in that position for 
eighteen months. He was then elected 
sheriff of Marinette county, and after a 
term of three years entered u]ion the du- 
ties of justice of the peace. He is also 
serving as notary public, and in these 
various positions has ever been prompt 
and faithful. He is one of the active 
members of the Caledonia Society, at 
present being pipe-major of same, and 
for two years he served as secretar}' and 
on the finance committee, and also on the 
games committee. He is a fine performer 
on the bagpipes, quite a musician, and 
also something of a composer. Mr. Mc- 
Gillis is a valued and progressive citizen, 
devoted to the best interests of the com- 
munity, and prominently identified with 
the political history (if his adopted 
county. 




W. WHITCOMH has lived on 
his present farm in Pensaukee 
township, Oconto county, for 
thepast thirty-four \-ears, having 
come here with an ox-team and covered 
wagon from Walworth county. 

Mr. Whitcomb was born in Erie coun- 
ty, N. Y. , in 1 84 1, son of Edmond and 
Louisa (Marsh) Whitcomb, the father a 



6i6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



native of New York, the mother of Ver- 
mont. They were married in New Yori< 
State. In 1841, when Wisconsin was 
still a Territory, the family removed west- 
ward, locating in Kenosha county. Wis., 
where the father opened up a farm in the 
woods, this being their home until 1861. 
In that year they came to northern Wis- 
consin, settling on a new farm in Pensau- 
kee township, Oconto county, where our 
subject now resides. In this region the 
parents passed the remainder of their 
lives, both dying on a farm in Suamico 
township to which they had removed, the 
father in 1893, the mother in 1882. They 
were the parents of three children, \'\z.: 
W. W. ; Caroline (Mrs. Edgar Delano), 
of Pensaukee; and H. D., sheriff of 
Oconto county. 

Our subject received his education in 
the schools of Kenosha county, where he 
passed his youth and early manhood. He 
was twenty years old when he came to 
Oconto county, with whose interests he 
has ever since been identified, especially 
in the agricultural development of Pen- 
saukee township. He opened up a farm, 
and is now the owner of eighty acres of 
good land in Section 25, all of which is 
cleared, sixty acres being under cultiva- 
tion. In addition to the labor involved 
in the care and improvement of his farm 
he has worked in the lumber woods to 
some extent for the F. B. Gardner Lum- 
ber Co. Mr. Whitcomb has taken an 
active interest in the affairs of the com- 
munity where he has so long made his 
home, and has aided materially in its 
improvement and transformation from a 
forest wild to a condition of cultivated 
fertility. 

In 1866 Mr. Whitcomb was united in 
marriage, in Suamico township, with Miss 
Elizabeth Barker, and five children have 
been born to this union, as follows; Percy, 
Joycie (Mrs. Nicholas, residing in Pen- 
saukee township), Herbert, Leslie and 
Eric. Mrs. Whitcomb was born in New 
Hampshire, daughter of James and Lu- 
cinda (Gouldj Barker, who were also na- 



tives of that State, where Mrs. Barker 
died. In 1858 Mr. Barker came to Pen- 
saukee, Oconto county, and here passed 
the remainder of his life, dying in Oconto 
in 1870. 

This sketch would be incomplete were 
mention not made of Mr. Whitcomb's 
service during the war of the Rebellion. 
On December 28, 1863, he enlisted for 
three years or during the war, at Madi- 
son, Wis., in Company F, Twelfth W'is. 
V. I., and served in the army of the Ten- 
nessee, joining his command at Vicks- 
burg. He participated in the siege of 
Atlanta, was on the famous march to the 
sea, went through the Carolina campaign, 
and saw active service at the battle of 
Bentonville, N. C. (1865), taking part 
also in every engagement in 1 864 in which 
his command was engaged. He partici- 
pated in the Grand Review at Washing- 
ton, D. C. , and was discharged July 23, 
1865, at Madison, after an honorable 
army career of over a year and a half. In 
political sentiment Mr. Whitcomb is a 
Republican. 



ABRAM POLDERMAN, proprietor 
of the " Polderman House," Flor- 
ence, came to that city in June, 
1 88 1, and erected a three-story 
frame hotel, 30 x 80 feet, with twenty-five 
sleeping rooms, together with parlor, of- 
fice and fine sample room for cojnmercial 
travelers. The hotel has no bar, but is 
elegantly furnished for the accommodation 
of guests. The dining room is thirty 
feet square, and the office 30 x 22, while 
the entire house is lighted by electricity, 
and the rooms supplied with hot and cold 
water. Florence is now recognized as a 
fine summer resort, and there is no better 
place in the entire Northwest for those 
afflicted with hay fever and catarrh, in 
which to spend a few months. The hunt- 
ing and fishing are excellent, and the 
place is surrounded with fine lakes and 
delightful drives, with good springs of ex- 
cellent water. The proprietor of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIIAPIIICAL RECORD. 



6i 7 



" Polderman House " keeps an excellent 
team for the accommodation of guests, 
and takes pleasure in showing them around, 
and catering to their wants. He owns 
a number of boats on Patten Lake and 
Half-Mile Lake. In the neighborhood 
can be found wild game of almost every 
kind, including deer, while in the waters 
of the lakes are fine bass and other fish. 

Mr. Polderman is a native of Holland, 
born at Middleburg, February i8, 1S3S, 
and is the son of Abraham and Martha 
(Skulewerf) Polderman, wlio were also 
natives of that countrx'. The father, who 
was mate of a merchant .vessel, died on 
the North Sea, when our subject was 
about one year old. For twenty-one years 
and two months he was in the employ of 
one company. Mrs. Polderman subse- 
quently married Cornelius Blom, also a 
native of that country, and, in 1845, the 
family set sail from Rotterdam, were 
thirty-five days on the voyage from that 
place to New York City, and were also 
thirty-five days cii route- from New York 
to Sheboygan, Wis., coming through by 
canal and team. They located on a farm 
in the town of Holland, Sheboygan Co., 
Wis., and opened up a farm. Later they 
moved to Sheboygan F"alls, where Mr. 
Blom died in 1S64. Mrs. Blom survived 
him some years, and died at Menasha, 
Wis., at the home of our subject. By 
her first marriage she was the mother of 
three children: Cornelius, who died in Wis- 
consin; Abram, our subject; and Will- 
iam, who married, but died at Sheboygan 
Falls in 1863, of quick consumption. By 
the second union there were four children: 
Henry, who resides at Sheboygan, Wis. ; 
William, who was in the one-hundred- 
days' service on the Plains, and was acci- 
dentally killed at Menasha, W'is. , in 1866; 
Kate, who died in the town of Holland 
in i860; and Charlie, who owns a music 
store at Kalkaska, Michigan. 

When coming to this country our sub- 
ject was seven years of age. He remained 
at home and was educated in the schools 
of Sheboygan county, Wisconsin, in the 



meantime assisting in clearing the home 
farm. In 1858 he went to St. Louis, Mo., 
where he worked in the brick yards, and 
then learned the moukler's trade. He 
next engaged in boating on the Missis- 
sippi, Ohio and Cumberland rivers, com- 
mencing as a deck hand, and becoming 
second mate. On the breaking out of the 
war, he was in the South, but escaped, 
walking 408 miles north. He came to 
Kenosha county, Wis., and first located 
at Union Grove, but soon after went to 
Sheboygan county, and worked in a hub 
and spoke factory at Sheboygan Falls. 
From the latter place he proceeded to 
Menasha, Wis., working in different fac- 
tories, and later, in 1864, he went to 
Peshtigo, \\'is. He was proprietor oi the 
Peshtigo Co.'s boarding-house for one 
year, 1876. 

Mr. Polderman was married at She- 
boygan Falls. Wis., in 1S63, to Miss Eliza 
TenDolle, who was born in Holland, 
daughter of John TenDolle, also a native 
of that country, who came to the United 
States and located at New Orleans, where 
he died. Her mother then came to She- 
boygan count}'. Wis. , and lived with her 
son John ; she died there some years ago. 
There were nine children in the family, of 
whom four daughters are deceased ; the 
son and four daughters surviving are: John, 
who is a farmer in Sheboygan county ; 
Eliza, Mrs. Polderman ; Jane (widow of 
Mr. Wedepohl), who lives in Sheboygan, 
Wis.; Minnie, also living in Sheboygan, 
who is the widow of Mr. Wilterdinck, 
who was a large farmer ; and Delia, wife 
of Mr. Raymaker, a large farmer in She- 
boN'gan county. 

Mr. Polderman removed from Peshtigo 
to Menominee, where for three years he 
conducted a boarding house for the Lud- 
ington. Wells & Van Schaak Lumber Co. 
He then opened a restaurant in Marinette, 
later taking the " Dunlap House;" but 
after running that one year he sold out 
his interest and went to Quinnesec, Mich., 
and for a short time had a private board- 
ing-house there. But he soon rented the 



6iS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



' ' Commercial Hotel"and later the ' ' Quin- 
nesec House," running both these hostel- 
ries some two years, after which he sold his 
interest there and came to Florence. 
Here he built the hotel of which he is now 
proprietor, the " Polderman House." He 
also owns a fine farm, and has other real- 
estate interests, having city property in 
Sheboygan, Wis. In politics Mr. Polder- 
man is a stanch Republican, but is not 
an office-seeker. He assisted materiallj- 
in the organization of Florence count}', 
and has been prominently identified with 
its business interests from the time of his 
arrival in 1880. Fraternally he is a mem- 
ber of Fisher Lodge No. 222, F. & A. 
M. ; of Marinette Chapter No. 57, R. A. 
M., and of Florence Lodge No. 31, K. of 
P. Few men have been more active, and 
none are more highly esteemed, than the 
subject of this sketch. 



SP. SELLLVOLD, a well-known 
merchant of Marinette and chief 
of police, was born in Norway in 
1863, and is the son of Peter 
Thorkelson and Carrie (Sorenson) Selle- 
vold, both natives of Norway. His 
mother died there in 1894, and his father, 
a farmer, still lives in that country. They 
have had a family of si.\ children, five of 
whom are in this country. Thomas has 
been a resident of Dakota since 1886; S. 
P. is our subject; Anna resides in Chicago; 
Charles, a partner with S. P., in a board- 
ing-house, came here in 18S6; Louise 
is still in Norway; Andrew lives in Mari- 
nette. 

Mr. Sellevold was reared and edu- 
cated in the schools of Norway, and at 
the age of nineteen years came to Mari- 
nette, the first of the family to come to 
America. For two years (1890-91) he 
served on the police force. In 1883, on 
coming to Marinette, Mr. Sellevold was 
employed as cook by the Hamilton-Merry- 
man Co., and worked for them in that 
capacity for seven years. He then took 
charge of their boarding-house which he 



still retains. In 1891 he engaged in the 
flour and feed business at No. 151 1 Main 
street, his present location, and in 1894 
established the boot and shoe house of 
Sellevold & Hanson in the Cook building 
on Main street, which firm is taking a 
prominent place among the merchants of 
Marinette in that particular line of busi- 
ness. 

In 1889 Mr. Sellevold was married to 
Miss Carrie Hanson, a native of Norway 
and a daughter of Hans Hanson, who 
still resides in Norway. Mrs. Sellevold 
died in Marinette in 1891. He then, in 
1893, married Miss May Thorkelson, who 
was also born in Norway, a daughter of 
John Thorkelson. One child, Clara 
Helen, has blessed this union. Mr. Selle- 
vold is affiliated with the Republican 
party; is a member of the Norwegian 
Lutheran Church, and at present is presi- 
dent of the Norwegian Literary Society. 
He takes great interest in the welfare of 
both the city and county of Marinette, 
having been here ever since its organiza- 
tion, aiding in all possible ways, and wit- 
nessed the various changes both have un- 
dergone during his residence here. He 
was appointed chief of police September 
4, 1895, by the Republican party. 



ST. BEATTIE, superintendent of 
the Florence mines, has been a 
resident of Florence, since 1887. 
The mines were first opened in 
1880, and the output of ore, with the ex- 
ception of the years 1884-85, has been 
very large. The largest shipment was in 
1880, when something over two hundred 
and eighteen thousand tons of ore were 
shipped from this point. The contpany 
have now on hand some two hundred 
thousand tons. Mr. Beattie came to 
Florence as bookkeeper of the company, 
which position he retained until 1890, 
when he was made superintendent. The 
mines have given employment to five 
hundred men at one time. 

Mr. Beattie was born in Orange 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOKAPUIVAL RECORD. 



6i< 



county, N. Y. , December 30, 1847, and 
is a son of Israel O. and Elvira (Scott) 
Beattie, both of whom were natives of 
the same county and State. The father 
was for many years a hardware merchant 
in Middletown, N. Y., and made that 
city his home until his death, which 
occurred in 1885. His widow yet resides 
in Warwick, N. Y. John Beattie, the 
grandfather of our subject, was a soldier 
in the war of 1812. Many of his de- 
scendants are yet living in Orange county, 
N. Y. , where the}' are highly respected, 
and influential people. In the family of 
Israel O. and Elvira Beattie were seven 
children, four of whom are now living: 
S. T. , our subject; John J., who resides 
in Warwick, N. Y. ; Fred, also residing 
in the same place, and Mary, a physician 
of Newburg, New York. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in his native State, and .educated in the 
academy of Middletown, N. Y. After 
leaving school, he engaged with the Ster- 
ling Iron Works, as general agent, and 
remained with that company until 1887, 
when he severed his connection and came 
to Florence, Wis., as already stated. In 
1 87 1, at Florida, Orange Co., N. Y. , 
Mr. Beattie was married to Miss Fannie 
Round, a native of Orange county, N. Y., 
and daughter of John Round, a pioneer 
of Herkimer county, in that State, whose 
death occurred in Florida, N. Y., some 
years ago. By this union three children 
have been born: Charles, who is register 
of deeds of Florence county. Wis., 
elected in November, 1894; John and 
Paul, residing at home. 

In politics, Mr. Beattie is a Repub- 
lican, and on all national questions votes 
with that party. In April, 1895, he was 
elected chairman of Florence township, 
which position he now holds. He is a 
member of the Presbyterian Church, and 
is at present one of the elders of that 
body. Since coming to the county, he 
has been actively engaged in business, 
and has exerted considerable influence in 
public affairs. He is an enterprising and 



affable business man, one who enjoys the 
respect and has the confidence not only 
of his business associates, but of employes 
as well. While the county is in its in- 
fancy, there is no reason why it should 
not come to the front, and such men as 
S. T. Beattie will hasten that desired 
end. 



REV. CHARLES VANIER, pastor 
of the Church i>f the Immaculate 
Conception at Florence, Florence 
county, was born, in 1865, in 
Paris, France, and is the son of Etienne 
and Melanie ( Vivierj Vanier. 

The Vanier family was originall}- from 
Burgund}', and settled in Paris in 1702. 
Etienne \'anier, who was a traveling 
agent, engaged in selling goods, and was 
killed in a railroad accident in 1866. He 
married Melanie Vivier, and they had one 
child, Charles, the subject proper of this 
sketch. Mrs. Melanie Vanier was mar- 
ried again, in 1873, in Paris, France, to 
J. Muller. a well-known composer of 
music in that city, and they have two 
children, namely: Georges, an officer in the 
French army, stationed in Senegal; and 
Jeanne, who is studying in the Conserva- 
tory of Music in Paris, France. 

Rev. Charles Vanier was reared in 
Paris, received his education in the college 
of the Immaculate Conception, conducted 
by the Jesuit Fathers in that city, and 
graduated in 1882. He then entered the 
Seminary of the Holy Ghost for the study 
of theology, and after finishing his course 
came to New York City, in August, 1887, 
where he was engaged in teaching for two 
years. On August 25, 1889, he was 
ordained by the Right Rev. Bishop Laugh- 
lin, at Brooklyn, and remained in that 
city a few weeks. In September, 1889, 
he came to Delwich, Union town, Door 
Co., Wis., as pastor of Our Lady of the 
Snow Church, remaining there until his 
removal to Florence, his work being in 
Wisconsin. He came to Florence from 
Union township October 20, 1893, taking 



620 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGliAPHICAL RECORD. 



pastoral charge of the Church of tlie Iin- 
inaciilate Conception. This church orig- 
inated in a mission there, conducted by 
Father G. Brady, and later bj* Father 
Seubert, who was instrumental in secur- 
ing the construction of the church building, 
which was erected and dedicated in 1882. 
Father Leccia came in September, 1883, 
and remained as pastor until 1889, in Sep- 
tember of which year Father Pele came, 
remaining until January, 1S91, when he 
was succeeded by Father Rogers, who 
continued as pastor until October 20, 
1S93, when Kev. Charles \'anier took 
charge, and has since been pastor. 

Father \'anier has built up an exten- 
sive interest in church matters, is making 
additions to the church edifice, has in- 
augurated repairs, and is building a 
sacristy. The church now numbers nine- 
ty-two families, of whom twenty are Irish, 
ten of mixed nationality, and the remain- 
der French-Canadian. The property con- 
sists of the church and parsonage. Father 
\'anier is a member of the Oconto branch 
of the Catholic Knights of \\'isconsin, is 
possessed of a fine education, and is social 
and pleasant, and a thorough gentleman. 
[Since the above was written Father \'an- 
ier was transferred, October 8,1895, to 
Stiles, Oconto county, to which place two 
missions are annexed. 



HR. ADAMS, M. D.. of Marinette, 
office and residence No. 1515, 
Main street, came to that citj' in 
November, 1894, and began the 
practice of medicine. In the short time 
in which he has been there engaged, he 
has built up a large and lucrative prac- 
tice. 

The Doctor is a native of Wisconsin, 
born in the cit}' of Fond du Lac, in Jan- 
uary, 1 868, and is a son of T. G. and 
Ellen (Sawyer) Adams, the former a na- 
tive of \'ermont, the latter of New York. 
They were married in the latter State, 
and about the year 1853 migrated to She- 
boygan Falls, Wis., where they remained 



one year, and then removed to Fond du 
Lac. The father was a wagon maker by 
trade, and for twelve years was foreman 
in the LaBelle Wagon Works, of that 
city. From there he went to Mounds- 
vijle, \\'. \'a. , where he was foreman in 
the Webster Wagon \\'orks, in which po- 
sition he continued until his removal to 
Santa Barbara, Cal., whither he went in 
August, 1887, on account of the ill health 
of his wife. They both now reside there, 
the climate having proved beneficial to 
Mrs. Adams. In their familj- were four 
sons: ^^'ill, an artist of more than ordi- 
nary ability, as a designer with the pen; 
John Milton, who was a physician and 
surgeon of Spencer, Wis., died in Mounds- 
ville, W. Va., in 1887; Park, who was ac- 
cidentally killed at the age of fourteen 
}ears; and H. R. 

The boyhood days of the subject of 
this sketch were spent in Fond du Lac, 
Wis., and his youth in Moundsville, W. 
\'a. His primary education he com- 
menced in the public schools of the former 
city, and he graduated from the high school 
of the latter. He then entered Lindsle3''s 
Institute at Wheeling, W. Va., a mili- 
tary academj-, from which he gradu- 
ated in the class of '85, after which 
he entered the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons at Keokuk, Iowa, taking one 
course. With the family, he went to 
California in 1887, and there remained 
one year, returning to Keokuk and taking 
the second course in the winter of 18SS- 
89. Although not completing his course, 
the Doctor commenced the practice of 
his profession at Santa Barbara, Cal., 
and was quite successful. In the winter 
of 1892-93 he again attended the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons, at Keokuk, 
Iowa, from which he graduated in March, 
1S93. Returning to his California home, 
he there remained until his removal to 
Marinette as already stated. While in 
Santa Barbara, Cal., he was a member 
of the Santa Barbara County Medical 
Association, and took an active part in 
all of its proceedings. As a physician he 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



621 



stands well ;uiiong the profession, and is 
greatly esteemed by his many patients. 
The Doctor is a member of the Pioneer 
Presbyterian Church, of Marinette and is 
a member of the choir, being an excellent 
singer. In politics he is a Kepublican, 
and takes an active interest in all of the 
political (luestions of the day. He was 
married December 30, 1895, to Lena, 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. R. M. P.urk, of 
Charlotte, Michigan. 



EDAHLSTKOM, an energetic, 
wide-awake citizen of Little River 
township, Oconto county, is a 
native of Sweden, born in iiS56, 
son of John and Anna (Helgren) Dahl- 
strom. 'J"he parents both dieci in their 
nati\'e country, the fatlier in 1867, the 
mother in 1S75. In their family v\ere 
children as follows: Anna (Mrs. Wern- 
hohn), of Sweden; Julia (Mrs. Thompson), 
who resides in Oconto, having come here 
in 1S92; Hannah (Mrs. Lindgren), of 
Menominee, Mich; Lena (Mrs. Lindboui), 
residing in Sweden; E. Sunds\'al], tiie sub- 
ject proper of this sketch, and August li., 
in Oconto. 

Mr. Dahlstrom was reared and edu- 
cated in his native country, where he 
lived u]i to his twenty-fifth year, there 
learning the trades of blacksmith and 
engineer. In 1879 he was married in his 
native land tcj Miss Anna Lindgren, like 
himself a native of Sweden, whose par- 
ents, Louie and Kate Lindgren, came 
from Sweden to Oconto county. Wis., in 
1883, her father dying in Little River in 
1890, her mother in 1893. In the year 
of their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Dahlstrom 
came to America, and on their arrival to 
this country came westward to Wiscon- 
sin, for one year living in Oconto, Oconto 
county. In 1 88 1 he purchased forty acres 
in the woods in Section 29, Little River 
township, same county, building thereon 
a one-and-a-half-story residence, where 
the family have since had their home. 
Another forty acres has been added to the 



original tract, and Mr. Dahlstrom now 
has twenty acres under cultivati(5n. He 
has not devoted himself exclusively to 
farming, however, ha\ing also engaged in 
lumbering and blacksmithing, having a 
shop on his farm; he is also engaged in 
real-estate dealing, handling pro])erty for 
Mr. Cook, of Oconto, and doing (]uite an 
extensive business. For two years he was 
in the employ of the Chicago & North 
Western Railway Com[)any. 

Mr. Dahlstrom has taken an active 
interest in the welfare of his township 
and county, assisted in organizing the 
school distric-t, and is serving as township 
assessor the jiresent year (1895). How- 
ever, he is no office-seekcM', his interests 
in public affairs being that of a loyal, 
progressive citizen. He is a Rejiublican 
politically, and in religious faith he is a 
member of the I>aptist Church. Mr. and 
Mrs. Dahlstrom have had a family of five 
children, namely: Lsther, Louie, Albert, 
Gottfried and Freda. 



Bl'.NJA.MIN W. BATCHI'ILDER, 
the el'ficient fin-eman of the mills 
of the Haniilton-Merryman Com- 
pany, is a gentleman whose busi- 
ness ability and fidelity to duty have con- 
tinued him in this rcs]:)onsible position for 
a (juarter of a century, or since his arri\al 
in Marinette, in 187 i. 

He was born in Washington county, 
N. Y., March 12, 1839, and is a son of 
Colby and Betsy (Winshij)) Hatchelder, 
who were also natives of the Empire 
State. The father was a farmer, carry- 
ing on agricultural pursuits in Washington 
county throughout his entire life. He 
pas.sed away in 1845, !^">^I li'^ wife, who 
survived him for many years, was called 
to the h(.)ine beyond in [869. Tw(j of 
their children became residents of Mari- 
nette — Benjamin W. and Erastus G., the 
latter locating here about 1885. 

Mr. Batchelder spent his childhood 
days on his father's farm, early becoming 
familiar with all its labors, and in his 



622 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



youth he also learned the carpenter's 
trade, which he followed for some years. 
Associated with a partner he subsequently 
erected a planing and saw mill and a sash 
and door factory, which he conducted for 
about seven years; but at length he de- 
termined to try his fortune in the West, 
and in 1 87 1 followed • ' the star of empire " 
until he arrived in Marinette, Wis. Here 
he located, and soon after secured a posi- 
tion with the Hamilton-Merryinan Com- 
pany, with whom he has since continued, 
being the oldest employe in their service. 
He was married, in New York, to Miss 
Lucy Salome Brown, a native of that 
State, and two children grace their union 
— Eleanor and B. W. The parents are 
people of worth, and have manj' friends in 
the community. In politics Mr. Batch- 
elder is a stalwart Prohibitionist, and in 
religious connection he is a member of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. He 
identified himself with all interests calcu- 
lated to benefit and elevate humanity, 
and his life is in harmony with his pro- 
fessions. His long continuance with the 
Hamilton-Merryman Company is some- 
thing of which he may well be proud, for 
it indicates his unquestioned honor and 
integrity, and his well-known capability. 

ROBERT E. STEPHENSON, log- 
ging superintendent for the Dia- 
iiKnid .Match Co., Ontonagon, 
Mich., by virtue of his being one 
of the early residents of Marinette, as well 
as a representative businessman and use- 
ful citizen, is fully deserving of prominent 
mention in the pages of this work. 

He is a native of New Brunswick, 
Canada, born May 19, l84[, a son of 
Matthew and Mary (Porter) Stephenson, 
the former of whom, a native of Ireland, 
while yet single emigrated to New Bruns- 
wick, where he married. He followed the 
vocation of a lumberman, and in Decem- 
ber, 1852, at the age of forty-nine years, 
was killed in Aroostook county, Maine, 
by a log falling on him. His widow con- 



tinued to live in the East until April, i S79, 
w-hen she came to Marinette. She died 
there in 1891 at the advanced age of 
eighty-four years, the mother of six chil- 
dren, as follows: Mary Ann, who mar- 
ried Matthew Stephenson, and died in 
New Brunswick; Charles, who died at 
Calais, Maine, in 1880; Eliza Jane (Mrs. 
Astles), who came west to Wisconsin and 
died at Menominee in 1893; ^^'iIliam, 
who resides in Marinette; Matthew, who 
died in Menominee, Mich., in March, 
1872; and Robert E. 

The subject proper of these lines re- 
ceived his education in the common 
schools of his native place, and afterward 
followed lumbering pursuits there till 1 864 
when he came to the then " Far West," 
making his first home in this section at 
Menominee, Mich., where he was engaged 
in the same line of business with Luding- 
ton. Wells & Co. In their employ he re- 
mained three years or until 1867, the 
year of his coming to Marinette and en- 
tering the employ of Stephenson & Gram 
(now* the H. Whitbeck Co.); but at the 
end of one year he joined Andrew Ste- 
phenson, and with him went into the 
service of the N. Ludington Co. With 
this last named firm he remained till the 
summer of 1872, at which time he re- 
turned to New Brunswick, and in com- 
pany with H. A. Sharpe built a sawmill 
in Aroostook county, Maine, which they 
operated three years. Mr. Stephenson 
then sold out his interest in themill, etc., 
and in September, 1879, returned to Mari- 
nette, once more entering the employ of 
the N. Ludington Co., at Flat Rock, 
Mich., and remaining with them two 
years, or till 1881, in that year moving to 
Marinette. For the following three years 
he was with the H. Whitbeck Co. in the 
capacity of logging superintendent, and 
then returned to the N. Ludington Co., 
with whom he remained till 18S8, in the 
meantime also doing some lumbering for 
his own account. In that year he ac- 
cepted his present position of logging su- 
perintendent for the Diamond Match Co., 



COMMEMOnATIVE DIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



623 



an incumbency he has since filled with his 
well-known and well-trained capability. 
In the fall of 1894 and winter of 1895 the 
company put in one hundred and eighty- 
three million feet. 

On July 4, 1873, in Aroostook, Maine, 
Mr. R. E. Stephenson was married to 
Miss Margaret Lloyd, who was born July 
20, 1855, in New Brunswick, a daughter 
of ^^^illiam and Elizabeth (Reardon) 
Lloyd, natives of London, England, the 
former of whom died in New Brunswick, 
where the latter is yet living. Si.x chil- 
dren were born to this union, only one of 
whom survi\es, Cieorge A., who graduated 
in 1S95 at St. John's Military Academy, 
Delafield, Wis., and at the present time 
is attending the University of Pennsylva- 
nia at Philadelphia. 

In his political predilections Mr. Ste- 
phenson supports the principles of the 
Republican part)', and, socially, he is a 
member nf the F. & .\. ^L , Marinette 
Lodge X<i. iS:!, also of the Chapter and 
Commandery at Marinette, and Consistory 
No. I, at Milwaukee; and is affiliated with 
the K. of P. at Ontonagon, Mich. He is 
one of the best known and most popular 
citizens in his section, and withal has the 
highest reputation as a thoroughly repre- 
sentative business man, honored and re- 
spected by all who know him. 



HENRY KOEHNE, wlm follows 
farming in Section 7, Little Su- 
ainico township, Oconto county, 
is a nati\'e of Hanover, Germany, 
born in 1833. His parents, Henry and 
Mary (Reddenj Koehne, were also nati\es 
of Hanover, and there the father died in 
1872, the mother in 1869. They reared 
a family of six children: Henry; Chris, 
who resides on the old homestead in 
Germany; Minnie, now deceased; Mrs. 
Sophia Hoehne, of Germany; Fritz, who 
came to Oconto county in 1868, and is 
now living in Pensaukee township; and 
Conrad, of Hanover, Germany. 

Under the parental roof our subject 

30 



spent his childhood days, but on attain- 
ing his majority resolved to make the 
New World his home, believing that bet- 
ter opportunities for young men were 
here afforded. Accordingly on June 19, 
1854, he sailed from Bremen, and, on 
August 7, landed at New York after a 
voyage of forty-nine days. He at orce 
proceeded to Ijuffalo, thence to Wiscon- 
sin, and resided in Wausau, for three 
years. In 1857 lie came to Oconto 
county, at which time there were only 
three settlers in the township, where he 
now makes his home. He engaged in 
hunting and fishing for a time, and then 
worked on the river. In 1861 he located 
on the farm which is now his place of 
abode, purchasing eighty acres of timber 
land, on which he erected a log cabin, 
beginning life in true pioneer style. From 
earh' morning until late at night he worked 
to clear and impnix'c his farm, and now 
has about sixty-five acres under a high 
state of cultivation. In 1873 his crdiin 
home was replaced by a substantial frame 
residence, and \u- has added other im- 
pro\'ements from time to time until he 
now has a very desirable [)roperty. 

In 1864 Mr. Koehne responded to the 
call of his adopted country for troops, en- 
listing at Green Bay, Wis., as a member 
of Company H, I'irst Wisconsin Heavy 
Artillery. He was mustered in at Madi- 
son, and was stationed at Alexandria un- 
til the close of the war, when he was 
hon(.)rabl\' ilischarged in Milwaukee, Wis., 
in 1865. He then retiu'ned to his family 
in Oniiito ciiuntw He was married in 
Little Suamiio, in 1862, to Ann Taylor, 
\\hii was horn at Duck Creek, Brow ti 
Co., Wis., a daughter of G. A. Taylor, a 
native of New "S'ork, who served as a 
soldier HI tlu-warof 1812. In 1825. as 
a member of the Kegidar ,irmy, he went 
to h'ort .Snelling. on the .Mississi])]ii, 
and in 1830 was honorably discharged at 
Fort Howard, Wis. He then turned his 
attention to farming, successfully follow- 
ing that pursuit in I'.rown county until his 
death in 188:^. To Mr. and .Mrs. Koehne 



624 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



were born seven children: John H., who 
is married and resides in Kiel, Wis., 
where he is acting as railroad agent; Mrs. 
Elizabeth Kent, of Ironwood, Mich. ; Mrs. 
Mary Ann DeMaiffe, of Oconto; Fritz, 
at home; Mrs. Sophia Purcell, of Madi- 
son, \\'is. ; and Agnes and Minnie. 

In politics, Mr. Koehne is a Demo- 
crat, and has served as a member of the 
board of supervisors of his town, and 
also as a member of the board of educa- 
tion. He belongs to T. O. Howe Post, 
No. 124, G. A. R. , of Green Bay, and is 
a faithful member of the Lutheran Church, 
in which he is serving as deacon. It was 
a fortunate day for him when he decided 
to come to America, for in this countrj- 
he has secured a comfortable home, a 
good property and has also won many 
warm friends. 



WILLIAM JUDGE is one of the 
representative citizens of the 
city of Florence, where he has 
resided since May, 1S80, at 
which time he came to this locality, and 
engaged in lumbering, by the month. In 
1S87 he embarked in the business for 
himself, and since that time has been 
remarkably successful. In the logging 
season he gives employment to from thirty 
to seventy-five men. He is a native of 
Milwaukee, Wis., born December 23, 
1857, and is a son of Dennis and Mar- 
garet (Dawson) Judge, both of whom 
were natives of Ireland, and who in an 
early day left their native land, first lo- 
cating in Canada, where they were mar- 
ried. From Canada they came to Wis- 
consin, and located in Milwaukee, from 
which place, in 1S59, they went to the 
town of Franklin, Manitowoc Co. , \^'is., 
where they settled in the woods, and 
opened up a farm. They there continued 
to reside until their death, the father 
(lying in 1S72, the mother in 1S91. They 
reared a family of five children: James, 
who died in Milwaukee, Wis., in 1SS7; 
John, who resides in the city of Manito- 



woc, Wis.; \\'illiani. our subject; ^far- 
garet, now Mrs. Dougherty, of Omaha, 
Neb. ; and Arthur, who resides in Mani- 
towoc, Wisconsin. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
to farm life, spent his boyhood and youth 
in Manitowoc county. Wis., and received 
his education in the schools of the town 
of Franklin, in that county. While yet 
in his "'teens," he assisted in chopping 
out the right of way through the heavy 
timber, on the Chicago & North Western 
railroad from Menominee, Mich., to Es- 
canaba. Mich. In 1880 he permanently 
located in Florence, being one of the first 
settlers of the place, has here since con- 
' tinned to reside, and has assisted in the 
organization of the count}'. He was sheriff 
of the county from 1890 to 1892. 

Mr. Judge was married in 1S83, at 
Florence, Wis., to Mrs. Margaret Sulli- 
van, a widow, who is a native of Scot- 
land. In politics Mr. Judge is thoroughly 
independent, voting for such men and 
measures as he thinks will best advance 
the interests of his city and country. For 
fifteen jears he has been prominently 
identified with the interests of Florence 
county, and to him, as much as any other 
one man, is due the present thriving city 
of Florence, and the great improvement 
made in the county in wealth and popu- 
lation. He stands well in the communitj", 
never shrirks duty or responsibilit}', but 
will give of his money and time to the 
best interests of his adopted' city and 
countv. 



DW. ROSS occupies the responsi- 
ble position of yard foreman with 
the Hamilton & Merryman Lum- 
ber Co., of Marinette, and his 
faithfulness and strict reliability are indi- 
cated by the fact that he has filled this 
position for twelve years. 

He was born in Aroostook county, 
Maine, in i S50, and is a son of James and 
Jane (McDonald) Ross, both natives of 
Scotland. They were married in that 



COMMEMORA Tl VE niOOUAl'lllCAL RECORD. 



62,- 



country, and in i 849, crossing the Atlan- 
tic, took up their residence in Aroostook 
counts', Maine, where the father engaged 
in lumbering and also developed a farm, 
upon which he yet resides. His wife 
died in 1S81, since which time James 
Ross has been again married. By the 
first marriage there were ten children, 
namely: D. W. ; \\'illiam, who came to 
Marinette, and died in 1871; Roderick, 
who came to Marinette, and died April i, 
1882; Mary, deceased; James, who fol- 
lows farming in Maine; Theodore, a 
Methodist minister of Woolwich, Maine; 
Fred, a merchant of Houghton, Maine; 
Bessie, who is married and lives in Port- 
land, Maine; Louisa, who died in i8gi; 
and Herbert, deceased. There are also 
two children by the second marriage: 
Jennie and Randolph. 

In the county of his nativity our sub- 
ject was reared and educated, and when 
eighteen years of age he left the Pine 
Tree State for the West, locating in 
Marinette, which was then a town of 500 
inhabitants. Since 1S68 he has been 
connected with the lumber interests. He 
began work in the em])loy of the X. 
Ludington Co., which he continued four 
years, working in the lumber woods and 
around the mill. In 1875 he began 
business for himself as a liveryman, but 
after three years entered the employ of 
the H. Whitbeck Lumber Co., with 
which he was connected until entering 
upon the duties of his present position as 
\ard boss of the Hamilton & Merryman 
Co. in June, 1883. He now has charge 
of si.xty-fu'e men employed in the yards, 
and also superintends the shipment of the 
lumber by means of three vessels. 

Mr. Ross was married in Marinette, 
May 24, 1875, to Mary Gertrude Eggner, 
a native of that city, and a daughter of 
Joseph and Lena Eggner, both of whom 
were born in Germany, and arc now re- 
siding in Marinette, to which locality 
they came in an early day. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Ross have been born twelve children, 
five of whom are yet living: William, 



Mary, Carrie, Dan and Myron; the other 
seven children all died in infancy. 

Mr. Ross is a stalwart supporter of 
the Republican party, and takes a deep 
interest in its success. His father early 
espoused its cause, and was also a de- 
fender of the Union, enlisting in 1861 in 
Company E, Fifteenth Maine Infantry, 
serving for three years and two months. 
He was wt)unded in the Red Ri\er cam- 
paign, at Alexandria, La., and returned 
home in 1864, having made an honorable 
war record. Our snject is also a member of 
the Caledonia Society. He erected his 
home on Newberry avenue, one of the 
first residences in the city; has witnessed 
almost the entire growth and develop- 
ment of Marinette, and has borne his part 
in the work of advancement and public 
improvement. 



DANIEL HUCK, one of the hon- 
ored veterans of the Civil war, 
who faithfully followed the starry 
banner for three years, and aided 
in the preservation of the Union, is now 
numbered am<.)ng the leading agricultur- 
ists of Chase township, Oconto county. 
A nati\'e of Union county, Penu., he was 
born in 1836, and is a son of Jacob and 
Sarah (Weller) Hnck, who spent their 
entire lives in the Keystone State, and 
both died in 1886. They reared a family 
of eleven s<jns and seven daughters, of 
whom we have record of the following: 
George enlisted in the Pennsylvania Re- 
serve Corps, and died in the army; Mary 
Ann is deceased; Daniel will be fully 
spoken of farther on; |acol) was color 
bearer in the Thirteenth Penns^'lvania 
Rifles, V. !., throu.t;iu)ut the war, and is 
now living in the Red Kiver country; 
Samuel, who was in the same regiment, 
now resides in Indian Territory; James 
lives in Chicago; William and John alscj 
belonged to the Pennsylvania Reserve 
Corps, and lost their lives; I'-d is a resi- 
dent of Brown county, Wis. ; Amos re- 
sides in Chase township, Oconto county; 



626 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Harrison is in Lock Haven, Penn.; and 
Myron also lives in the Keystone State. 

Our subject was reared in Pennsylva- 
nia and New York, and acquired his edu- 
cation in the public schools of the former 
State. At the age of thirteen he started 
out to fight life's battle, and has since 
been dependent on his own resources for 
a livelihood, so that he deserves great 
credit for his success. The West with its 
advantages attracted him, and in 1855 he 
located in Menekaunee, Wis., where he 
secured a position as second filer for the 
New York Lumber Co. , now the Menom- 
inee River Lumber Co. He continued in 
that service for one year, and in 1857 
came to Little Suamico, where he secured 
a situation as filer in the mill owned by 
George A. Sayler. He was also in the 
mill of Gardner & Co., and continued this 
work until the year in which the Civil 
war was inaugurated. Prompted by a 
spirit of patriotism, he enlisted at Green 
Bay, in 1861, in Company H, Twelfth 
Wis. V. I., for three years. Mustered in 
at Madison, Wis., his regiment was 
assigned to the Western army, and after- 
ward to the army of the Tennessee. He 
participated in the battle of Hatchie, 
west of Corinth, and the day on 
which the battle of Corinth was fought 
he was at Coldwater; also was pres- 
ent at the siege of X'icksburg. the bat- 
tle of Champion Hills, battle and siege 
of Jackson, and at the capture of Harri- 
sonburg, La. ; was at the engagements of 
Padncah, Ky., Big Shanty, Noon Day 
Creek, Kenesaw, Nickajack Creek, .At- 
lanta, E^ra Chapel, Jonesboro and Love- 
joy Station, and in the ever-memorable 
pursuit of Hood's army north. .At the 
battle of .Atlanta Mr. Hurk was wounded. 
He served under Gen. Sherman for a 
time, and afterward under Gen. Grant, 
and was under fire 165 days during his 
term of service. He was honorably dis- 
chnrgeil at Chattanooga, Tenn., in 1S64. 

Mr. Huck then returned to Oconto 
county, and was engaged as filer in a mill 
for four years. In 1S68, in Pittsfield 



township. Brown Co. , Wis. , he was mar- 
ried to Miss Sarah A. Baker, a native of 
New York, and a daughter of Peter Baker, 
who migrated with his family to Big 
Suamico, Brown county, at an early day; 
he now resides in Fond du Lac, Wis. 
To Mr. and ?tlrs. Huck were born four 
children: Alma (who died in 1886), Cur- 
tis, Elsie and Josephine. Since 1870 the 
famil}' have resided upon their present 
farm, Mr. Huck now owning eighty acres 
of land in Section 36, Chase township, 
forty of which are cleared and under a 
high state of cultivation. His time is 
largel}' given to his farm work, and 
through his own enterprising and well- 
directed efforts he has secured a comfort- 
able home for his family. He and his 
wife are members of the .Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, and in politics he is a sup- 
porter of the Republican party. 



CS. HART has since Territorial 
days been connected with the his- 
tory of Wisconsin. He has there- 
fore witnessed its entire growth 
and development as a State, and his deep 
and patriotic interest in its welfare has 
led him to take an active part in pro- 
moting its progress. He is an advocate 
of all matters pertaining to its further 
improvement, has labored for its material 
welfare, it educational interests and its 
moral advancement. 

Mr. Hart was born in Green Bay, 
Wis., August 31, 1844, and is a son of 
Edwin and Eli^a J. (Glass) Hart. The 
father was born in Norwich, Conn., May 
5, 1807, and removed to Lorain county, 
Ohio, afterward locating in Cleveland, 
where he followed the trade of carpen- 
ter. In I Sj8 he went to Mackinac Island, 
and built a lighthouse near there, then in 
1S32 he located in Green Bay, Wis., 
where he followed contracting and build- 
ing. He was the contractor at l""c>rt 
Howard, and was familiar with all the 
early history of this section of the conn- 
try. In the year of his arrival at Green 



coMMKMoiiArrvi': uioauAi'iiicM. hkcohd. 



6-'7 



Bay he married Miss Eli/a J. Glass, a 
native of Pennsylvania. Following his 
cluisen occnpation at that place until 
1852, he then came with his famil_\' to 
Ocont(5, and was eni;a,s;ed in the milling;- 
business at Oconto Falls with Mr. Haj;er- 
bone. He was also in tlu- lumlu'r busi- 
ness for a short time, but subsequently 
turned his attention to merchandising, 
and also operated a steamboat on the 
river until 1870. Since that time he has 
lived retired, enjoyini; a wi-ll-o:uned ri.;st. 
He has always taken (piite an acti\e in- 
terest in politics, and is a l)ou;>las Demo- 
crat. b"or maii\- years he was justice of 
the peace in dreen 15. ly, holdinj;' that 
office for o\er half a century. 'Vhr pre- 
dominate trait in his character is lidclity 
to duty, aiul he never allowed anylhint; 
to interfere with the c\cn-handed admin- 
istration of justice. Ills life has been an 
honorable and upright one, and his 
stroni.;', robust constitution is un<k)ubtedly 
due in a lari;e measun^ to his abstinence 
frotn intoxicants. He formerly held mem- 
bership with the Odd l''ello\vs Society of 
Green Bay. and both he and his wife are 
now livinj;' in Menominee, Mich.. h.i\'ing 
traveled life's journey toi^etluM' lor nearly 
si.\t_\'-ti\'e N'ears as man and w ifc. 

This worth}' couple had a fannly of 
eight children : (l) George 1*2. , the eldest, 
is a resident of California. (2) l.e\i W. 
enlisted at Chicago in i86j, and fiecame 
second lieutenant of his company; he 
served in the conmiaiul o{ Gen. Grant 
when in the West, and participated in all 
the battles of his regiment, including that 
of Pittsburg Landing, where he was 
wounded; his meritorious sim\ ice there 
also won Ihm promotion to the rank of 
captain of Hart's Battery, and he was 
sent to Mississippi; on account of his 
wounds, however, he was obliged to re- 
sign, ami was afterward engaged in busi- 
ness at Cdevelanil, Ohio; he was killed in 
the Ashtabula railroad disaster in i87(), 
and his widow and daughter are now 
living in Chicago, while his son resides in 
Green Bay. (3) Mary A. is the wife of 



Dr. S. A. Coleman, of Norfolk, \'a. 
(4) C. B. lives in Green Piay, Wis. (5) 
Mrs. B. J. l>rown is living in Menominee. 
Mich. (6) C. S. is the subject of this 
sketch; (7) H. \\'. is a resident of Green 
Bay. Wis. (81 Franklin K. died in Oconto, 
in 1863, at the age of seventeen years. 

When a chiki of se\'en years our sul)- 
ject came to Oconto, then an Indian \il- 
lage of se\eral himdred inhabitants. 
There were no streets and oidy one mill 
where the city now is. 15ul tew white 
families lived in the county, and it seemetl 
that the work of civilization antl progress 
had scarcely begun. Mr. Hart attended 
the i')id)lic schools mUil i8fii, and then 
entered S(d\ov>l in Cle\eland, where he 
jiursued his studies for two \ears. Ke- 
tmaiing to Oconto, he then became con- 
nected with newspajier work, and pur- 
chased the i\<>)iii> ri\iiii-ii\ the iirst paper 
[lublishcd there. In 1863 he sold out in 
Older to give his attention to the steam- 
boat business, but lie disposeil of his in- 
terest in that in 1870, and his next 
\-euture was in the milling business. He 
became associated w ith the Oroiilo County 
A'l/f'/Av, founded by Mr. P>radbury in 
1871, and liecaine its owner Septendier 
'.V I'^/.v 11"-' continued its publication 
until 1881, when he sold, but again [)ur- 
chased it in 1885, and was its editor and 
proprietor until Mandi, 1895, when he 
disposed ol the proju'rly to Mr. Wag- 
goner, lie made the Kr/'or/rr the prin- 
cipal pa[ier ol the county, secured a large 
circidation and established one of the 
finest plants in the State. He is now 
([uite extensively engaged in dealing in 
cedar posts and shingles, and is doing an 
extensive busmess in the line of real es- 
tate, owning and handling considerable 
property. He is a man of strt)ng energy 
and determination, of good executive 
ability, and carries forward to successful 
completion whatever he undertakes. 

In Oconto, in 1871, ivas celebrated 
the marriage of Mr. Hart and Miss Katie 
F., daughter of Theodore F. and Eliza- 
beth (Naffy) Snover. The daughter and 



6-'S 



COMMEMOBATTVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



parents were born in New ji-i~.\. and 
came to Oconto in 1 868, where all yet 
reside, the father following the trade of a 
millwright. Mr. and Mrs. Hart had two 
children, of whom Harold died at the age 
of one year; the daughter, Mabel, is now 
attending high school. Mr. Hart is a 
stalwart advocate of Republican princi- 
ples, but has never sought or desired the 
honors or emoluments of office. Socially, 
he is connected with the Royal Arcanum. 
Numbered among the valued citizens of 
the community he has won this place 
through his earnest efforts to promote the 
public welfare. Of a social and genial 
nature, he easily wins friends, and his 
genuine worth retains them when once 
they are gained. 



BENJ.VMIN B. BARKER, who fol- 
lows farming in Section 34, Pen- 
saukee township, is numbered 
among the pioneer settlers of 
Oconto county of 1857. He has been a 
continuous resident of that locality for 
thirtj-eight years, and has not only wit- 
nessed its transformation and improve- 
ment, but has taken an active part in its 
development and progress, and has been 
an important factor in agricultural and 
political interests. The record of his life 
cannot fail to prove of interest to our 
readers, man}- of whom number him 
among their friends. 

Mr. Barker was born in Peterboro, 
Hillsboro Co., N. H., in 1829, and is a 
son of James and Elizabeth (Diamond) 
Barker, the former a native of Pelham, 
N. H., the latter of Lexington, Mass. 
Their marriage was celebrated in the old 
Granite State, and there the father fol- 
lowed carpentering until his death, which 
occurred in 1845. In 1856 his widow 
came to Oconto county, and was one of 
its esteemed residents until called to her 
final home April 12, 1882. Her father, 
William Diamond, a native of Massachu- 
setts, served as a drum majc<r in the Rev- 
olutionary war. Mr. and Mrs. Barker 



were the parents of children as follows: 
James M., who came to Oconto county, 
in 1856, locating at Stiles, was employed 
as a blacksmith by the Oconto Lumber 
Company, and died in the city of Oconto 
in 1873. Darius D., who is now living 
in Waukegan, 111., located in Pensaukee 
township, in 1856, and here made his 
home for thirty-nine years; during the 
war he served for three years in the Third 
Wisconsin Cavalry, and then veteranized, 
continuing at the front with his old com- 
panj' until hostilities had ceased. Ben- 
jamin B. is the ne.xt youngest. M. D. 
came to Stiles in i860, and in 1865 re- 
moved to Pensaukee, where he made his 
home until his death in 1876. 

In the State of his nativity Benjamin 
Barker spent the days of his childhood, 
and benefited bj' the privileges afforded 
by the common schools, while to the in- 
formation there gained he has added 
the knowledge which comes through e.\- 
perience until he is now a well-informed 
man. In 1851 he was united in marriage 
with Miss Emeline Dutton, a native of 
New Hampshire. They had one child — 
Mrs. Emeline Thompson. In 1857 he 
came with his little family to Oconto 
county, locating at Stiles, and entered the 
employ of Eldred & Balcolm, with whom 
he remained until locating on his present 
farm in i860. In that year he purchased 
a tract of timber land of eighty acres, en- 
tirely destitute of improvement. No road 
then led to the place, and the entire 
country round about was in its primitive 
condition; but he energetically began its 
development, and acre after acre was 
placed under the plow until he now has a 
well-improved farm. 

Mr. Barker continued his labors un- 
interruptedly until 1864, when, feeling 
that his country needed his services, he 
joined Company F, Twelfth Wis. \'. I., 
for three years, and was mustered in at 
Madison. The regiment was assigned to 
the army of the Tennessee, and with it 
he participated in the battles of .\tlanta 
and Ezra Church. He went with Sherman 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



on the memorable march to the sea, par- 
ticipated in the Carolina campaign, the 
battle of Kaleigh, and the grand review 
in Washington, D. C, where the victori- 
ous army that had sa\ed the nation 
marched through the capital city cheered 
by grateful thousands. In the charge on 
Atlanta Mr. Barker was three times 
wounded by gunshot, a ball striking each 
arm and his left hip. He was honorably 
discharged at Louisville, Ky., in Jul}', 
1865, and at once returned to his home 
in Oconto county. 

In 1867, not long after his wife died, 
Mr. Barker wedded Miss Charlotte A. 
Dexter, a native of Boston, Mass., in 
which city her father, George J. De.xter, 
lived and died. They now have a pleas- 
ant home on their farm, and since the 
war our subject has devoted the greater 
part of his time and attention to its care- 
ful improvement. In politics he is a 
stalwart Republican, and for eleven years 
has served as a member of the board of 
supervisors of Pensaukee township, while 
from 1889 until 1893, inclusive, he was 
the efficient chairman. Socially, he is 
connected with the E. A. Ramsey Post, 
G. A. R., of Oconto. 



ROBERT McIVER, who lias been 
prominently identified with the 
interests of Oconto count}' for over 
a quarter of a century, is a pros- 
perous agriculturist of Stiles township, 
and is at present chairman of the town- 
ship board, also serving his second term 
as chairman of the county board. 

Mr. Mclver came to Oconto county 
in the fall of 1866, from New Brunswick, 
Canada, in which Province he first saw 
the light, his birth taking place in 1853. 
His parents, Kenneth and Jane (Thomp- 
son) Mclver, were born respectively in 
Nova Scotia and in Glasgow, Scotland, and 
were married in New Brunswick. The 
father was a school-teacher by profession, 
and held the position of principal of a high 
school; his wife also taught, in New Bruns- 



wick. They reared a family of five chil- 
dren — Benjamin, who came from New 
Brunswick to Oconto, Wis., and now re- 
sides in St. Paul, Minn. ; John, who came 
to Oconto count)', and for twenty jears 
made his home in Stiles, where he died 
in 1890; Robert, subject proper of these 
lines; Harris, employed by the Oconto 
Lumber Co., and Rosana, who was the 
wife of William Brown, and died in St. 
Paul, Minn., in 1877. The father of this 
family passed from earth in i860, after 
which, in 1873, tlie mother came to 
Oconto, Wis. ; she subsequent!}' moved 
to St. Paul, Minn., where she died in 
1881. 

Robert Mclver was reared and educa- 
ted in his native place. At the age of 
fourteen he came to \Msconsin, settling 
in Oconto county, where he has since had 
his home, with the exception of the two 
years he was attending the business col- 
lege at Green Bay, Wis., under Prof. 
Blackman. He followed lumbering until 
he engaged in farming in the township 
of Stiles, buying an eighty-acre tract in 
the woods, but later sold this and pur- 
chased another tract, the same size, of 
which he has cleared fifty-five acres. In 
1884 Mr. Mclver embarked in the hotel 
business, building the hotel at the time 
the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul rail- 
road was extended from Green Ba\', north. 
He has been an active citizen, taking a 
lively and substantial interest in every en- 
terprise tending to promote the interests 
of the community in which he resides. 
For five years he has been a member of 
the township board, of which, as above 
stated, he is now chairman, and his effi- 
ciency and reliability have been appre- 
ciated by his fellow citizens, as is shown 
by his election to the office of ccjunty 
chairman, in which position he is now 
serving his second term. In political sen- 
timent he is a Republican 

Mr. Mclver was married in Oconto, 
in I 880, to Miss Anna Phinney, who was 
born in Oconto Falls, Oconto county, of 
which place her father, Samuel Phinney 



630 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



(now deceased), was a very early pioneer; 
his widow makes her home in Oconto. Six 
children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Mc her, namely: Jessie, who died at the age 
of three 3ears; Robert, who died when 
eighteen inonthsold; and John, Gertrude, 
Ines and Horace, living. 



JAMES W. LOUGHREY, of Mene- 
kaunee. Marinette county, who is 
now living a retired life, came to 
Wisconsin in the fall of 1855, and 
in the winter following engaged in log- 
ging. In 1 8 36 he began clerking in the 
store of The Peshtigo Co., and was with 
them about one year when he came to 
Marinette, where he has since continued 
to reside. He is a native of New York 
State, born in St. Lawrence county. May 
16, 1827, and is a son of Robert and 
Mary (Willard) Loughrey, both of whom 
were natives of the same State. 

The father of our subject was a soldier 
in the war of 1812, and died in New 
York, in 1872, at an advanced age; his 
wife survived him some eighteen years, 
dying, in 1894, at the age of ninety-four 
jears. They reared a family of si.x chil- 
dren: Nancy (now Mrs. Underwood), of 
St. Lawrence county, N. Y. ; Charles, 
now residing at Florence, Wis., who 
came to Marinette about 1847, and 
platted an addition to the city, known as 
Loughrey 's addition to Marinette; James 
W., our subject; Mary, who died in 1884; 
Alexander, a farmer at Millersville, St. 
Lawrence Co., N. Y. ; and Willard, who 
is a merchant and postmaster at Millers- 
ville, St. Lawrence county, New York. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in his native county, and educated in its 
public schools. During his youth he 
clerked for a time in a store at Ogdens- 
burg, N. ^'., and in 1847 came west to 
Cleveland, Ohio, where for a short time 
he served as clerk in a drug store. He 
then commenced railroading on the Cleve- 
land, Columbus & Cincinnati railroad, 
which was the first railroad out of Cleve- 



land, Ohio, and he was the first conductor 
to run a train out of Cleveland on the 
line, his first run being to Berea, Ohio. 
He served that road for two years as con- 
ductor, and later as civil engineer. He 
then ran the Transit from Ma\sville, Ky. , 
to Lexington, same State, on the survey 
of the road. His next base of operation 
was up the Ohio river to Catlettsburg, 
Ky., and then from Maysville to Lexing- 
ton; later he was at Licking Springs, Ky. , 
where he served as engineer on the Divis- 
ion railroad until 1854, when he went to 
Ogdensburg, N. Y., and from thence to 
Wisconsin, as already stated, arriving at 
Peshtigo in the fall of 1855. 

On coming to Marinette. Mr. Lough- 
rey entered the employ of John Jacobs, 
and remained with him until the winter 
of 1860-61. On October 14, 1S61, he 
enlisted as a private in Company F, 
Twelfth Wis. V. I., and was mustered in 
as sergeant. He was promoted to sec- 
ond lieutenant November 21, 1864, and 
to first lieutenant January 6, 1865. On 
the regiment being mustered in at Madi- 
son, Wis. , it was ordered to Hannibal, Mo., 
and was then in active service until the 
close of the war. Mr. Loughrey was in all 
the battles participated in by the Twelfth 
Wisconsin Infantry, and was with Sher- 
man in the march to the sea. He re-en- 
listed, in 1864, in the same company and 
regiment, and was in the grand review at 
Washington. Being mustered out and 
honorably discharged at Louisville, Ky., 
July 6, 1865, he then went to Memphis, 
Tenn., where he remained three months, 
from thence returning to Marinette, W'is. 
During the first winter following his re- 
turn, he went into the woods and engaged 
in scaling for the Kirby Carpenter Lum- 
ber Co., and also scaled in the mills. In 
1867 he scaled for Mr. Hammond, and 
when the latter left, he operated the 
camp. In 1868, he had the bar and table 
on the boat " Queen City " between Mar- 
inette and Green Bay, and in 1869 started 
a hotel on the Hawkins ground, which he 
continued to conduct until burned in the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIWAL RECORD. 



631 



fire of 1 87 I, when he lost everything that 
he had. In the winter of 1 87 1-72 he built 
the '■ Exchange Hotel, " bringing the lum- 
ber from Oconto. This hotel is a three- 
story, fifty-four room house and was oper- 
ated by our subject until Jul}', 1S94, 
when he leased it for a term of five years, 
and has since been livmg a retired life. 

Mr. Loughrey was married in Mari- 
nette, Wis., in I 87 I, to Miss Helen Drew, 
who was born in W'interport, Niagara Co., 
N. Y. . and is the daughter of Samuel P. 
and Mary (Farwell) Drew, also natives 
of New York. The father was a light- 
house keeper on Green Island, in Green 
Bay, and was the owner of the island; he 
died in 1883, his wife in 1885. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Loughrey have been born fise 
children: Mar}-, Charles. Maud, Marion 
and Minnie. In politics Mr. Loughrey is 
a Republican, and while not an office 
seeker has served his town three years as 
a member of the board of supervisors. 
Socially, he is affiliated with the Ro\al 
Arcanum of Marinette. In the forty years 
of his residence in northern Wisconsin, 
Mr. Loughrey has indeed witnessed many 
changes, and is known and recognized as 
a pioneer and highl} worthy citizen of 
the county. 



HENRY RABE, a well-to-do farmer 
of Oconto township, Oconto 
county, has been a resident of 
the county for forty-three years, 
during which time he has witnessed and 
aided in its wonderful growth and de- 
velopment. He is one of the substan- 
tial citizens whom Germany has contrib- 
uted to Wisconsin, ha\ing been born in 
that country, in the city of Hamburg, in 
1829, son of Franz and Eliza (Bruns) 
Rabe, also natives of the F"atherland, 
where the former was a merchant. Both 
parents are now deceased, the mother 
passing away in 1894. 

Mr. Rabe was educated in the German 
public schools. At the age of twenty- 
three years he left his native land for 



America, and on his arrival in this country 
came at once to Oconto county. Wis., 
locating first in Little River township, 
where for four }ears he worked in a lum- 
ber mill for George Smith. He next 
worked for Mr. Smith in a mill at Oconto, 
going thence to Oconto Fails, where he 
found employment at farm labor by the 
month. In 1864 he enlisted in the Union 
arm}-, becciming a member of the Thirty- 
eighth \^'is. \'. I., which was attached 
to the army i_)f the Potomac, and was 
sworn into the ser\-ice at Madison, Wis. 
He participated in the engagement before 
Petersburg, marching thence to Rich- 
mond, \'a., was in the grand review at 
Washington, D. C, and honorably dis- 
charged at Madison, Wis., in |une, 1865, 
returning to Ocontci count}-. Settling in 
Maple V'alle}-, he bought eighty acres in 
the woods, totall}- unimproved and in a 
wild region, and set to w(jrk to improve 
the farm, which later he sold, locating 
along the north branch of the Oconto 
ri\er, where he made his home eight 
years, and then moved to Oci_)nto town- 
ship, on a farm two and one-half miles 
from Oconto. Mr. Rabe has a fine, 
highl}--improved place of forty acres, 
adorned with a comfortable residence and 
good farm buildings. Mr. Rabe has 
al\va}-s been a public-spirited citizen, 
favoring progress and ever}- project tend- 
ing to the advancement of his township 
and county. 

In 1867 Mr. Rabe was married, in 
Oconto county, to Miss Clara Phinney, 
who was born in Illinois, whither her par- 
ents, Samuel and Melissa ( Kimball j Phin- 
ney, had removed from New York State, 
where the}- were born. The father was 
a blacksmith by trade. They came in 
1851 to Oconto Falls, Oconto Co., Wis., 
making a permanent home, where Mr. 
Phinney died in 1867; Mrs. Phinney is 
now making her home in Oconto. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Rabe fi\'e children have 
been born: \\'illiam, Edward, George, 
Lillian (Mrs. Kenney. of Stiles township), 
and Nettie. Mr. Rabe votes with the 



632 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



Republican party. Socially, he belongs 
to E. A. Ramsey Post No. 74, G. A. R. , 
and in religious connection he and his wife 
are members of the Lutheran Church. 



EDWIN COUILLARD. This gen- 
tleman is a prominent and popular 
citizen of Oconto township, Ocon- 
to count)', and the representative 
of one of its earliest and best-known fam- 
ilies, being a son of Jacob W. and Susan 
B. (Lary) Couiliard. 

Jacob \V. Couiliard was the first per- 
manent settler of Oconto township. He 
and his wife were both born in Maine, 
whence in 1849 they migrated westward 
to the then new State of \\'isconsin, open- 
ing up a farm in the woods of Oconto 
township, Oconto county, and engaging 
in lumbering and agriculture, in which he 
was successful, owning a large farm of 
185 acres. He also pre-empted and 
owned other tracts in the township. 
Shortly after his arrival here he em- 
barked in mercantile business in Oconto, 
subsequenth- removing his stock to Couil- 
lardviile, and he continued to conduct 
this business up to the time of his death, 
which occurred January 24, 1895, when 
he was aged si.\ty-nine years. He erected 
the first frame building in what is now 
the city of Oconto. As a continuous res- 
ident and active business man of Oconto 
township for forty-si.\ years he was nat- 
urally interested in its progress and devel- 
opment, and he gave his influence and 
support to all measures directed to that 
end. For many years he held the im- 
portant office of chairman of the town- 
ship. Jacob W. and Susan B. Couiliard 
were the parents of four children, of whom 
Effie is the wife of Joseph Lee, of Stiles 
township ^she was the first white child 
born on the Oconto river); Jackson is 
married, and lives in Oconto township; 
Amina fMrs. Harrison H. Maine) resides 
in San Jose, Cal. ; and Edwin is the sub- 
ject proper of these lines. The mother 
of these departed this life in 1 861, in 



Oconto township, and in 1863 Mr. Couil- 
iard wedded Laura Johnson, who survives 
him. Of the children born to this union 
two are living -. Etta (Mrs. William 
Wj'otti), of Oconto, and Mark, who is a 
resident of Stiles township, Oconto coun- 
ty. Two died, Emerson at the age of 
eight years, and Irani at the age of two 
years. 

Edwin Couiliard was born in Oconto 
township in 1859, received his education in 
its public schools, and was trained to agri- 
culture on the home farm. At the early 
age of thirteen he commenced teaming, 
and for some years engaged in lumbering, 
during the winter time. Farming has, 
however, been his chief occupation, and 
he owns si.\ty-si.\ acres of good land in 
Oconto township, which is in a good state 
of cultivation and well improved. Like 
his father before him Mr. Couiliard has 
been a public-spirited, active citizen, ever 
taking a keen interest in matters relating 
to his township and county, and giving 
his aid and support to its enterprises and 
progressive movements. In 1892 he was 
elected town clerk, and has since been 
continuously re-elected, at present serv- 
ing his fourth term ; in the same year he 
was also elected justice of the peace, an 
incumbency he has since held in a man- 
ner as highly creditable to himself as it is 
satisfactory to all concerned, and he is 
widely and favorably known throughout 
the section. Mr. Couiliard .gives his 
political support to the Democratic party. 

In July, 1881, Mr. Couiliard married, 
in Oconto township. Miss Mary Ann 
Matravers, who was born in that town- 
ship, daughter of John and Matilda 
(Clarke) Matravers, natives of England, 
who in an early day came to Oconto 
county, and have since resided there, at 
present having their home in the town of 
Oconto. To Mr. and Mrs. Couiliard have 
come three children — Zora, Nellie and 
Asa — who attend school in the same dis- 
trict where their father received his edu- 
cation. Mr. Couiliard is a member of 
the Modern Woodmen of America. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIIVAL RECORD. 



^'33 



SAMUEL HENDERSON has for 
over twenty years been identified 
with the progress and advance- 
ment, principally in the agricul- 
tural line, of Oconto county, especially of 
Stiles township. 

Mr. Henderson was born, in 1S41, in 
Watertown, Jefferson Co., N. Y. , son of 
Joseph and Edna (Fowler) Henderson, 
farming people, the former of whom was 
a native of Jefferson county, N. Y. , the 
latter of Massachusetts. Joseph Hender- 
son ended his days in Watertown, N. Y., 
dying in 1863, and his widow afterward 
came to Oconto county to li\e with our 
subject, dying at his home in 1882. They 
had two children: Samuel and Adelia, 
the latter of whom was born in Water- 
town in 1S39, was married to George 
Cobleigh in 1858, ami removed to Mor- 
rison, 111., where she still lives. 

Samuel Henderson was reared in his 
native town, receiving his education in 
the public schools there, and in early life 
learned the trades of carpenter and 
wagon maker. In 1863 he enlisted in 
the Union army, becoming a member of 
Company M, Fourteenth New York 
Heavy Artillery, for three years or during 
the war, and was mustered into the serv- 
ice at Elmira, N. Y. , serving with the 
army of the Potomac. He participated 
in some of the most important engage- 
ments, doing active duty in the l)attles of 
the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Chicka- 
hominy and Cold Harbor, where he was 
taken prisoner. He w^as held captive for 
six and one half months, being confined 
in several of the most noted of the South- 
ern prison pens, and during that time ex- 
perienced privations and hardships which 
would seem almost unendurable. On 
being captured he was incarcerated in 
Libby Prison, whence, after ten days' 
confinement, he was transferred to An- 
dersonville, being imprisoned there till 
the following September. On August i 
he made an unsuccessful attempt to es- 
cape; he was helping to carry out a dead 
comrade, and seeing his opportunity 



knocked the guard down and fled, but he 
was recaptured, when within forty miles of 
Sherman's arm}', by a planter and four 
negroes, and as a punishment had to 
carry a ball and chain thirty days. From 
Andcrsnnville he was taken to Charleston, 
and from there to Florence, on the jour- 
ney making another attempt to escape 
by jumping off the train, and he succeeded 
in eluding his pursuers iox ten days, when 
he was overtaken b\' I^ebel scouts and 
sent on to Florence. Undismayed by 
previous failures, however, he once more 
tried to regain his freedom, lea\'ing the 
prison by means of a tunnel, and this 
time it was twelve days before he was re- 
captured, by some planters, and returned 
to Florence. The vicissitudes which he 
underwent during his prison life reduced 
him in weight to ninet^'-five pounds; on 
being released he was sent to the parole 
camp at Annapolis, Md. After the sur- 
render of Petersburg, he was put on the 
detective force, on which he served until 
discharged, in August, 1865, at Roches- 
ter, N. Y. While at Andersonville he 
was one of the three judges on the trial 
of the six raiders who were hung at An 
dersonville, and was a witness at the trial 
of the notorious Col. \\'irtz, in Washing- 
ton, D. C. He was a faithful, loyal 
soldier, and may be justly proud of his 
military record. 

After receiving his discharge Mr. Hen- 
derson returned to Watertown, N. \'.. 
but after remaining there one year went 
south, working at his trade in variou-- 
places. A couple of years later we find 
him in Cleveland, Ohio, where he worked 
two years, thence, in i 869, coming west- 
ward to Chicago, in which city he followed 
his trade until 1872 — the year of his re- 
moval to Oconto — having charge of the 
work on four stores. He was working in 
Chicago at the time of the great fire there 
of 1 87 1. On his arrival in Oconto he 
engaged in carpentering and building, in 
which he continued for several years, put- 
ting up some of the best residences in 
that town, among others those of Thomas 



634 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPmCAL RECORD. 



Porter ami W. H. Young. In 1S79 he 
concluded to turn his attention to agri- 
cultural pursuits, and having purchased 
forty-five acres in Section 12, Stiles town- 
ship — his present farm — he located there 
in that jear. The place at that time was 
all in the woods, but Mr. Henderson has 
placed the entire tract under cultivation, 
and has made numerous improvements 
during his residence there. Though his 
private interests have never been neg- 
lected, he still finds time to take the in- 
terest in public affairs which every loyal 
citizen should feel, and he has served his 
fellow citizens faithfully in several capaci- 
ties, having been township supervisor 
three or four terms, and also a member of 
the school board. Politicallw he sup- 
ports the Republican party. 

In 1873 Mr. Henderson wedded, in 
Oconto, Miss Jennie Forbes, a native of 
Canada, whose parents, Janes and Eliza 
Forbes, were also born in that country, 
the father dying there; the mother passed 
awaj' in 1893, in Oconto. To this union 
have come children as follows: Carrie 
(deceased), Capitola (Mrs. O'Neil, of 
Oconto township), I'^red, Hamilton. \'iola, 
Edna, Milo. Samuel and Nora. Our sub- 
ject was a charter member of the first G. 
A. R. Post, McPherson Post No. i, which 
was organized in Washington, D. C. ; also 
a charter member of the first G. A. R. 
Post organized in the city of Ocon- 
to, E. A. Ramsey Post No. 14, and has 
been a member of the G. A. R. ever since 
the first Post was organized in Washing- 
ton, I). C. 



JAMES LARSEN, dealer in all kinds 
of fresh, salt and smoked fish, at 
Menekaunee, Marinette count}-, is 
one of the leading business men of 
that city. A native of Denmark, he was 
born in 1S54, a son of Lars and Hertha 
(Jensenj Anderson, both of whom are also 
natives of that country. 

The family came to the United States 
in 1873, and located at Racine, Wis. 



Lars Anderson, the father of our subject, 
was a fisherman, and engaged in that oc- 
cupation both in the old country and after 
his removal to this country. He now re- 
sides in Rockford, 111., but his wife died 
in Racine, Wis., in 1881. Of their fam- 
ily of eight children, we have mention of 
tfie following: ^fary Maria is now the 
wife of C. Frederigsen, an architect at 
Copenhagen, Denmark; James is our sub- 
ject; Hans, a twin brother of our subject, 
died in Denmark, in 1855; Andrew H. 
resides in Rockford, 111., engaged in the 
fish business; Anna is the wife of Charles 
Nelson, a fish dealer of Racine. Wis.; 
Andrew H. died at the age of eight years, 
in Denmark. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
spent in Denmark, and when about fifteen 
years of age he came to Racine, Wis., two 
years before his parents, and there en- 
gaged in farm labor for one season. He 
was then employed in the fish business m 
Racine, until 1873, when he removed to 
Oconto, and there remained two years. 
Returning to Racine count)' he lived there 
until his removal to Door county in 1880, 
remaining there until 1887, when he re- 
moved to Menekaunee, wheie he now 
resides. Mr. Larsen was married in Ra- 
cine, Wis., in September. 1878, to Miss 
Anna Dorothea Jensen, also a native of 
Denmark, and daughter to Hemming and 
Carrie (Rasmussen) Jensen, who were 
likewise natives of Denmark, and who 
emigrated from that country in' 1865, and 
located in Racine, Wis. The father was 
a cooper by trade, and followed that pro- 
fession until his death in Racine, in i S90. 
His wife yet resides in that city. They 
reared a famil}- of four children: Chris- 
tina, now the wife of R. P. Jensen, of 
Racine, Wis. ; Lizzie, now Mrs. A. An- 
dersen, also of Racine; Anna Dorothea, 
the wife of our subject; Hanna. wife of 
Andrew H. Larsen, of Rockford, 111.; and 
James Peter, who resides in Kacine, Wis. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Larsen six children have 
been born: Bertha, Carrie. Louie. Lillie. 
Hemming and .Andrew. 



VOMMEMORATIVB BIOQUAPIIICAL RECORD. 



635 



In politics, Mr. Larsen is a People's- 
Party man, and although not an office 
seeker has served four years as alderman 
from the First ward, and represented 
his county one term in the State Legis- 
lature as a Union-Labor member. Social- 
ly, he is a member of the United Work- 
men, and also of the Dannebrog Society, 
of which he is a trustee. Mr. Larsen has 
always taken an active interest in every- 
thing for the giiod of the city and county 



in which he li 



He is a man of un- 



doubted courage, and while residing in 
Door county, in the big storm, known as 
the "Alpena storm," which occurred Oc- 
tober 16, iSSo, wa.^ instrumental in the 
saving of seven lives, for which he received 
a life-saving medal, issued by the general 
government. There had been only two 
medals of the kind issued before this to 
anv citizen of Wisconsin. 



WlLLl.V.M N. C.\SSON, engineer 
inr the H. Whitbeck Lumber 
Co., (if Marinette, has resided 
in that place since 1875, and 
has been numbered with the citizens of 
Wisconsin since 1S55, coming to the 
West from New \'oxk — his native State. 
He was born in Littleville, Ontario 
county, in i S49, and is a son of Curtis 
P. and Hannah (Barrington) Casson, the 
father born in Yorkshire, England, the 
mother in Oueens county, Ireland. In 
an early day the father emigrated to Can- 
ada, and in New York was married. He 
was a miller by trade, and followed that 
occupation through his active business 
life. In 1855 he became a resident of 
Merton, Wis., the following 3'ear went to 
Hartland, subsequent!}' to Fall River, in 
1859 to .Milton, in 1 S62 to Oshkosh, and 
in 1865 to Indian Ford. In 1869 he re- 
turned Oshkosh, and in 1S73 became a 
resident of Oconto, Wis., where he fol- 
lowed his trade until his removal to Indian 
Ford in 1875. His death occurred there 
March 17, 1885, and his estimable wife 
died at the same place in 1891. This 



worthy couple were the parents of eight 
children, namely: Marj- J., wife of A. J. 
Hunting, of Iron Mountain, Mich. ; John 
P., who was born in New York, April 12, 
1840, and died September 30, following; 
Thomas P., who is li\-ing in Alabama; 
Alfred H., who enlisted at the first call 
for volunteers, as ;i member of the 
Seventh Wis. \'. I., and died of typhoid 
fever in Madison, Wis., in September, 
1861; John J., of Marinette; William N. ; 
and Charles F. , who died in New York, 
j at the age of one year and twenty-eight 
days. 

Our subject was a child of six sum- 
mers when brought b\' his parents to 
Wisconsin. He was educated in the 
schools of Milton and Oshkosh, and in the 
latter place learned the machinist's trade, 
which he has made his life work. He 
accompanied his parents on their \;irious 
removals in Wisconsin, and in 1871 be- 
came a resident of Oconto, where he 
I worked in a machine and carriage fac- 
I tory, in which he owned an interest. In 
1875 he came to Marinette, where he 
worked for several months for the Mari- 
nette Iron Company. In 1876 he en- 
1 tered the employ of the H. \\'hitbeck 
j Co., with \\'hom he contimii.'d until his 
removal to Green Bay, in 18S1. There 
he remained two years, employed in a 
saw mill of Baptiste & Son. On return- 
ing to Marinette, he was again emplo\'ed 
for a few months in the Marinette Iron 
Works, after which he spent eighteen 
months with a lumber company, return- 
ing then to the employ of the H. Whit- 
beck Co. He is now their efficient and 
trusted engineer, antl his long continued 
service in their employ well indicates his 
fidelity to duty. 

The marriage of Mr, Casson was cele- 
bratetl in Green Bay, Wis., November 
-7> 1877, when Miss Minnie Hinsdale 
Baptist, became his wife. She was born 
in Little Sturgeon, Door Co., Wis., and 
is a daughter of William S. and Margaret 
I'Hurlbert) Baptist. Her father was born 
on the ocean, and is of English descent. 



636 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPITTCAL RECORD. 



He was reared in New York and in Bata- 
via, that State, married Miss Hiirlbert, a 
native of New York. Emigrating in an 
early day to Sturgeon Bay, he secured a 
position as superintendent with the Gard- 
ner Lumber Co., and subsequently en- 
gaged in the lumber business in Pensau- 
kee. Wis., whence he went to Green Bay, 
in 1S80. being there engaged in the saw- 
mill business. In 18S3 he went to New 
Orleans, La., where he and his wife still 
reside. In their family were eleven chil- 
dren, of whom seven are living, namely: 
William H., who resides in Lutcher, La. ; 
Sylvester; Mrs. Casson; Charles A., of 
Lutcher, La.; Edward, of New Orleans; 
Edgar, also of Lutcher; Frances Emma, 
wife of Dr. \'iolet, of Waukesha, Wis. ; 
Arthur, who died in infancy; J. \'., of 
Lutcher, La. ; and Kittie, who died in 
infancy. The children of Mr. and Mrs. 
Casson are as follows: Kittie Frances, 
Clarence Alfred, Frank Baptist, Earle 
Howard, Gordon Elmer, who died at the 
age of sixteen months, and Wilfred Neale. 
In politics, Mr. Casson is a stanch Re- 
publican, and takes a deep interest in the 
success of his party. He belongs to the 
Masonic and Odd Fellows Lodges of Mari- 
nette, and his wife is a member of the 
Order of Rebekah, and the Woman's Re- 
lief Corps, also of the Pioneer Presbyte- 
rian Church. He is recording secretary 
of the Marine Engineers, No. 86, and is 
highly esteemed in social and business 
circles. A worthy representative of one 
of the honored pioneer families of this 
section of the State, his well-spent life 
well entitles him to the regard in which 
he is held. 



ROBERT SPICE. If a history were 
written of the brave "boys in 
blue" of \N'isconsin, who valiantly 
went to their country's defense in 
her hour of peril, the name of tiiis gentle- 
man would lind an honorable place in the 
record. All throughout the long struggle 
for the preservation of the Union, he 



followed the starry banner and continued 
at the front even after the surrender of 
Lee, waiting until the countri* had 5id- 
justed itself to the new surroundings and 
the rebellious South had once more taken 
the attitude of good citizenship. The 
same loyalty that prompted this faithful 
service has characterized his entire life, 
and makes him to-day one of the valued 
citizens of Oconto county. 

Mr. Spice was born in Canada in 1842, 
and is a son of Thomas and Nancy (Lo- 
gan) Spice, the former a native of Eng- 
land, the latter of Ireland. In early life 
they came with their respective families 
to the New \\'orld. The father was con- 
nected with the milling business, and was 
employed in the mill of Col. Balcolm for 
a number of years. In 1856 he came to 
Stiles, Wis., in the employ of that gen- 
tleman, and continued his work here until 
after the breaking out of the Civil war, 
when he enlisted at Chicago, III., in the 
Si.xteenth Regiment, United States Regu- 
lars, for five years, and was there mustered 
into the government service. He partici- 
pated in the battles of Shiloh and An- 
tietam, and continued at the front until, 
on account of wounds, he was honorably 
discharged. He then returned to Green 
Bay, Wis., where his death occurred in 
1 87 1 ; his wife passed away in Stiles, Wis. , 
in i860. By their marriage there were 
born seven children, namely: Mrs. Sarah 
McCurdy, who died in Stiles in 1S62; 
Robert; Mrs. Elizabeth Temple, of Ne- 
braska; Mary, wife of Dr. Cone, of In- 
diana; Louisa, who is living in Oconto; 
Samuel, also a resident of Oconto; Will- 
iam, who makes his home in Portage 
county, \\'isconsin. 

Our subject spent his early boyhood 
in Canada and New York, and acquired 
his education in the public schools. At 
the age of thirteen, he accompanied his 
parents to Stiles, and therefore may well 
be numbered among the pioneers of 
Oconto county. In 1S61 he joined the 
army as a member of Company H. Fourth 
Wis. \'. I., which was known as the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECOliD. 



637 



"Oconto County River Drivers." He 
enlisted fur tliree years, was mustered 
into the service at Racine and tlicn went 
to the front, where he participated in the 
battles of F(_>rt [ackson, New Orleans, 
and Baton Rouge, and in the Red River 
campaign. In 1864 lie re-enlisted at Ba- 
ton Rouge in the same company and regi- 
ment, and served with the Department of 
the Gulf. For five years he wore the 
iniiform of his adopted land, and was then 
honorably discharged at Brcnvnsville, 
Texas, in June, i S66, returning home 
with a military record of which he may be 
justly proud. 

When he again reached Oconto coun- 
ty, Mr. Spice secured emploj'ment with 
the Holt & Balcohn Lumber Company, 
afterward operating a shingle mill at 
Humbolt, Wis., for two years. In 187:! 
he purchased a partially-improved farm of 
eighty acres in Section 35, Little River 
township, and now has si.xty-five acres of 
the land under a high state of cultivation. 
He follows progressive methods in farm- 
ing, and has therefore won success in his 
undertakings. He was one of the orig- 
inal promoters of the Little River Cream- 
ery Company, which h.as a fine plant, and 
is doing a good business; in June, 1892, 
he erected Spice's Hall. He is recog- 
nized as one of the thoroughly reliable 
business men of Oconto county, as well 
as one of the honored pioneers. 

Mr. Spice was married in Green Bay, 
W'is., in October, 1866, to Emily Collins, 
a native of Oshkosh, this State, and a 
daughter of Silas and Sarah Collins, pio- 
neer settlers of Oshkosh, the former of 
whom was killed in a iriill at that place; 
the mother is now living at Bear Creek, 
Outagamie county. To Mr. and Mrs. 
Spice have been born thirteen children, 
eight of whom are living: Delbert, Clara, 
Erna, Mamie, Nellie, Emily, Laura and 
Mollie. In politics Mr. Spice is a stanch 
Republican, and has served as supervisor 
of Oconto township; was a member of 
the school board four years, and assisted 
in organizing Little River township. He 



was instrumental in organizing the re- 
union of the coimty, which was held lirst 
at his home. He is a representative of 
one of the oldest families of Oconto coun- 
ty, has witnessed its entire develo])nient, 
and has ever taken an active interest in 
its upbuilding, being pre-iMninently a 
public-spirited man. 



TD. ANDERSON, for the past 
twent}- years an iMuploye of the 
Chicago & Northwestern Railroad 
Company in various cajxicitics, 
has been a resident of Wisconsin for iiearl\- 
half a century, and of the rising city of 
Marinette some fourteen years. 

Mr. Anderson is a native of the State 
of New Yiirk, born in 1849 in Madison 
county, a son of Henry and Sarah (Mor- 
ris) Anderson, also of that county, where 
they were married in 1839. The father 
was born July 11, 181 1. In 1849 the 
family came to Wisconsin, settling in the 
woods (jf I^ima township. Rock count)', 
2s pioneers, and opening up a farm. Here 
they made their home for some years, the 
parents finally removing into the village 
of Lima, where they passed the remainder 
of their honored lives, the father dying 
September 19, i88(), the mother in 1891. 
He was a Whig and Republican in his 
political preferences, and was a prominent 
well-known citizen in his day, progressive 
and loyal. The record of their family of 
children is as follows: Eunice M. (now 
Mrs. Ensign) resides at F"ergus I'alls, 
Minn. Franklin B. enlisted, in Rock 
county. Wis., in the Thirteenth Wis. 
V. I., and served throughout the Ci\il 
war, having veteranized; he died in August, 
1895, at the Soldiers' Home, W'aupaca, 
Wis. Mary died in Rock count}-. T. D. 
is the subject of this sketch. Ida (Mrs. 
Lansing) has her home at Whitewater, 
Wjs. Kate (Mrs. Kimiey) is at Ft. Atkin- 
son, Wisconsin. 

The subject proper of these lines was. 
as will be seen, an infant when his par- 
ents brought him to Wisconsin, and he 



638 



COMMEMORAl'IVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



was reared among the scenes and experi- 
ences of rugged pioneer life, receiving 
such education as was available at the 
primitive country schools of the neighbor- 
hood, and at Milton College, Wisconsin. 

On leaving home at the age of sixteen 
years, he commenced business life as clerk 
in the post office at F"ond du Lac, from 
there going to the State Hospital at Mad- 
ison, Wis., where he remained some three 
years in the capacity of attendant and 
supervisor, at the end of which time he 
went to Chicago and entered the employ 
of the Chicago & North Western Railway 
Company. His first position with the 
company was as clerk in their offices at 
West Fortieth street, Chicago, where he 
remained till 1S76, when he removed to 
Whitewater, Wis., still in the service of 
the railwaj' compan\', at the end of a 
couple of years, or in 1S78, removing to 
Escanaba, Mich., and there working for 
the company four years. In 1882 he 
came to Marinette, since which date he 
has held the responsible position of loco- 
motive engineer (there being no better 
qualified or more careful official to be 
found on the entire force in the employ 
of the company). 

On October 7, 1893, Mr. Anderson 
was married to Miss Rebecca M. Jensen, 
who was born at Sheboygan, Wis., a 
daughter of Clement E. and Jennie A. 
(Blichfeldtj Jensen, Norwegians by birth, 
who came to Sheboygan county, Wis., in 
1854. They were married in Sheboygan, 
Wis., in 1856, and had a most in- 
teresting family. The father died, in 
1869, in Green I3ay, Wis., where the 
mother is yet living. Mrs. Anderson was 
reared in Green Ba)' from the age of five 
years, receiving her education at the 
schools of that city. She studied for the 
profession of teacher, afterward teaching 
in the schools of Brown county, and also 
in the schools of Marinette some eight 
years. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson attend 
the services of the Presbyterian Church 
at Marinette. He is (juite a vocalist, and 
for eight years had charge of the choir in 



the M. E. Church — in fact he has sung in 
all the churches in the city. Socially, he 
is a member of Olive Branch Lodge No. 
150, F. & A. M., Marinette; of Chapter 
No. 52, R. A. M., and of Marinette Com- 
mandery. In the many years he has been 
a resident of ^^'isconsin he has seen the 
marvelous growth of the State, and has 
loyally done his share toward its progress 
and development, proving himself a thor- 
oughly representative progressive citizen. 



OSCAR F. PECK, a substantial 
farmer located in Section 10, 
Grover township, Marinette coun- 
ty, is a son of Romante\- and 
Mar}' (Durgin) Peck, and was born in 
Monroe county, N. Y., February 25, 
1829. 

Romantey Peck was from Connecti- 
cut, his wife from New Hampshire. He 
was a clockmaker, was a resident for a 
time of Vermont, and from there moved 
to New York State, where he engaged in 
farming. In 1S40 he came to Waukesha 
count}'. Wis., and made that his home, 
dying there in 1S57. His wife passed 
away in New York in 1837. They had 
eight children, namely: Rufus C, who 
came to Waukesha county in 1837. and 
always made that his home; Winthrop, 
who came to Waukesha county, later 
removing to Iowa, where he died; Hazen, 
who lives retired in Elkhorn, Walworth 
Co., Wis.; Henry M., living retired at 
Lay ton Park, Milwaukee county; Oscar 
F., subject of this sketch; George T. , re- 
siding in Grover township; Lucy, wife of 
Marvin Munn, of Bromfield. Hamilton 
Co., Neb.; and Sarah, who died in Wau- 
kesha county. Mr. Peck remarried in 
Wisconsin. 

Oscar F. Peck was reared in New- 
York State up to the age of eleven, and 
attended school there and in Waukesha 
county, Wis., whither his father moved 
in 1840. In Waukesha county he was 
reared on a farm, beginning life as a farm 
hand at $4 per month. From there he 




O.'^.f^/t 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQIiAPniCAL RECORD. 



639 



came to Marinette or Oconto county in 
1845, coming by boat from Milwaukee to 
Peshtigo, under engagement with the 
Leavensworth & Clark Lumber Co., 
which later became the Peshtigo Lumber 
Co. He was occupied driving an ox- 
team, locating pine timber and on the 
drive, and was in the employ of the Pesh- 
tigo Co. for twenty-four and one-half 
years, till after the fire, as foreman of 
camps, and helped to locate nearly all 
their pine lands; was also a stockholder 
in this company. About 1856 Mr. Peck 
bought his farm in Grover township, com- 
prising 320 acres of timberland, which he 
had cleared and improved. On October 8, 
1 87 1, his two barns, his residence, fences 
and all the improvements that could be 
burned were destro3ed by the fire. Since 
then he has built a fine residence and 
good barns, having settled on the place in 
April, 1872, the year the township was 
formed, and has since been a continuous 
resident. Prior to the fire he lived away 
seventeen and one-half years at Lake 
Nowelay. 

Mr. Peck was united in marriage, in 
Peshtigo township, in the fall of 1855, 
with Miss Tonoce, a native of Wisconsin, 
and they have had six children, namely : 
Afar\', now Mrs. William Conant; Jane, 
Mrs. Lyman Conant; and Julia, Mrs. 
George Nickerson, all three residing in 
Grover township; Rosa, Mrs. John Nfc- 
Gregor, of Peshtigo village; Edward J., 
who died October 12, 1895, aged thirty- 
six years and six months; and Franklin 
B., who is married and conducts the home 
farin. The family attend the M. E. 
Church, of which ^^r. Peck is a liberal 
supporter. 

During the early days Nf r. Peck was a 
great hunter, averaging about one hun- 
dred deer during a hunting season, and 
even now he enjoys a hunting and fishing 
trip. He is among the early pioneers of 
Marinette county, and the oldest settler 
in Sugar Bush, Grover township, which 
township he assisted in organizing, also 

building the schoolhouse, and in otiier 
37 



ways aiding in its improvement. He has 
seen Marinette grow from a place of but 
three houses to its present magnitude. 
Mr. Peck votes with the I\epublican party, 
and cast his first vote for W'inficld Scott. 
For seven years he served as supervisor 
of Peshtigo township, has been school 
treasurer since 1872, taking great interest 
in educational matters. Socially he is a 
member of Peshtigo Lodge, f. O. O. F., 
Subordinate Lodge and Encampment, 
is now chief patriarch, and has been a 
member at Peshtigo since 1871. Mr. 
Peck is and for years has been a banker 
among the farmers, loaning money, etc. 
He is the architect of his own fortunes, 
and is nowthe owner of 360 acres of land. 







C. MADSEN. Among the citi- 
zens of foreign birth who have 
sought homes in America, and lie- 
come worthy sons of their adopted 
land, is this gentleman who claims Den- 
mark as the place of his nativity. He 
was there born in the island of Moen, in 
1856, and is a son of Mads and Christina 
(Madsen) Nelson, also natives of Den- 
mark; the father died in 1889, the mother 
in 1891. They had a family of five chil- 
dren : ^^rs. Catherine Hemingsen, of 
Waupaca, Wis.; Peter, who is living in 
Oshkosh, Wis.; O. C, subject of this 
review; Mrs. Lizzie Frandsen, who died 
in Oshkosh, in 1890; and Jens, living in 
Oshkosh. 

O. C. Madsen spent the greater part of 
his childhood and youth in his native 
land. In 1S75 he crossed the Atlantic to 
the New World, and made his way to 
Oshkosh, Wis., where he supplemented 
his earlier educational privileges by a 
course in the Daggett Business College, 
from which he was graduated. He also 
attended night school, and pursued his 
studies in the public school of Angelica, 
Shawano Co., Wis., whither he removed 
in 1877. During his residence there he 
earned his livelihood in the capacity of 
night watchman. Subsequently he was 



640 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



employed in the lumber mills at Pen- 
saukee, Oconto county, and with the cap- 
ital he acquired through his diligence and 
perseverance, combined with careful 
saving, he returned to Oshkosh, where in 
1884 he established a grocery store, car- 
rying on business along that line until 
1887. 

The latter year witnessed his arrival 
in Chase township, Oconto county. He 
was accompanied by his wife, whom he 
had married in Oshkosh in 1886, and who 
bore the maiden name of Miss Dora Han- 
sen. She was born in Denmark, and is 
a daughter of Hans Olson, a farmer of 
that country. Two children grace the 
union of our subject and his wife — Oscar 
and Anna. Their home is a good farm 
of 280 acres, which Mr. Madsen pur- 
chased on his arrival in Chase township. 
It was then covered by a dense growth of 
timber, but he at once began to clear 
and improve it, and now a highly-devel- 
oped tract of eighty acres yields to him a 
golden tribute in return for his care and 
labor. He is a man of excellent business 
and executive ability, and his name is 
synonymous with honorable dealing. 

Mr. Madsen exercises his right of 
franchise in support of the men and 
measures of the Democracy. In 1890 he 
was elected a member of the town board 
of supervisors, and since 1891 has served 
as chairman. During that period three 
iron bridges have been erected, and 
everything is in first-class condition. He 
has also served as justice of the peace, 
and his impartial bearing and fidelity to 
duty have won him high commendation. 
Mr. Madsen is a self-made man who owes 
his success in life to his own efforts. 



Hl'GII ERLEY, one of the prac- 
tical and progressive farmers of 
Little Suamico township, Oconto 
county, residing in Section 18, 
was born in Canada in 1S30, and is a 
son of Thomas and Mary (Matthews) Er- 



ley, who in his young boyhood days re- 
moved to New York. In that State he 
was reared and acquired his education 
in its public schools. The stories told of 
the Far West and its privileges attracted 
him so much that in 1857 he left the Em- 
pire State for Detroit, Mich., where he 
spent the succeeding winter. In the 
spring he removed to Green Bay, Wis., 
and in November of that year came to 
Oconto county, arriving in Little Suamico 
township on the 17th of the month. Here 
he soon secured employment with J. T. 
Moore, and was engaged in lumbering, 
being employed in the woods for some 
years. 

Mr. Erley had no capital when he ar- 
rived here, but he was industrious and 
enterprising, and by frugality and well- 
directed efforts he accumulated a sufficient 
capital to purchase a tract of land, in 
1875 becoming owner of 160 acres in 
Section 18, Little Suamico township. 
This he at once began to improve, and he 
now has a quarter section, one half of 
which is cleared and under a high state 
of cultivation, improved with a good resi- 
dence and substantial barns. 

Mr. Erley was married in Allegany 
county, N. Y. , to Miss Margaret Chien, a 
native of Ireland, the wedding being cele- 
brated April I, 1852, in Canada. Six 
children have blessed this union: Isadore 
B., born February 2, 1853. and died in 
New York; Lewis Sherrell, residing in 
British Columbia; Mary Isadore, who 
died in Little Suamico township, in 1866; 
George Jewett, who died in the same 
township, in 1868; Margaret Anne (now 
Mrs. O'Connell), of Quinnesec, Mich.; 
Nina Ellen (now Mrs. Jermaiin), of 
Escanaba, Michigan. 

In politics, Mr. Erley is a supporter of 
the Republican party, and for about eight 
years has served as the efficient chairman 
of the town board of supervisors. The 
county numbers him among its honored 
pioneers, and he belongs to the sturdy 
band of frontiersmen who have aided in 
the development and upbuilding of this 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPIIWAL RECORD. 



64, 



region, and have ever faithfully performed 
their duties of citizenship, thus promoting 
the puhlic welfare. By his earnest and 
progressive efforts he has also achieved 
success. 



SAMUEL DODDS, who devotes his 
time and energies to farming in 
Section 7, Pensaukee township, is 
a representative of one of the hon- 
ored pioneer families of Oconto county, 
having made his home here since i860. 

He was born in Canada in 1852, and 
is a son of John and Rebecca (McMahon) 
Dodds, who were natives of the Emerald 
Isle. After their marriage, celebrated in 
that country, they removed to Canada, 
and in 18G0 came to Oconto county. 
Here in the midst of the forest they made 
a settlement; but the father was not long 
permitted to enjoy his new home, his 
death occurring in 1862. His wife still 
survives him. They had a family of seven 
children, namely: William, who resides 
in Pensaukee township; Joseph, who died 
in March, 1892; John, at home; Mrs. 
Martha Bibby; and Mrs. Rebecca John- 
son, both living in Pensaukee townsliip; 
Samuel, the subject of this sketch; and 
Mary, who is hving on the old home farm. 
Being only eight years of age at the 
time of the arrival of the family here, our 
subject has therefore spent the greater 
part of his life in his locality, and has 
always been engaged in farming. He 
owns 160 acres of land in Section 7, Pen- 
saukee township, the greater part of 
which is improved, and the well-tilled 
fields yield to him a golden tribute in re- 
turn for the care and labor he bestows 
upon them. The place is neatandthrifty in 
its appearance, and he is recognized as an 
enterprising and progressive farmer. In 
his political views he has always been a 
stalwart Republican, and as a loyal citi- 
zen he has aided in all matters of public 
improvement, giving his support to every 
enterprise calculated to advance the gen- 
eral welfare. 



JOHN P. SEYMOUR is the oldest 
living settler of either Marinette or 
Oconto counties. He came to 
Peshtigo, in 1S40, and has since 
been a witness to the growth and devel- 
opment of this section of the State, hav- 
ing seen its wild lands transformed into 
good homes and farms, its lumber and 
mining interests established, and the work 
of improvement carried on until the coun- 
try bears little resemblance to-day to its 
appearance of half a century ago. 

He was born in l:)Ioomlield, Ontario 
Co., N. Y. , in 1 8 14, and has tlierefore 
lived through every Presidential admin- 
istration from the time of Madison. 
His parents were Charles and Hannah 
(Pool) Seymour, the former a native of 
Connecticut, born of English ancestry, the 
latter born in Massachusetts of Scotch 
parentage. The father, who was a cabinet 
maker, emigrated in 1827 to Dexter, 
Mich., where he followed that occupa- 
tion. Both he and his wife spent their 
remaining days in the Wolverine State, 
his death occurring at the age of 
eighty-six, and Mrs. Seymour passing 
away at the age of eighty-four. 
They reared a family of four children: 
Isaac, who came to Peshtigo, Wis., 
and died some years ago; John P.: Will- 
iam, who was a physician and surgeon, 
and died in Virginia; and Mrs. Ellen 
Johnson, who died in Michigan in 1895. 
The subject proper of this sketch was 
reared in the State of his nativity and in 
Michigan. When he had attained his 
majority, he came to Wisconsin, locating 
first in Sheboygan, afterward removing to 
the Milwaukee river, where he built one 
of the first mills in the State. In 1840 
he arrived in Peshtigo, and entered the 
employ of Bailey, Leavenworth & Jones, 
owners of a lumber mill which was built 
in 1S38. For twenty-two years he was 
there employed, although the mill was 
owned by several different parties during 
that period, finall}' becoming the property 
of the Peshtigo Company. In 1862 Mr. 
Seymour located in Peshtigo township. 



642 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



where he purchased hardwood-timber 
land, becoming owner of 160 acres, sixty 
of which he cleared. On that farm he 
lived from 1862 until locating in Township 
32, where he opened up a farm that con- 
tinued his place of abode for fourteen 
years. His ne.xt home was forty miles 
up the river, and he devoted his time and 
energies to hunting and fishing. He also 
began the development of a tract of land, 
but being taken ill was brought to Ellis 
Junction about the year 1888. He is 
now living retired in Crivitz, enjoying a 
well-earned rest. 

Mr. Seymour was married in Pesh- 
tigo. Wis., in 1842, to Miss Polmacoche, 
and to their union was born a son, John 
S., married, and residing near Rhine- 
lander, Wis. The mother died in 1886. 
The five grandchildren of the family are 
Arthur, William, John, Georgie(now Mrs. 
Duket, of Peshtigo, who has one son), 
and Charlie. 

In early life Mr. Seymour was a sup- 
porter of the Democracy, but since the 
Civil war has been a Republican, and 
though now well advanced in years he 
takes a deep interest in political affairs. 
His name is inseparably connected with 
the history of that locality. P"or twenty 
years he served as postmaster at Pesh- 
tigo, and for twenty-one consecutive 
years was justice of the peace, being ap- 
pointed to that position during the Terri- 
torial days of Wisconsin. He aided in 
the formation of the State, and in the or- 
ganization of Marinette county. Forfifty- 
five years he has lived in the same locality, 
locating there when not a white woman 
lived in the county. The work c>f pro- 
gress and civilization seemed hardly be- 
gun — in fact he was one of the leaders of 
the honored band of pioneers who made 
future development possible. In former 
days he carried the mail from Green Bay 
to Escanaba, and knew everybody living 
along the route. At one time he knew 
every business man from Fond du Lac to 
Marquette, and scarcely a man in Wiscon- 
sin has a wider acquaintance than Mr. 



Seymour. Seven times he walked from 
Peshtigo to Chicago, and on his mail 
boat he carried passengers to Green Bay. 
The years passed, and the once unbroken 
forests have fallen before the woodman's 
axe, and the wild prairies have been trans- 
formed into rich and fertile fields. Mr. 
Seymour has ever taken an active interest 
in the work of public improvement, has 
in no small degree identified himself with 
the progress and advancement, and to- day 
he stands one of the most esteemed and 
revered citizens of the State. 



DL. BUSH is the owner of one of 
the most highl^'-improved farms 
in Oconto county, and, in con- 
nection with agricultural pursuits, 
is extensively engaged in lumbering. He 
is numbered among the honored pioneers 
of the locality, and in aiding in the work 
of opening up the county to civilization 
has merited the public gratitude, while 
his well-spent life certainly entitles him 
to the high regard in which he is held. 

Mr. Bush was born in Sullivan coun- 
ty, N. Y. , in 1833, and is a son of Benja- 
min and Ellen (Letts) Bush, also natives 
of the Empire State. There the father 
followed farming until his death in March, 
1888. His wife died in February, of the 
following year; she was a daughter of one 
of the Revolutionary heroes who valiantly 
aided in the struggle for independence, 
and was also a life-long resident of New 
York. Mr. and Mrs. Bush had a family 
of eleven children, namely: D. L. ; Mrs. 
Harriet Sayres, of Peckville, Penn. ; 
Frank, who resides in Leavenworth, 
Wash. ; Isaac, living at Mountain Top, 
Penn. ; Martha (now Mrs. Foster), of 
Peckville, Penn. ; Henry, who is living in 
Ashland, Penn. ; Mrs. Mary Dunn, also 
of Ashland; John, who resides in Wash- 
ington; Charley, who is living in Port 
Jervis, N. Y. ; Augusta, married and resid- 
ing in New York; and Howard, also liv- 
ing in Port Jervis. 

Our subject was reareil in Sullivan 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



643 



county, and its public schools supplied 
his educational facilities. When about 
twenty-two years of age he sought a home 
in Wisconsin, believing that he might 
have better opportunities than in the older 
and more thickly-settled States of the 
East. Accordingly he located at Green 
Bay, and for one season worked in the 
mill of Judge Arndt. He then came to 
Pensaukee, Wis., July 5, 1855, and en- 
tered the service of F. B. Gardner, a 
well-known hunbernian, with whom he 
remained for a number of years. The 
pursuits of civil life were interrupted, in 
1864, by his enlistment in Company D, 
Forty-fourth Wis. V. I. He was pro- 
moted to the rank of captain October 19 
of that year, and served with the Western 
army, doing duty at Nashville and Padu- 
cah. At the latter place he was honor- 
ably discharged August 28, 1865, and at 
once returned to his home in Pensaukee 
township, Oconto county. He resumed 
lumbering, and for thirty-five years has 
been engaged in business on his own ac- 
count. He is now connected with the 
Diamond Match Company, at Ontonagon, 
Mich., and has a very extensive trade, 
having during the winter of 1894-95 fur- 
nished employment to 200 workmen. He 
is an excellent judge of lumber, is thor- 
oughly conversant with everything con- 
cerning this line of industry, and his capa- 
ble management, enterprise and honor- 
able effort has brought to him a well- 
merited success. He has also been 
interested in farming. By his first pur- 
chase of land he became owner of 114 
acres, which he cleared, and as his finan- 
cial resources increased he added to this 
property until he now owns a valuable 
tract of 300 acres, the greater part of 
which is under a high state of cultivation. 
In 1887 he improved his residence, has 
erected three substantial barns and a 
large carriage house, and to-day has one 
of the best improved farms in Oconto 
county, which is largely superintended by 
his wife. 

Mr. Bush was married in Green Bay, 



Wis., in 1858, to Miss Genevieve B. Hard- 
wick, a native of that city, and a daughter 
of Moses and Charlotte (La Rock) Hard- 
wick, the former a native of Lexington, 
Ky. , the latter of Green Bay. The father 
removed from his native State to Sandus- 
ky, Ohio, and served in the war of 1812. 
In 1819 he went to Fort Howard, Wis., 
with the first soldiers there stationed, and 
continued there while troops were at that 
post. He was married in Green Bay to 
Charlotte, the daughter of John and Mary 
La Rock, early settlers of Brown county, 
Wis., who spent a greater part of their 
lives there. After the troops had been 
called from Fort Howard Mr. Hardwick 
acted as guide and mail carrier, carrying 
the mail from Green Bay to Chicago and 
Detroit, making the trip on foot. He 
was one of the prominent men of that 
early day, and in 1846 he came to Pen- 
saukee, where he kept the first tavern on 
the shore. There he made his home un- 
til 1865, when he removed to Scott town- 
ship. Brown county. His death occurred 
there in August, i 880; his wife is still living 
there at the age of seventy-seven, her 
birth having occurred at Fort Howard, in 
1S19. To Mr. and Mrs. Hardwick were 
born as follows: Moses, who died in 
Scott township, Brown county; Lewis, 
living in Menominee, Mich. ; Mrs. Kate 
Russaul, of Scott township, whose hus- 
band is a soldier; Mrs. Bush; Henry and 
Emily, both of whom died at the age of 
two years; George, who was drowned in 
Green Bay at the age of eighteen; David, 
living in Scott township. Brown county; 
Elizabeth, deceased at the age of eight 
years; and Mrs. Polly Shane, who died in 
Oconto in 1880. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Bush have been born 
seven children: Wilbur, married, and 
residing in Green Bay; Mrs. Hattie Sar- 
gent, of Pensaukee, Wis. ; Sherman, mar- 
ried and making his home in Pensaukee 
township; Frank, a lumberman; Edgar 
G., assistant cashier of the First National 
Bank of Iron Mountain, Mich., having 
occupied that position since the age of 



644 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



fifteen years; Ola, wife of K. J. Mclver, 
of Stiles, Wis.; and Eugene C, attending 
school at Valparaiso, Indiana. 

Mr. Bush al\va3S casts his ballot in 
support of the men and measures of the 
Republican party, and has served as 
township supervisor; socially he is affili- 
ated with the Masonic Lodge of Green 
Bay. His wife is a member of the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church of Abrams. They 
are numbered among the most highly 
esteemed people of the community, as well 
as among the honored pioneer settlers. 



WH. ROBINSON, of Marinette, 
was born in Canada in i860, 
and is the son of James and De- 
lilah (Warner) Robinson. The 
father was born in Ireland, at an early 
date emigrating to Canada, whence, after 
living there for some time, he removed to 
New York, where his death occurred in 
St. Lawrence county in 1877. The 
mother died in 1864. They had four 
sons : Simeon, the eldest, lives in West 
Bend, Iowa ; W. H. comes next in the 
order of birth ; Adam L. , in West Bend ; 
George resides on Barnhart Island, in the 
St. Lawrence river. New York. 

The subject of tnis sketch was reared 
and educated in St. Lawrence county, 
N. Y. , learned his trade there, and in 
1 88 1 came to Marinette, Wis., where he 
worked at same until he began the busi- 
ness of contracting on his own account, 
having had some experience in that line 
before leaving the East. His specialty is 
the erection of fine residences, in which 
he has been engaged since 1887, and has 
built many of the handsomest in the cit}', 
among which may be mentioned those of 
Simpson & Scodder, A. R. Loring, W. B. 
Hogan, William Stephenson, and the 
Diamond residence. In 1892 he built 
for his own use, on Pierce avenue, a very 
fine two-story frame building, 26x52 
feet, with a double "L" of the same 
height. He does outside work, and takes 
special pains to please and satisfy his 



patrons, making his own plans, specifica- 
tions and architectural drawings. He 
gives emploj'ment to about eight men, 
and has been engaged in carpenter work 
ever since coming to Marinette. 

Mr. Robinson was married February 
6, 1888, in St. Lawrence county, N. Y. , 
to Miss Euphemia Thompson, a native of 
that county, and daughter of William and 
Barbara (Mowatt) Thompson, the former 
of whom was a native of England, and one 
of the pioneers of St. Lawrence county ; 
he was a farmer of that county, and died 
in 1875. Mrs. Robinson's mother died in 
July, 1893, having lived fiftj-four years 
on the same farm. To our subject and 
wife have been born children as follows : 
Homer William, and Mabel Euphemia. 
Mr. Robinson is a Republican in politics, 
and takes an interest in all movements 
tending toward the growth and improve- 
ment of the city and county. He is one 
of the best known contractors and build- 
ers of Marinette. 



GEORGE W. RUGG, well-known 
as a prosperous agriculturlist of 
Little River township, Oconto 
county, is a native of New York 
State, born in 1840 in Tompkins county. 
His parents, Lorenzo and Mary (Sim- 
mons) Rugg, were also born in New York 
State, where they died, the mother when 
George was but a child, the father in 1 879. 
They had two children: Caroline (now 
Mrs. Robinson), of Kalamazoo, Mich., 
and George W. Lorenzo Rugg was a 
shingle manufacturer. George W. Rugg 
was reared in his native State, where, in 
Albany county he received his education. 
In 1861 he enlisted at Albany in Com- 
pany M, Fifth New York Cavalry, for 
three j'ears. being assigned to the army of 
the Potomac, and participated in the en- 
gagements at Antietam. Chantilly, Gettys- 
burg and second Bull Run. In Septem- 
ber, 1863, at Fairfax C. H., Va., he was 
taken ])risoner and conveyed to Libby 
Prison, thence shortly afterward to Belle 



COMMEMOliAriVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



645 



Isle, where he was confined five months, 
next spending seven months in Anderson- 
ville, whence he was finally removed to 
Milan, Ga. After an imprisonment there 
of two months, he was exchanged and 
sent to Annapolis, Md., after experiencing 
fourteen months of confinement in some 
of the most noted Southern prisons. In 
1865 he was honorably discharged in New 
York City, returning to Albany, where he 
attended school for a time. 

In 1865 Mr. Rugg was married, in 
Schoharie county, N. Y., to Mary Riden- 
burgh, who was born in New York State. 
Her parents, George and Ann (Talliday) 
Ridenburgh, were also natives of that 
State, where they passed their entire lives, 
the father dj-ing in 1887, aged eighty-four 
years, six months, the mother in March, 
1892, at the age of eighty-two years, nine 
months. To Mr. and Mrs. Rugg five 
children have been born, viz. : Arthur 
(married), who lives in Talbot, Mich. ; 
Augusta (Mrs. Anderson), also of Talbot, 
Mich.; Elmere E., engineer in the mill at 
Talbot, Mich. ; Jennie, and George. 

In 1870 Mr. Rugg came to Wisconsin, 
and has since made his home in Oconto 
county. In the year of his arrival he pur- 
chased his present farm, which comprises 
eighty acres of good land, lying in Sections 
32 and 29, and which was then in the 
midst of a forest, and without improve- 
ments of any description. He located 
here the same year, in 1872 erecting a 
good frame residence. In 1895 Mr. Rugg 
built a barn 26 x 50 feet in dimensions, 
with 16-foot posts, and he has made 
numerous improvements on his land, 
sixty acres of which he has cleared and 
placed under the plow. He is also a 
stockholder in the creamery of Little River 
township. Although Mr. Rugg has devo- 
ted himself assiduously to his agricultural 
interests, he has found time to serve his 
fellow citizens, who have called him to 
various local positions of trust. At pres- 
ent he is serving his second term as town 
clerk ; he has been justice of the peace four- 
teen years; school clerk, thirteen years in 



succession ;and also served as township as- 
sessor. Politically he is a Republican. Hav- 
ing been a witness to many of the changes 
that have been made in his locality in the 
past quarter of a century, he has taken a 
loyal interest and pride in everything re- 
lating to its development, and especially 
that of the township and county of his 
adoption. 



ODILON BRAULT, a prosperous 
farmer and mill-owner of Cole- 
man township, Marinette county, 
is a member of the first family 
who settled in the township, their resi- 
dence there dating from 1870. 

Mr. Brault's parents, Joseph and 
Euphemia (Bourgeois) Brault, were na- 
tives of Joliette county, Province of Que- 
bec, Canada, where the father was en- 
gaged in business for years, both as a 
lumberman and merchant. In the course 
of his business life there he erected three 
sawmills and a gristmill. In 1868 he 
came to Wisconsin, locating in Marinette 
county in 1869, in March of the same year 
going to Menominee. In 1870 he home- 
steaded 160 acres in Coleman township 
(which, like the entire surrounding region, 
was then all in the woods), and here 
erected a good two-story house, which 
stood until 1S95, when it was destroyed 
by fire. On this land the family made a 
permanent settlement, and Mr. Brault 
spent the rest of his life in its cultivation 
and improvement. In 18S3 he put up a 
sawmill and gristmill, 80x44 feet in di- 
mensions, and two stories in height, and 
in addition to his farming and milling op- 
erations conducted a store, becoming a 
prosperous man. He was active in pub- 
lic affairs and improvements, as well as 
an enterprising business man, and the 
town of Braultville was named in his 
honor. He passed from earth April 15, 
1887, aged sixty-three years, four months, 
seventeen days, and was followed to the 
grave by his wife May 23, 1890, who was 
aged sixty-seven years, three months, 



646 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



three days. They had a family of nine 
children — six sons and three daughters — 
all the living ones, with the exception of 
Leon, being residents of Coleman town- 
ship: Joseph (who is married), Lugene, 
Odilon (of whom this biography more 
particularl}" relates), Sinai, Edmond, Leon 
(who lives in Montreal, Canada), Justine 
(who died February 17, 1895), Julien 
(Mrs. John Belanger) and Azarean (Mrs. 
Jebeau). 

Odilon Brault was born, in 1853, in 
Joliette county. Province of Quebec, 
Canada, and was there reared and edu- 
cated up to the age of fourteen, when he 
came with his parents to Wisconsin. The 
trip was made from Lake Superior to 
Green Bay, thence to Peshtigo, Mari- 
nette count)-, where they first located in 
1869. In 1870 he came thence to Cole- 
man township, here for a time working 
for the Peshtigo Lumber Co. Since 1883 
he has engaged in milling, his present 
mill having been erected in 1892, and he 
owns twelve acres of land besides. The 
mill gives employment to nine men be- 
sides the proprietor himself, and during 
the winters they cut from 400,000 to 
500,000 feet of timber, principall}' for 
farmers, in the summer time engaging in 
the manufacture of shingles, the shingle- 
mill turning out an average of 20,000 a 
day. 

Mr. Brault was married, in 1S80, in 
Menominee, to Miss Lucy Niguett, who 
was born in Manitowoc county. Wis., 
daughter of Dclphos Niguett, a native of 
Canada, who in an early day came to 
Manitowoc count}'. Wis., where he was 
married; he now resides in Coleman town- 
ship, Marinette county, where he owns a 
240-acre farm. Before her marriage Mrs, 
Brault taught school in Coleman town- 
ship. Twelve children have come to Mr. 
and Mrs. Odilon Brault, namely: Eddie, 
Andrew, Albert, Clara, Anna, Addie, 
Lucy, Emma, Olive, Eliza, Elmyra and 
Mary. As a pioneer and almost life-long 
resident of the township, Mr. Brault has 
witnessed most of its development, and 



has noted with interest the rapid strides 
of advancement which have been made 
in the past few years. When the family 
settled on the timber-covered farm they 
experienced for a time many of the incon- 
veniences and hardships which necessarily 
fall to the lot of pioneers, and in the fire 
of 1 87 1 the improvements which had thus 
far been made were all wiped out by the 
destroying element — their barns and 
crops, everything, in fact, except the 
house, which was fortunately saved. The 
large mill erected by the elder Mr. Brault 
was burned February 13, 1891. Our 
subject and his wife are Catholics in re- 
ligious faith, being membersof the Church 
of St. John the Baptist, at Coleman. 
Politically, he is an active Republican, 
one who takes a warm interest in the suc- 
cess of his party, and ardentlj- supports its 
principles. He has served as treasurer 
of the school board. 



HENRY J. PLACE, a leading and 
progressive agriculturist of Gro- 
ver township, Marinette county, 
whose well-kept farm lies in Sec- 
tion 3, is a native of the county, having 
been born in Peshtigo township, June 7, 

1853- 

Abrah.\m Pl.\ce, father of our subject, 
was born January 20, 1818, in Chitten- 
den county, Vt., and when about twelve 
years old was taken bj' his parents to St. 
Lawrence county, N. Y. , where he re- 
ceived the most of his education. In 
1837 he came to Wisconsin, at first mak- 
ing his home at Green Bay, in the spring 
of the following year moving to Peshtigo, 
where for six years he was in the employ 
of the Peshtigo Lumber Co., in Bailey's 
mill, after which he located on the Pesh- 
tigo river and opened up a farm. There 
he did a vast amount of trading with the 
Indians, and for a long time acted in the 
capacity of agent for them in paying them 
and otherwise attending to their wants. 
In about the 3'ear 1850 he settled in what 




ABRAHAM I'LACK. 






/^- 



^c^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



647 



is now Grover township as a pioneer of 
same, buying a farm in the woods which 
he improved and added to, findinf^ him- 
self, at the time of his death, in Novem- 
ber, 1 891, the owner of 600 acres of well- 
improved land, with good buildings there- 
on. In his day he was a well-known 
representative man in northern Wiscon- 
sin, prominent in many ways, and an ex- 
tensive agriculturist, one who had much 
weight in the then young community. In 
his political preferences he was a stout 
Whig, later a no less zealous Republican, 
and for ten years he was treasurer of the 
school board. His widow, Mrs. Eliza- 
beth Place, is now passing her declining 
years at the home of her son Henry J. 

The subject proper of these lines re- 
ceived a good education at the public 
schools of his native township, and was 
reared to farming pursuits. He now owns 
a good farm of 400 acres in Grover town- 
ship (the largest farm in that township), 
and eighty in Peshtigo, 200 of which are 
cleared; he also raises a high grade of 
live stock. At the time of the never-to- 
be-forgotten conflagration of 1871 he lost 
his fences, but fortunately the buildings 
were saved. In 1879, in Peshtigo town- 
ship, Mr. Place was united in marriage 
with Miss Nellie Bump, who was born in 
New York State, an adopted daughter of 
Charles and Harriet (Peasley) Bump, of 
the same nativity, who came to Wiscon- 
sin in 1872, settling in the woods of Pesh- 
tigo township, where they opened up a 
farm and are yet residing. To this mar- 
riage have been born six children, named 
respectively: Heman, Norman, Edith, 
William, Winfred and Janet. 

In his political sentiments Mr. Place 
is a Republican, and takes an active in- 
terest in the affairs of the party. He has 
been clerk of the school district, and is 
now serving his second term as school 
treasurer. He is a well-read man, keep- 
ing closely in touch with the times, and is 
one of those sturdy, practical husbandmen 
who are of the most useful kind to any 
country, be it new or old. 



JOB E. PLACE, a substantialfarmer 
of Grover township, Marinette coun- 
ty, was born, in 1834, in Chittenden, 
Vt., and is a son of Lyman and Susan 
(Jackson) Place, who were born in St. 
Lawrence county. New York. 

Lyman Place was a farmer in New 
York State, where he died in St. Law- 
rence county, in 1859; his wife died in 
Marinette county, Wis., in 1857. They 
had the followingchildren: Abraham, who 
resided in Grover township, and died 
there; Hannah, wife of A. C. Stearns, 
of Louisville, St. Lawrence Co., N. Y. ; 
Guy, who died in New York, in 1824; 
Henry, in New York; Andrew, in St. Law- 
rence county, N. Y. ; Catherine, Mrs. 
Clement Place, residing in Chittenden 
county, Vt. ; Job E. , subject of this sketch ; 
and John, residing in Peshtigo township. 

Up to the age of seventeen Job E. 
Place was reared to farm life in St. Law- 
rence county, N. Y. In October became 
to Peshtigo, Marinette Co. , Wis. , entering 
the employ of the Peshtigo Lumber Co., 
with whom he remained till 1857. At Bur- 
lington, Vt., on July 17, 1856, Job E. 
Place was united in marriage with Sarah 
Ann Kenyon, who was born in Vermont, 
and they had four children, namely: Eu- 
gene, married, and residing in Marinette, 
Marinette county; Byron, at home; Ered; 
and Susan, who died in 1892. Mrs. Place 
died in 1889. Her parents, Gaston and 
Sarah Ann Kenyon, were born in Ver- 
mont; the father died in Paw Paw, Mich. , 
the mother now making her home in Kala- 
mazoo, that State. 

In 1857 Mr. Place bought a tract of 
160 acres in Section 21, Grover township, 
where he now resides. It was then all 
timber land, and in the midst of a dense 
forest, with no improvements and no 
roads, only a trail through the wilderness. 
He labored diligently, cleared the land, 
and put up a good residence. By the fire 
of 1 87 1 he lost house, cattle and nearly 
everything that could be burned; but he 
has since put up good buildings, and has 
nearly all of his 160-acre farm in a good 



648 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



state of cultivation. On August 9, 1890, 
Mr. Place was again married, taking for 
his second wife Mrs. Rebecca Hale, widow 
of John Hale, who died in Peshtigo in 
1886, and they have had two children: 
Ralph and Leah Bell. Mr. and Mrs. Hale 
had one child, Lila Hale. Mrs. Place 
was born in Canada, and her parents were 
John and Eliza Ann (Bowen) Utter, 
from Canada and Pembroke, N. Y., re- 
spectively. They came to Peshtigo in 
1 88 1, and made their home in Upper Bush, 
Peshtigo township, where Mrs. Utter now 
resides, Mr. Utter having died in Feb- 
ruary, 1890. They reared nine children, 
as follows: John, residing in Peshtigo; 
Esther, deceased; David, residing in Pesh- 
tigo; Lucy, Mrs. Quantz, residing in Michi- 
gan; Abrani, Jacob and Henry, residing 
in Peshtigo; Harriet, Mrs. Phillips, of 
Peshtigo township; and Rebecca, Mrs. 
Place. 

Mr. Place votes with the Republican 
party, and has been supervisor of Grover 
township. He has been a resident of 
Marinette county for forty-si.\ years, has 
seen most of its growth and development, 
and is well and favorably known. 



JAMES McCLURE, a representative 
farmer of Oconto county, living in 
Section 25, Chase township, was 
born in Ireland in 1830, and is a son 
of Robert and Margaret (Sleath) McClure, 
also natives of the Emerald Isle. 

In 1835 the father emigrated with his 
family to Sanilac county, Mich., where he 
made his home until his death in 1840; 
his wife passed away several years pre- 
vious. They were the parents of si.\ chil- 
dren: John, who came to Brown county, 
Wis., in 1866, and died in Chase town- 
ship, Oconto county, in May, 1876; 
James; George, a resident of Greenlcaf, 
Brown Co., Wis., who served for one 
year in the Civil war; Alex, who enlisted 
in the Si.xth Michigan Cavalry, and was 
killed in the battle of the Wilderness; 
Nathan, who was also a member of the 



Sixth Michigan Cavalry, and is now living 
in the Wolverine State; and Margaret, 
who died in Michigan. 

Our subject was a child of but five 
years when he accompanied his father to 
the New World. He was reared in Mich- 
igan, educated in its common schools, 
and in i860 removed to Brown county, 
\\'is., where for some time he was em- 
ployed in the lumber woods. In the 
year of his arrival in this State he wedded 
Miss Elizabeth Roberts, the ceremony 
being performed in St. Clair county, 
Mich. The lady is a native of Halifax, 
Nova Scotia, and a daughter of George 
and Agnes fOgleby) Roberts, the former 
born in Ireland, the latter in England. 
In early life they became residents of 
Nova Scotia, whence they removed to St. 
Clair county, Mich., casting in their lot 
with its pioneer settlers. There the father 
died in 1871, and there the mother is 
still living. 

Mr. McClure continued to follow lum- 
bering in Brown county until his enlist- 
ment for service in the Union army. At 
Green Bay, Wis., he joined Company A, 
Fifty-second Wis. V. I., for one year or 
during the war, and was mustered into 
the United States service at Madison, 
proceeding thence to St. Louis, to Jeffer- 
son Barracks, on to Jefferson City, and 
to Iron Mountain. The command then 
moved on to Pleasant Hill, next to Kansas 
Cit}', from there to Fort Leavenworth 
and to Fort Riley, Kans. Subsequently 
he returned to Fort Leavenworth, and 
was there mustered out, while, in Madi- 
son, Wis., m August, 1865, he was hon- 
orably discharged. 

Coming to Oconto county, Mr. Mc- 
Clure purchased eighty acres of timber 
land in Section 25, Chase township, and 
began to clear and improve the farm. 
He now owns 120 acres with seventy 
acres under cultivation, and is recognized 
as one of the leading and substantial 
farmers of the community. Here he and 
his wife have reared a family of six chil- 
dren, namely: Mrs. Nettie Laffaw, of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPUWAL RECORD. 



649 



Menominee, Mich. ; Mrs. Agnes Dickey, 
who resides in Chase township; Mrs. 
Stella Emery, of Menominee, Mich. ; 
Isaac, who aids in the operation of the 
home farm; Mrs. Mabel Thomas, of 
Oconto Falls, Wis. ; and Sarah. 

Mr. McClure is the oldest living pioneer 
of Chase township, which he aided in or- 
ganizing, and has taken a very prominent 
part in its work and upbuilding. In 
politics he is a Republican. His life has 
been well spent, displaying the same 
fidelity to duty, which prompted his 
response to his country's call for aid. 
Enterprise and industry have won him 
success in his business life, and he is 
thereby enjoying a comfortable compe- 
tence. 



HB. SIMCOX is one of the native- 
born sons of Wisconsin. He first 
saw the light in Waupaca, Wau- 
paca county, in 1866, and is a son 
of Isaac and Mary (Beldon) Simco.x, the 
former a native of England, and the lat- 
ter of New York. The father came to 
Waupaca, Wis., in an early day, and en- 
gaged in business as a hardware merchant. 
At the time of the Civil war he responded 
to the country's call for troops, enlisting 
March 26, 1864, in Company B, Thirty- 
eighth Wis. V. I., of which he was made 
sergeant, and served until the close of 
the war, receiving an honorable discharge 
July 26, 1865. He was taken prisoner 
at the blowing up of the fort in front of 
Petersburg, Va., July 30, 1864, and was 
held a prisoner of war until February 22, 
1865, when he was exchanged. He was 
confined in Danville prison most of the 
time, the last two weeks of his prison life 
being spent in Libby, from which he was 
exchanged. Returning to his home, he 
established a hardware store in Amherst, 
where he and his wife now reside. They 
have reared a family of two sons: H. B. 
and T. W., members of the firm of Sim- 
cox Brothers & Co., of Marinette. 

Our subject was reared in Amherst, 



Wis., and acquired his education in its 
public schools, after which he learned the 
trade of a tinner, following that pursuit 
for some time. He then acted as sales- 
man in a hardware store, and arriving in 
Marinette in 1887, secured a situation of 
that character, in which he continued 
until 1892, when the present well-known 
firm of Simcox Brothers & Co. was es- 
tablished. The brothers have built up an 
excellent trade, and are recognized as 
thoroughly reliable business men and en- 
terprising merchants. They carry a full 
and complete line of goods, and receive 
from the public a liberal patronage. 

H. B. Simcox was married in Mari- 
nette, in 1887, to Hattie B. Soper, who 
was born in Cato, Manitowoc Co., Wis., 
a daughter of Z. Soper, a pioneer settler 
of Cato. They have three children : May, 
Chaunce}' and Milan. Our subject and 
his wife hold membership with the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church, and he is a valued 
member of Marinette Lodge, No. 182, 
F. & A. M. ; the Temple of Honor; and 
Harrison Camp, No. 43, Sons of Veter- 
ans, being junior vice-commander of the 
State. In politics he is a stalwart Repub- 
lican, and in 1894 was elected county 
supervisor for the Third ward, now serv- 
ing his second term in that position. He 
is a member of the committee on the 
Poor, and Public Grounds, the Building 
and the Tax committees. He is deeply 
interested in everything pertaining to the 
welfare of city and county, and is one of 
the progressive men of Marinette. 



JOHN H. GODDARD. This gentle- 
man stands prominent among the 
well and favorably known men of 
Pensaukee township, Oconto county, 
of which his father, John Goddard, was 
one of the earliest and most active citi- 
zens. 

John Goddard was born in Massachu- 
setts, and was a machinist by trade. He 
was married in Maine, to Ann Libby, a 
native of that State, and they settled in 



650 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



Lowell, Mass., remaining there until their 
removal to Wisconsin, in 1856. He came 
to Pensaiikee township, Oconto county, 
to build a mill, on the Pensaukee river, 
for Sawtell, Davis & Co., after complet- 
ing which he located on new land in Sec- 
tions 34, 27 and 20, Pensaukee township, 
and opened up a farm, on which they re- 
sided one jear. Removing thence to a 
farm in Sections 19, 27 and 21, same 
township, he made a permanent home 
there, and he was one of the most ener- 
getic, active and enterprising men in the 
community, holding nearly every office in 
the gift of the township, and also serving 
as county commissioner of public and 
State lands in Oconto county. In polit- 
ical faith he was a Republican. His death 
occurred in November, 18S3, in Brook- 
side, where his widow now makes her 
home. Their familj' consisted of five 
children: John H. ; Fannie E. (Mrs. E. 
C. Whitney), of Oconto; Adda M. (Mrs. 

E. A. Cannon), of Ahnapee, Kewaunee 
Co., Wis.; Adelia, (Mrs. J. S. Gray), of 
Pensaukee township, and Lauretta (Mrs. 
Sherman Bush), of Pensaukee. 

Our subject w-as born in 1S47 in Lowell, 
Mass., and was about nine years old when 
the family came to Pensaukee township, 
where he has ever since resided, receiving 
his primary education in the district 
schools there. In December, 1863, he 
enlisted at Madison, Wis., in Company 

F, Twelfth Wis. V. I., for three years or 
during the war. His regiment was in the 
Department of the Tennessee, under 
Gen. Sherman, and he participated in 
the siege of Atlanta, the march to the 
sea, the Carolina campaign, and the en- 
gagement at Raleigh, finally taking part 
in the grand review at Washington, D. C. 
He was honorably discharged in July, 
1865, at Louisville, Ky., and returned to 
his home in Oconto county, after which 
he resumed his studies, attending school 
at Gorham, Maine, and at Lawrence 
Universitj', Appleton, Wis. During 1873 
and 1874 Mr. Goddard read medicine 
with Dr. Pierce, of Green Bay, in which 



city he commenced practice, continuing 
in this line for some years, in Green Bay 
and Pensaukee. In 1886 he located on 
his present farm in Section 19, Pensaukee 
township, which consists of fifty acres of 
land, thirty of which are cleared. 

Mr. Goddard was married in Pensau- 
kee, in 1 868, to Imogene Sutton, who 
was born in New York State, of which 
her parents, Hiram and Mahala (Green) 
Sutton, were also natives. In 1859 thej' 
came to Brookside, Oconto Co., Wis., 
locating in Pensaukee township, where 
he died, and where she still resides; she 
is now Mrs. Churchill. Mr. Goddard 
lost his wife and two children in 1872, 
and in 1876 he was married, in Lacrosse 
county, Wis., to Ida I. Whitney, who 
was born in that county and died in 1880. 
Two children — Inez L. and Ida J. — were 
born to this union, of whom Inez lived to 
be three and one-half years old. In 
1882 Mr. Goddard for his third wife, 
wedded, in Lacrosse county. Miss Hat- 
tie L. Whitney, and four children 
have blessed this marriage: Fannie 
E., Myrtle I., Johnnie E. and William E. 
Mr. Goddard, like his father before him, 
has been a thorough!}' public-spirited citi- 
zen, and his fellow men have called on 
him to fill various local offices of trust 
and responsibility. In 1894 he served as 
township chairman, for seven years pre- 
viously had filled the office of clerk, and 
has been a delegate to different county 
conventions. Political!}-, he gives his 
support to the Republican party. So- 
cially, he is a member of E. A. Ramsey 
Post, G. A. R. , of Oconto; of Pine Lodge. 
No. 188. F. & A. M., Oconto, and of 
the I. O. G. T. In religious connection 
he is a member of the M. E. Church. 



JOHN MATRAVERS. The life rec- 
ord of a self-made man contains 
many valuable lessons, and demon- 
strates what can be accomplished 
when perseverance and resolute purpose 
form the keynote of a man's character. 



commemorativf: nioouAPnicAL record. 



65, 



That, to-day, our subject is numbered 
among the prominent and substantial 
citizens of the community is due entirely 
to his own efforts. 

Mr. Matravers is a native of Somer- 
setshire, England, born in April, 1828, 
and is a son of Philip and Eliza (Sweet- 
land) Matravers, also natives of England, 
in which country they spent their entire 
lives. Their family numbered seven chil- 
dren : Sarah, in England; Eliza, de- 
ceased; Mary Ann and Elizabeth, also 
living in England; John; Philip and 
George, who are yet residents of Eng- 
land. Our subject was reared in the land 
of his birth, and is indebted to its public- 
school system for his education. He was 
married, April 12, 1854, at St. Helier's, 
Isle of Jersey, one of the Channel Islands, 
off the coast of France, to Miss Matilda 
Clarke, who was born in England, and is 
a daughter of Richard and Mary Ann 
(Lumbert) Clarke, also natives of that 
country. There the mother died, after 
which the father emigrated to Canada, 
where his death occurred nearly twenty- 
five years ago. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. 
Matravers crossed the Atlantic to Amer- 
ica, and took up their residence in Oconto 
county. Wis., where they arrived with a 
cash capital of $1. Our subject was em- 
ployed at Hubbell's mill, also in the mill 
of Oconto for several months, and then 
removed to Leighton, where he worked 
for George Smith for one winter. In 
1855 he purchased a tract of timber land 
of fifty-three acres, built a log cabin, and 
began clearing the property. For forty 
years he has lived upon this farm, and has 
prospered in his undertakings, so that he 
now has 330 acres of valuable land, two 
hundred of which are under a high state 
of cultivation. Upon it stands a good 
story-and-a-half frame residence, besides 
other improvements which indicate the 
thrift and enterprise of the owner. He 
also owns one hundred acres in another 
farm, seventy of which are cleared. His 
energies are devoted to general farming, 



and he is now enjoying the fruits of his 
former toil. 

Mr. and Mrs. Matravers have a family 
of seven children : Edmund, married and 
residing in Ocontii township; Matilda, 
wife of Samuel (^niillard, of the same 
township; Mary Ann, wife of Edward 
Couillard; Amber, wife of Edmond Clas- 
son, of Oconto township; Grant; Hugh 
Yarwood, at home; and Mrs. Porterfield, 
wife of John W. Porterfield, of Oconto 
township. Tiic ])arents are members of 
the Presbyterian Church. Politically, 
Mr. Matravers is a Republican, and takes 
quite an active interest in the affairs of 
the party. During the Civil war he 
manifested his lojalty to the government 
by enlisting at Cliicago January 6, 1865, 
as a member of the Thirty-ninth 111. V. I. , 
of the Firsi Division, First Brigade, Twen- 
ty-fourth Army Corps. He was mustered 
into the service at Springfield, 111., and then 
went toCamp Distribution, near Washing- 
ton, D. C, where he remained until the 
opening of spring. The regiment then 
marched to Deep Bottom, near Richmond, 
and participated in the battle of Hatchez 
Kun, after which they went to Appo- 
matto.x Court H<juse, being there sta- 
tioned at the time of Lee's surrender. 
From that place they proceeded to Nor- 
folk, Va., and in Chicago Mr. Matravers 
was honorably discharged in September, 
1865. He at once returned to Oconto, 
where he has demonstrated his loyalty as 
a citizen in times of peace as well as in 
times of war. 



DONALD J. BELL, who has been 
numbered among the representa- 
tive and progressive citizens of 
Marinette since July, 1871, is now 
engaged in the real-estate business. Be- 
ing widely and favorably known in his 
locality, the record of his life will prove 
of interest to many of our readers. 

Mr. Bell was born in the town of Belle- 
ville, Upper Canada (now Province of 
Ontario), August 18, 1846, and is a son 



652 



COlfXEifORATrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



of John and Margaret (Currie) Bell, who 
were natives of the Highlands of Scot- 
land. Having married in that country, 
they emigrated to Canada, and later, in 
1849, became residents of Fond du Lac 
county. Wis., settling on a farm in El- 
dorado township. In i S74 they moved to 
Cerro Gordo county, Iowa, and after re- 
turning to Wisconsin lived a part of the 
time with our subject. The father died 
in Fond du Lac August 4, 1SS5; the 
mother passed away in Cerro Gordo 
county, Iowa, on September 23, follow- 
ing. The family consisted of the follow- 
ing children: Malcolm, who is living in 
Fond du Lac, Wis. ; Archibald, a resi- 
dent of Fond du Lac county; Margaret, 
wife of Ezra M. Crary, of Potsdam, N. Y. ; 
Mary, wife of A. A. McDougal, of Dun- 
dee, Wis. ; Duncan, of Cerro Gordo 
count}-, Iowa; Neil, who was twice sherifi 
of Fond du Lac county, and enlisted there 
in 1 861 in Company A. Second Wiscon- 
sin Cavalry, serving through the war; 
Flora, now Mrs. Rhodes, of Mason City, 
Iowa; Donald J., subject of this sketch; 
and Katie, wife of Duncan G. Campbell, 
of Charles City, Iowa. 

Our subject was reared in Fond du 
Lac county, and educated in its public 
schools. In September, 1863, he enlisted 
in the city of Fond du Lac for service in 
the Union army, becoming a member of 
Company A, Second Wisconsin Cavalr}-. 
He was mustered into the ser\ice at 
Madison, and was on skirmish duty dur- 
ing the first winter, as an escort to the 
mail train between Rolla and Lebanon, 
Mo. He then went to Memphis. Tenn., 
as body-guard to Gen. \\'ashburn, and 
later to \'icksburg as body-guard for Gen. 
Dana; subsequently he was engaged in 
raiding under Gen. Grierson, and was 
honorably discharged at Madison in 1865. 

Mr. Bell then returned to Fond du 
Lac, Wis., and engaged in farming until 
July, 1S71, the date of his arrival in Mari- 
nette. He was here employed as book- 
keeper by the firm of McCartney & Ham- 
ilton until October 8, when the town was 



almost swept away by fire. He was then 
appointed relief agent to handle and dis- 
tribute goods sent to the sufferers, and 
after thus serving for six months he en- 
gaged in the hotel business. Purchasing 
a lot on Hall avenue, he erected the 
"Commercial House," a two-story frame 
building with 75 feet frontage, which he 
conducted until about 1882, when he 
leased the hotel, and for some two years 
was engaged in the lumber trade. His 
next venture was as a dealer in real estate 
and tax titles, which business he has suc- 
cessfully continued since. After his first 
hotel was destroyed by fire in November, 
1S85, he erected the Arlington Block, a 
two-story brick with basement, having 93 
feet frontage on Hall avenue, and a depth 
of 80 feet. It contains forty commodious 
and well ventilated rooms, besidesthe store 
rooms, and is a thoroughly equipped hotel, 
a credit to its founder. 

Mr. Bell was married in Marinette, in 
August, 1875, to Hannah, daughter of 
James and Abigail (Gugin) Burke, natives 
of Canada. Her father died in 1S59, but 
her mother is still living in Canada. In 
their family were seven children: Eliza- 
beth, wife of Anthony Cooney, of Menomi- 
nee, Mich. ; Patrick, who died in Canada, 
September 9, 18S5; Susan, wife of Dan 
Gavin, of Canada; Lavine, wife of Rich- 
ard Bray, of Canada; Jane, wife of Nich- 
olas Gilman, of Duluth, Minn. ; Margaret, 
wife of Patrick Durkin, of Port Blakeley, 
Wash. ; and the honored wife of our sub- 
ject. Mr. and Mrs. Bell have three chil- 
dren, viz.: Maggie M. , wife of Albert B. 
Cripe, who has charge of the Standard 
Oil Works in Marinette (they have one 
child, Harold B.); and William R. and 
Lucy Florence, who are still attending 
school. 

Mr. Bell takes quite an active interest 
in politics, stanchly advocating the princi- 
ples of the Republican party. He has 
served as under sheriff of the county, and 
was chief of police of Marinette for two 
years. He is a member of Sizer Post No. 
207, G. A. R., of Marinette, and his wife 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



653 



belongs to the Women's Relief Corps. 
Both are highly esteemed people, and 
their home is noted for its hospitality, 
which is shared by a very large circle of 
frienils. Mr. Bell has been an important 
factor in the upbuilding of the city, and 
has given his hearty support and co-oper- 
ation to all works of public improvement. 



ROBERT B, T.-WLOR, now living 
in the city of Oconto, has been a 
resident of Oconto county for 
twenty-eight years. He is a native 
of the Dominion of Canada, born in 1843, 
in Bristol, Pontiac Co., Quebec. 

Alexander and Jessie (Burns) Taylor, 
parents of our subject, were natives of 
Scotland, and were married there in 1833. 
They crossed the ocean to Canada, in 
1834, the father taking up one hundred 
acres of government land, si.x miles from 
the Ottawa river, and thirty miles from 
the nearest post office. There he lived 
until his death in 1862; his wife died three 
years later. They were the parents of 
five children: Catherine G. (born in Scot- 
land); Mrs. Croak, of Saginaw, Mich.; 
Marion M.. Mrs. Jamieson, died in Can- 
ada in 1877; Helen H., Mrs. McArthur, 
of Biteley, Mich.; William, who came to 
Oconto county, in 1 867, dying in the town 
of Little River in 1885; and Robert B. 

Mr. Taylor was reared in Canada, and 
received his education at a primitive school 
of his time, attending, in all, about two 
years, a log school house, which for desks 
had unpainted boards fastened to the walls 
on three sides of the room, and plank 
benches, to correspond, for seats. He 
was thirteen years of age, when it — his 
first school — was built. In August, 1865, 
he left home, landing in Cleveland, Ohio, 
where he lived for two years, being fol- 
lowed by his brother and two sisters. In 
1867, he came to Oconto county. Wis., 
locating in Stiles. Being something of a 
mechanic, he worked for Ansen Eldred, 
during the winter, at millwright work, 
and in the spring he went to Fort How- 



ard, where he worked on the cabinof a new 
vessel. The same sunnner going to Little 
Suamico, he there worked for three months 
on a new sawmill being built by Peters, 
Olsen & Winas, on the Little Suamico 
river. Going to West Pensaukee (now 
Abrams) in the fall of 1868, our subject 
resided there some years, working at 
carpenter and millwright work. Here he 
invented an entirely new device for pack- 
ing and pressing shingles, on which ma- 
chine he procured three patents. Although 
the machine proved to be a practical suc- 
cess, yet it was not a financial one to Mr. 
Taylor, as he was unable to protect his 
patents against almost universal infringe- 
ment all over the country. 

Coming to Oconto, in 1871, he worked 
on a new sawmill being built by Orr, 
Newell & Co., also on a new sawmill 
being built by C. S. Hart, si.x miles north 
of Oconto. During the winter of 1871-72 
he erected a sawmill for R. L. Hall, eight 
miles north of Oconto. In that neigh- 
borhood he lived for twenty-four years, 
during eight of which he turned his hand 
to millwrighting, carpentering, engineer- 
ing and pattern making — in fact, anything 
that required to be done, patenting 
one more of his several useful inventions. 
In 1881 he located at "Hart's Switch," 
engaging there in the cedar trade, in which 
he continued for ten years, in the mean- 
time purchasing 120 acres of farm land, 
which he improved by clearing and build- 
ing in a substantial manner. In 1879 
Oconto county was divided, creating Mari- 
nette county, which caused the immedi- 
ate formation of the town of Little River, 
with Mr. Taylor as one of its residents. 
Being a public-spirited citizen, taking an 
active part in the advancement of the 
community, he held the important ofifice 
of chairman for two terms — 1880-81 and 
1883-84; for several years that of justice 
of the peace, ami for twelve years he was 
clerk of School District No. 3. In 1890 
he was U. S. census enumerator, for the 
town of Little River (then embracing the 
town of Lena). Mr. Taylor, politically, 



654 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



is identified with the Repubhcan party, 
and in 1870 cast his first ballot, in the 
town of Pensaukee, after first becoming a 
fully naturalized citizen of the United 
States. 

In 1S76 Mr. Taylor was married to 
Miss Henrietta Herriman, who was born 
in Euclid, Cuyahoga Co., Ohio. Her 
parents, J. \'. and Mary (Foreman) Her- 
riman, were also natives of Ohio, coming 
to Oconto county, and settling in what is 
now Little River, in 1S69. Six children 
have come to Mr. and Mrs. Taylor, viz.: 
William A., Marion Adelaide, Robert 
Clinton, Henrietta M., Kate J. and Ches- 
ter M. 



JOHN' SIMON, an active and enter- 
prising citizen of Florence, Wis., 
where he has resided since the spring 
of 1882, is a native of Denmark, 
born in 1853, and is a son of George and 
Catherine Simon, both of whom were na- 
tives of that country, where they yet re- 
side. 

Our subject was educated in the pub- 
lic schools of his native land, and at the 
age of sixteen came to the United States, 
locating at Escanaba, Mich., where he 
entered the employ of the Chicago & 
North Western Railway Company. From 
Escanaba he went to Oconto, and took 
charge of a flouring-mill at that place 
until he moved to Florence. On coming 
to that place he engaged in the hotel 
business, erecting the "Ludington Hotel," 
a three-storj' frame building with stone 
basement under the entire house, and 
continued in that business until May i, 
1895, in connection with other enter- 
prises in which he engaged from time to 
time. In 1 888 he put up four frame store- 
buildings adjoining the hotel, and in 1890 
erected a large brick store-building. In 
1888 he commenced in the general mer- 
cantile trade, in which he is still engaged, 
with Mr. Hillyer, under the firm name of 
Hillyer & Simon. For five years he was 
also engaged in the hardware business at 



that place. At present he is the owner 
of seven store-buildings and fourteen resi- 
dences in Florence, together with a livery 
barn, store building, and one dwelling- 
house in Commonwealth, Wisconsin. 

In 1879 Mr. Simon was married at 
Oconto, Wis., to Miss Sophia Stein, a 
daughter of John Stein, who was an early 
settler of Oconto, and who yet resides in 
that place. Three years later he removed 
with his bride to Florence, where, as may 
be readily inferred from what has already 
been written, he has been actively engaged. 
Coming to this country a poor boy of six- 
teen years, he has by his industry and 
enterprise placed himself in the front rank 
of the business men of northern Wis- 
consin. At the present time he is the 
largest taxpayer in the county of Flor- 
ence. He was here at the organization 
of the county, and assisted in the pre- 
liminary work. In politics he is an active 
Republican, and has been chairman of 
the town of Florence. In addition to his 
other enterprises, he is now engaged in 
opening up a farm in the town of Home- 
stead, one and three-fourths miles from 
Iron Mountain, to be known as the 
' ' Elmhurst Farm " ; the Menominee river 
runs along its edges for three-fourths of a 
mile. Besides his interests here, he has a 
fine property in Menominee, Mich., a 
brick block, bought in April, 1895, and 
also owns large tracts of land throughout 
this part of the State. No man in Flor- 
ence county is better known than John 
Simon, who, in the thirteen years of his 
residence, has done more to advance its 
interests than any other one man. He 
is a tireless worker, and is thoroughly 
interested in everything calculated to 
build up the country of his adoption, and 
especially the county of Florence. 



JOHN COULTER, a successful, pros- 
perous farmer of Porterfield town- 
ship, Marinette county, is a son of 
John and Mary Hannah Coulter, and 
was born in Countv Antrim, Ireland, in 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOORAPmOAL RECORD. 



655 



1824. John Coulter, Sr. , was a farmer, 
and lived in County Antrim, Ireland; he 
and his wife, Mary Hannah, were both 
born in Scotland. They reared a family 
of eleven children, of whom, Alexander 
emigrated to Philadelphia, and from there 
went to California; Robert also came to 
Philadelphia, and is a farmer. 

John Coulter, our subject, was reared 
in County Antrim, Ireland, educated in 
the schools of the neighborhood of his 
home, and was reared to farming. In 
1845 he left Liverpool for Philadelphia, 
where for seven and a half years he was 
engaged in driving for one firm — Morris, 
Jones & Co., located on Market street. 
In 1858, at Philadelphia, he was united 
in marriage with Miss Elizabeth McCurdy, 
who was born in Scotland, and they have 
had four children (all living but one) 
namely: Mary, wife of Thomas Dickey, 
of Porterfield township; Jennie, now Mrs. 
Lemare, of Iron Mountain, Ivlich. ; Hugh, 
living at home; and John, who died in 
1892. Mrs. Coulter's parents, Daniel 
and Kittle (Jamison) McCurdy, were born 
in Scotland, always lived there, and died 
there. Their daughter Elizabeth was 
the only one of the family to come to 
America. 

In 185S Mr. Coulter left Philadelphia, 
and coming west settled near the Menom- 
inee river, on the Michigan side, where he 
remained for two years. At that time 
there were only two houses in Menom- 
inee, and two in Marinette. He aided in 
building the dams on the river, also 
worked in the woods, then, in i860, 
bought a tract of 105 acres in the forest 
in Section 22, Porterfield township, his 
present farm, which he has since cleared, 
put up good buildings thereon, and now 
has his farm in a good state of cultiva- 
tion. At the time he came Indians were 
numerous. Mr. Coulter and his wife are 
among the oldest pioneers of the Menom- 
inee river country. He has seen the 
complete growth of the city of Marinette, 
and the many and great changes that 
have been wrought in this section since 

38 



they came, and he is a well-known man 
in his section. In politics he is inde- 
pendent. 



CS. McKENZIE, who is engaged 
in farming and lumbering at Gil- 
lett, is numbered among the 
early settlers of Oconto county, 
and has been an important factor in de- 
veloping the lumber interests in this sec- 
tion of the State, which is one of the 
most important industries of Wisconsin. 
Mr. McKenzie is numbered among 
the native sons of the Empire State, and 
comes of a family of considerable promi- 
nence. His great-uncle, Alex. McKenzie, 
was one of the early pioneers of Canada, 
and explored and named the McKenzie 
river in that country. The grandfather 
of our subject, William McKenzie, was 
born in Scotland, and at an early day 
emigrated to New York, locating in Essex 
county, on the shores of Lake Champlain, 
where he spent his remaining days. His 
son, Thomas McKenzie, was born and 
reared in that locality and followed lum- 
bering ; he died in New York in 1844; 
his widow, whose maiden name was Ida 
Sheldon, married again. Later she came 
to Wisconsin, but subsequently moved to 
Iowa, where her death occurred in April, 
1894. The parents of our subject had a 
family of five children : Mary Helen, who 
died in Wisconsin in KS79; Mrs. Orpha 
Pritchard, of Chicago, 111. ; C. S., subject 
of this review ; Thomas, of Howard 
county, Iowa ; and Christine, who died in 
Wisconsin in 1875. 

In the State of his nativity our sub- 
ject spent the days of his boyhood and 
youth. He had few privileges, and is a 
self-educated and self-made man. Early 
thrown upon his own resources, he began 
to earn his livelihood as a driver on the 
Erie canal. He worked for three years 
in a sawmill, and then began work on the 
rivers, running lumber on the Mississippi 
and Wisconsin. In 1855 he took up his 
residence in Columbia countv, Wis., and 



656 



COMMEitOBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was engaged in farming and teaming from 
Milwaukee. Five years later he came to 
Gillett. where he embarked in lumbering, 
doing a jobbing trade, which pursuit he 
has since followed with good success, fur- 
nishing employment to a number of men. 
He has made a thorough study of the busi- 
ness, which he now understands in ever}- 
particular, does a good real-estate busi- 
ness, and his capable management, enter- 
prise and diligence have brought to him 
success. His life demonstrates what can 
be done through self-reliance and inde- 
fatigable enterprise, and his prosperity is 
certainly well-merited. 

In 1S57 Mr. McKenzie was joined in 
wedlock ^^■ith Miss Antha Edwards, a native 
of New York, and a daughter of Joseph 
Edwards, one of the early pioneers of 
Columbia county, who died there in 1S91. 
Mrs. McKenzie died in Gillett in iSSo, 
leaving a family of three children : Mrs. 
Ida Valk, of Gillett : Eugene, married, 
and living in Underbill townsihip, Oconto 
county; and Mrs. Helen Kohn, of Gillett. 
In 1SS4 Mr. McKenzie was united in 
marriage with Emma Collins, a native of 
Caribou, Maine. Her father went to 
California at an early day, and met his 
death in a hotel fire there. 

During the Civil war Mr. McKenzie 
enlisted at Oconto as a member of Com- 
pany F, Forty-fourth Wis. V. I. , and was 
mustered into the ser\"ice at Madison. 
The regiment was attached to the army 
of the Tennessee, and went directly to 
Nashville, thence to Pulaski, its 5er\ice 
being in Tennessee and Kentucky. Our 
subject continued at the front until after 
the close of the war, when he received 
an honorable discharge at Madison, Wis., 
in 1S65. In politics he supports the 
party which upheld the Union — the Re- 
publican — and has ser^•ed as chairman of 
the board of supervisors of Gillett town- 
ship. He was also lumber commissioner 
on the Mer. " on, receiving 

the first go. , . tment to that 

position. He has long been identified 
with the historv' of the county and its up- 



building, and is pre-eminently a public- 
spirited man, who lends a helping hand to 
all enterprises calculated to promote the 



general welfare. 



TC. MILLER has been agent at 
Marinette for the Chicago & North 
Western Railway Co. since June, 
1S95, and has been in that com- 
panys employ since he was sixteen years 
old, having commenced at Stambaugh, 
Michigan. 

Mr. Miller was bom February 2S, 
1S69, in Wenona, Marshall Co., 111., son 
of Josiah and Elizabeth ('Hamilton) Mil- 
ler. The parents were both born '\n Union 
county, Ohio, were married in their na- 
tive State, and subsequently coming to 
Wenona, 111. , settled on a farm. In 1871 
they moved to Washington, Tazewell 
Co., 111., where Mr. Miller was engaged 
in the lumber business, in 1873 remo\-ing 
to Bloomington. 111., and in 1S74 to Pax- 
ton. 111., where he carried on a lumber 
yard. In 1S76 they returned to Marshall 
county, and, at Wenona. he engaged in 
the iron-bridge business. He is now run- 
ning a locomotive on the Chicago. Bur- 
lington & Ouincy railroad, residing in 
Aurora, III. They reared a family of 
four children, all of whom are living, as 
follows: James Elmere, resides at Harts- 
home. Indian Ty. . being bookkeeper for 
the Choctaw Coal & Railway Co. ; Samuel 
Fulton is general agent for the Chicago & 
North Western Railway Co. , and lives in 
Green Bay. Wis. ; Thomas Chelsea is the 
subject proper of this sketch; and Louisa, 
Mrs. J. A. Kuhn, lives in Chicago. 

Thomas C. Miller was reared in Illi- 
nois, and received his education in the 
schools of Wenona and Bloomington, 
also attending school at Richwood, Ohio, 
in 1882 and 1883. In 1S84 he went to 
northern Michigan, and from Septem- 
ber of at rear until June. 1SS5, studied 
telegraphy under his brother at Na- 
deau, Mich., after which he com- 
menced with the company in whose 



Commemorative bioguapiiical record. 



657 



employ he has ever since remained. As 
before stated, his first position was at 
Stambaugh, Mich., where he remained 
from June, 1SS5, until July, 1887, beinj^ 
cashier and telegraph operator there. On 
July I, 1887, he went to Mastodon, Mich., 
opened the station there, and in Septem- 
ber, 1887, was transferred to Common- 
wealth, Florence Co., Wis., where he 
also served as postmaster, continuing there 
until the following February. On Feb- 
ruary 1, 1888, he went to Iron River, 
Mich., in the same capacity, and in April, 
1890, was removed from there to Flor- 
ence, Florence Co., Wis., whence, in 
June, 1890, became to Marinette, Mari- 
nette county. 

In 1894 Mr. Miller was married in 
Marinette, to Miss Alberta Norris, who 
was born in Stoughton, Wis., daughter 
of James and Harriet (Haven) Norris, 
who came from the East in an early day, 
settling in Wisconsin. Mr. Norris died 
in Milwaukee in 1891, and Mrs. Norris 
now makes her home in Marinette. Mr. 
and Mrs. Miller have one child — James 
Norris. Mr. Miller is a member of the M. 

E. Church, in which he holds the office 
of trustee, and he is actively interested 
in all religious movements, being a promi- 
nent member of the Y. M. C. A. in Wis- 
consin; he has been president since April, 
1895, and in the same 3'ear was elected a 
member of the State Board at the State 
Convention held at Wausau, Wis. He is 
also well-known in fraternal circles, being 
connected with Marinette Lodge No. 182, 

F. & A. M. ; Marinette Chapter No. 52, 
R. A. M. ; Marinette Lodge No. 72, K. of 
P., and the Fraternal Alliance. He gives 
his political support to the Republican 
party. 



JOHN J. CASSON. Among those 
gentlemen whose devotion to busi- 
ness interests has materially ad- 
vanced the welfare of Marinette is 
our subject, who since the spring of 1879 
has faithfully and efficiently served as en- 



gineer for the Hamilton & Merryman 
Company. He came to Marinette in the 
winter of 1877 78, and after being em- 
ployed in the Marinette Iron Works for 
about a \"eur, entered into an engage- 
ment with the Hamilton tS; Merrj-man 
Company, which has contimicil up to the 
present time, his course fully meriting the 
confidence which is reposed in him, while 
his ability well lits liiiii for the position. 

Mr. Casson was born in Ontario 
county, N. Y., in 1847, and is a son of 
Curtis P. and Hannah (Harrington) Cas- 
son, the former a nati\e of Yorkshire, 
England, the latter of (Jueen's county, 
Ireland. When a young man of nineteen 
}'ears the father crossed the Atlantic to 
America, and in Rochester, N. Y. , he 
was married. He was a miller by traile, 
and after coining to Wisconsin, in 1855, 
was engaged in ilourn)ills at Merton, 
Hartland, Fall River, afterward at Milton, 
and later at Oshkosh and Indian Ford. 
He returned to Rock county. Wis., and 
his last days were spent at Indian Ford, 
where he died in 1885; his wife passed 
away there in 1892. Their family num- 
bered seven sons and one daughter, name- 
ly: Mrs. Marv ]■ Hunting, of Ir<.)n 
Mountain, Mich.; Jnhn P., who died in 
infancy; Thomas P.. a resident of Ala- 
bama; Alfred H., who enlist^'d in Colum- 
bia county, Wis., in 1862, in the Seventh 
Wis. V. I., and died before leaving the 
camp at Madison; Edward C, whose 
home is in Grundy county, Iowa; John 
J., subject of this sketch; William N., of 
Marinette, and Charles b'., who died in 
infanc)'. 

Mr. Casson, whose name connnences 
this record, was reared in New \'ox\i until 
eight years of age, when, in 1856, he be- 
came a resident of Fall River, Wis., ac- 
companying his i)arents on their migra- 
tion west. His early education, acquired 
in the common schools, was supplemented 
by a course in the academy of Milton, 
Wis. In 1864 he went to Oshkosh, where 
he learned the trade of a machinist and 
engineer. In 1867 he removed to Pesh- 



65S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPITICAL RECORD. 



tigo, Wis., and for twenty-seven years 
was on the west shore of Green Bay. 
There he secured employment as a ma- 
chinist with the Peshtigo Lumber Com- 
pany, and was still a resident of that 
place at the time of the memorable Pesh- 
tigo fire. Nine months later, in August, 
1872, he went to Oconto, \\'is. , where he 
served as machine boss, and was a part- 
ner in the Oconto Iron Works for five 
years. On the e.xpiration of that period 
he came to Marinette, and his life from 
that time forward is very familiar to the 
citizens of the locality. 

At Fulton, Wis., in 1875, Mr. Casson 
was joined in wedlock with Mary D. Kel- 
ly, a native of Fulton, Rock Co., Wis., 
and a daughter of David and Elizabeth 
(Ward) Kelly, natives of New York, and 
early settlers of Rock county. In Fulton 
township, that county, the father devel- 
oped a farm, continuing his residence in 
that locality until his death, in 1869. His 
wife passed away the year previous. Mr. 
and Sirs. Casson had two children, one of 
whom is now living, Lois Beatrice, a 
graduate of the high school, of June, 1895, 
and now attending Lawrence University. 
Socially our subject became connected 
with ^iarinette Lodge No. 182, F. & A. 
M., in 1870, and in 1874 was dimitted to 
Oconto Lodge, in which he has tilled all 
the offices, returning to his mother Lodge 
in the " eighties." His political support 
is given the Prohibition party, and favors 
bimetallism: he served as alderman of 
Oconto. His duties of citizenship are 
ever faithfully performed, and he is a 
public-spirited, progressive man, of lib- 
eral views, one whose business and pri- 
vate life are alike above reproach. 



JESSE BIRMINGHAM. To the stu- 
dent of human nature there is no 
department of biographical history 
more interesting than the record of 
self-made men, who owe their success in 
life to their own labors — men who realize 
that prosperity is the reward of earnest 



effort and honorable dealing, and employ 
those means in securing it. To this class 
belongs our subject, now one of the sub- 
stantial agriculturists of Oconto county. 

He was born on Black river, in Jeffer- 
son county, N. Y. , March 7, 1835, and is 
a son of Richard and Ploomy (Stone) 
Birmingham, the father a native of 
England, the mother of Massachusetts. 
Their marriage was celebrated in New 
York, where Mr. Birmingham carried on 
farming for many years. His death oc- 
curred in Jefferson county at the age of 
fifty-si.\, and his wife survived him ten 
years. They reared a family of nine 
children, four of whom are now living: 
Charles went to California, and thence to 
Wichita, Kans. , c/i route- to Texas, but 
was never heard of afterward. Andrew 
located at Oak Orchard, Oconto county, 
in 1850, but subsequently removed to 
Door county, and there died in Sebastopol 
township, in 1894. Sylvia married Mor- 
timer Delano, and in 1850 removed to 
Oconto county, her death occurring in 
Pensaukee township. Nancy became the 
wife of Mr. Mclntyre, of Brookside, Wis., 
and died in Marinette, this State, in 1892. 
George is also living in Brookside. Susan 
became the wife of Joseph Harris, of 
Sturgeon Bay. Wis., and died in Mani- 
tosvoc. Wis., in 1894. Jesse is the next 
younger. Solon is married, and resides 
in Sebastopol township. Door Co., Wis. 
Nelson makes his home in Brown county, 
Wisconsin. 

Our subject acquired his education in 
the county of his nativity, being indebted 
to its public-school system therefor. He 
came to Oconto county in 1853. locating 
at Oak Orchard, where he was employed 
in fishing and lumbering for some time. 
He afterward engaged in lumber jobbing 
for the Bradley & Crandall Lumber Co., 
at Sturgeon Bay, in whose employ he re- 
mained for two seasons, when he bought 
a boat, and ran it from Sturgeon Bay to 
Green Bay. He ran the first boat be- 
tween these two places, and carried the 
Door county mail. At that time he could 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAl'llICAL RECORD. 



659 



place all the mail packages in a cigar box, 
but the second year he was given a mail 
pouch. His boat was the first that made 
regular trips between those two points. 
It was a little sailing vessel called the 
"Green Dart," which after two years he 
sold, purchasing an interest in a larger 
vessel, the brig "Columbia." With this 
he made four trips to Chicago, and on the 
fourth trip, while returning, in an attempt 
to pass through Death's Door, he was 
wrecked on the rocks. 

In 1857, in company with O. P. Gra- 
ham, A. W. Lawrence and five others, 
he took up land in the town of Sebastopol 
for farms, cleared fifteen acres and after- 
ward sold it to his brothers. In iSGo he 
went to Pike's Peak in search of gold, but 
failing to make a success of it returned to 
Wisconsin, and located in the town of 
Pensaukee, Oconto county, where he 
commenced farming and lumbering. For 
F. B. Gardner he carried on farms on 
shares for three years, and then bought 
of Mr. Gardner the land he now owns, 
and has cleared and made a nice farm 
and home where he lives. 

In 1863 Mr. Birmingham enlisted at 
Appleton in Company L, Third Wiscon- 
sin Cavalry for three years, and was 
mustered into the United States service 
at Madison, Wis. With the army of the 
West his regiment was sent to Colorado 
on the Indian warfare, and pursued Gen. 
Price into the Indian Territory. After- 
ward the troops were on the plains under 
Gen. Conkey, of Appleton, Wis. , and 
though the warfare was irregular, it was 
nevertheless arduous and severe. When 
peace was once more restored Mr. Bir- 
mingham was honorably discharged at 
Madison in November, 1865. He had 
served much of his time as orderly ser- 
geant of his company, and nieritorous 
conduct won him the rank of first lieu- 
tenant of his company. His services 
being no longer needed, Mr. Birmingham 
at once returned to his home and family. 
He had married at Sturgeon Bay, Wis., 
in 1857, the lady of his choice being 



Miss Bessie Harris, a native of England, 
as was her father, Joseph Harris, who in 
an early day crossed the Atlantic to New 
York. His wife died in Rochester, that 
State, after which he came west and took 
up his residence at Sturgeon Bay, Wis., 
where he founded and published the Stur- 
geon Bay Advorati-. He also worked 
for twenty years to secure the construc- 
tion of the canal, and was ever an advo- 
cate of progress and improvement. His 
death occurred in Chicago, 111., in [892. 
To Mr. and Mrs. I)irmingham have been 
born eight children, of whom we mention 
the following: J. H., married, and re- 
siding in Kitchi, Mich.; Nellie, wife of T. 

A. Pomperim, of Oconto; G. C, a postal 
clerk in the United States mail service, 
living at home; Edith, who has success- 
fully taught school, and is now a student 
in the Normal at Valparaiso, Ind. ; and 
Irving and Pruce Lindsey, at home. All 
of the family have been teachers. 

Mr. Birmingham made his purchase 
of land in 1861, when he bought of F. 

B. Gardner a timber tract of 100 acres 
which he entered from the government. 
He at once began clearing this, and now 
has 2S0 acres in Sections 26 and 23, Pen- 
saukee township, I 50 of which are under 
cultivation. He erected his residence in 
1862, a good one-and-one-half-story 
frame house, which he has since im- 
proved. He also built a good barn 80 x 80 
feet, another 30x40 feet, and a tool 
house, 16x20 feet. In addition he has 
a good farm of eighty-eight and one-half 
acres in Brookside township, fifty of 
which are under cultivation, and all has 
been acquired through his own efforts. 
He now successfully follows general and 
dairy farming, and keeps on hand a num- 
ber of fine Durham cows. 

In politics, Mr. Birmingham is a Re- 
publican, and has served as a member of 
the town board of supervisors. Socially 
he is connected with T. O. Howe Post, 
No. 184, G. A. R., of Green Bay, Wis. 
For forty-three years he has been a resi- 
dent of Oconto county, has witnessed its 



66o 



COMMEMORATIVE BWGRAPRWAL RECORD. 



entire development and progress, and has 
here discharged his duties of citizenship 
with the same loyalty which he manifested 
when following the old flag on Southern 
battle fields. 



agricultural 



CHARLES QUIRT, who is num- 
bered among the progressive and 
highly-esteemed farmers of Little 
River township, Oconto county, 
has, since 1872, been identified with the 
interests of the community. 
He was born in Ogdensburg, New 
York State, October 23, 1843, and is a 
son of John and Elizabeth (Church) Quirt, 
both of whom were natives of Scotland, 
the father being of Irish ancestry, his 
people having removed to the place of his 
nativity from the North of Ireland. With 
his father, John Quirt, he crossed the 
Atlantic to New York City, and in the 
Empire State was married. He there 
engaged in operating a sawmill until his 
removal to Ogdensburg, New York State, 
whence he went to Arthur, Canada, where 
he followed milling until his death in 1870; 
his wife died there in 1886. They had a 
famil)' of eleven children — si.x sons and 
five daughters — of whom nine are yet 
living, namely: Mrs. Eliza Quay, of She- 
boygan, Wis., whose husband is engaged 
in the manufacture of shingles there; 
George, a resident of Canada; Mrs. Mary 
Ann Burhland, of Arthur, Canada; John, 
who is engaged in the foundry business 
in Arthur; Thomas, a farmer of that lo- 
cality; Mrs. Susan Pyne, of Arthur; Frank, 
a blacksmith, of Canada; Mrs. Saran 
Ralston, also of Canada; and Charles. 

The subject of this review, who is 
eighth in order of birth, was reared to 
manhood in Arthur, and learned the trade 
of filing in a mill there. In 1866 he de- 
termined to seek a home and fortune 
elsewhere, and went to California. For 
some time he remained in the West, and 
in 1869 was engaged in freighting fi n 
Winnemucca. Nev., to Silver City, Idiiliu. 
Previously he had engaged in mining at 



Carson, Nev., and in Idaho for a time. 
In the wild western district he went 
through experiences such as have been 
the theme of many a tale of fiction. Be- 
fore he left for the West, he had married 
at Arthur, Canada, in 1865, Miss Letitia 
Ludlow, a native of that country, and a 
daughter of William and Letitia (Dale) 
Ludlow. Her father was born in the 
North of Ireland, of Scotch ancestry, and 
in an early day emigrated to Canada. His 
death occurred in Arthur in 1869; his 
widow is still living on the old family 
homestead there. To Mr. and Mrs. Quirt 
have been born seven children, as follows: 
Mrs. Nettie Elliott, of Oconto; Ethelda, 
wife of Mr. Sibbett, a farmer of Little 
River township; Myrtle; Nellie, who died 
at the age of one year; Harry, Cella, and 
Charley. 

In 1871 Mr. Quirt came with his 
family to Oconto county, and the follow- 
ing year located on a farm in what is now 
Little River township, but was then 
Oconto township. His first work here, 
however, was as a filer in the Holmes 
mill, at Pensaukee. He afterward held a 
similar position for R. L. Hall, and later 
in connection with his farm work he acted 
as night superintendent for the firm of 
Holt & Balcolm, occupj'ing that position 
some thirteen years. He also superin- 
tended the improvement of his land. After 
a time he sold one-half of it, but the re- 
maining eighty acres he has cleared and 
placed under a high state of cultivation. 
In 1872 he erected his residence, a good 
one-and-one-half-Story house, has also 
built substantial barns, and has now one 
of the well-improved and valuable farms of 
the neighborhord. He has also purchased 
additional land, and to-day has a richly- 
cultivated tract of 160 acres. He is 
president of the Little River Creamery 
Company, and is a progressive, enterpris- 
ing business man. capable and energetic. 

In politics, Mr. Quirt is a supporter of 
the Republican party. He aided in or- 
i;ani/ing Little River township, was chair- 
man of its board of supervisors seven 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPUICAL RECORD. 



r.r.i 



years, and for four years was cliairinan of 
the county board. He was also elected 
sheriff of Oconto county, and served two 
years. For eighteen years he has been 
district clerk of the township, and is now 
serving in that capacity. He has been a 
prominent factor in the promotion and 
upbuilding of his locality, and his official 
duties have ever been discharged with a 
promptness and fidelity that have won 
him high regard. Socially, he is a mem- 
ber of the Odd Fellows Lodge of Oconto, 
and of the Modern Woodmen. His well- 
spent life, his honorable career, and his 
courteous, genial manner have gained him 
many friends, and he is botli widely and 
favorablv known. 



LK. SHORES, a representative 
farmer of Stiles township, Oconto 
county, is the owner of a valuable 
farm of 160 acres in Section 13, 
where he has made his home since 1866. 
He now has over 100 acres of the land 
cleared and under a high state of cultiva- 
tion. A good residence, barns and out- 
buildings have been erected, and the neat 
and thrifty appearance of the place well 
indicates the careful supervision of the 
owner. 

Mr. Shores is a native of the Empire 
State. He was born in Greene county, 
N. Y., in 1830, and is a son of Elijah 
and Deborah (Runyon) Shores, both of 
whom were natives of New Jersey; the 
former was of English descent, the latter 
of French. The maternal grandfather 
was a native of France, and served in the 
Revolutionary war under Marquis de La- 
Fayette; he afterward located in New 
York, where he spent his remaining days. 
The father of our subject was a mason by 
trade, and was one of the early settlers of 
Cairo, N. Y. , where he made his home 
until his death in 1833. His wife long 
survived him, and passed away in 1885, 
at the age of ninety years. In their 
family were five children : George, who 
died in Columbiana county, N. Y. , May 



12, 1893; Samuel, who died in Amster- 
dam, N. Y. , in 1890; L. K., subject of 
this review; Alonzo, who makes his hoine 
in Cairo, N. Y. ; and Eleanor, who died 
in that place in February, 1863. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in Cairo, N. Y. , and acquired his educa- 
tion in its public schools, after which he 
learned the trade of a spinner, and subse- 
quently that of a cooper. Attracted by 
the opportunities which he believed the 
West afforded, he migrated in 1S58 to 
Platte City, Mo., where he engaged in 
the coopering business, removing thence 
to Pike's Peak. For eighteen months he 
was engaged in mining in that locality, 
but in 1 86 1 returned to Cairo, N. Y., 
where he left his family while he went to 
the defense of his country. He had mar- 
ried before his migration westward, 
having, in 1855, in Watertown, Jefferson 
Co., N. Y., led to the marriage altar 
Miss Mary Ann Daily, who was born in 
London, England. Her father died in 
that country, her mother in Canada, in 

1845- 

Bidding adieu to his wife and children, 
in 1862, Mr. Shores joined Company C, 
One Hundred and Fifty-sixth N. Y. V. I., 
for three years' service, and was mus- 
tered in at Kingston. The regiment was 
assigned to the Nineteenth Army Corps 
and went directly to New Orleans. Our 
subject proceeded with the Red River 
expedition to Alexandria, then marched 
back to Port liudson, participated in the 
siege there, and was in the Louisiana 
campaign. On being taken ill he was 
sent to the University Hospital at New 
Orleans, and afterward transferred to 
Jefferson Barracks, of St. Louis, where 
he remained for some time, when he was 
transferred to the Sixty-second, Second 
Battalion, Veteran Reserve Corps, sta- 
tioned at that place. There he continued 
until the close of the war, when in 1865 
he was honorably discharged and returned 
at once to his home in Greene county. 
New York. 

The following year Mr. Shores took 



662 



COMMEMORATTVE liTOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



up his residence on his present farm, and 
has since been identified with the inter- 
ests of Oconto county. He is numbered 
among its leading agriculturists, and has 
aided in subduing its wild lands. Here 
Mr. and Mrs. Shores reared their family. 
They had six children, only four of whom 
are now living : Charles L., who is mar- 
ried and resides on a farm in Stiles town- 
ship; Eli^a, at home; Mar\', wife of 
Quincy McQueen, also of Stiles township; 
and George, at home. The mother of 
this family passed away March 28, 1892, 
but her memory remains as a blessed 
benediction to those who knew her. 

In his political adherency, Mr. Shores 
is a Republican, and takes quite an active 
interest in local politics. For many years 
he has served as justice of the peace, dis- 
charging his duties with a promptness 
and fidelity that insured his re-election. 
He aided in organising the school district 
in which he is located, has served as a 
member of the school board, and has 
done effective service for the cause of 
education. Socially, he is connected with 
E. A. Ramsey Post No. 74, G. A. R., 
of Oconto, Wis., and was a member of 
Oriental Lodge, in Denver, Col. For 
twenty-nine years he has been a resident 
of the community, deeply interested in 
all that pertains to its advancement, and 
is both widely and favorably known in his 
adopted count)'. 



WILLIAM E. DAGGETT. That 
a review of the life of such an 
enterprising and successful man, 
as is the gentleman whose name 
here appears, should be given promi- 
nent place in this volume is pecu- 
liarly proper; because a knowledge of in- 
dividuals, whose substantial record rests 
upon their personal character as well as 
their success, can never fail to e.xert a 
wholesome influence on the minds of the 
reader. 

Mr. Daggett is a native of Pennsylva- 
nia, born in Tioga county October 20, 



1850, and is a son of William and Mary 
(Cazott) Daggett, the former of whom 
was born in Massachusetts, the latter in 
Trenton. N. J. Grandfather Rufus Dag- 
gett was also a native of the Bay State, 
and was one of the heroes of the Revolu- 
tion. In an early day he located in 
Tioga county, Penn. , where he carried on 
farming, operated a gristmill and engaged 
in the lumber business, there making his 
home until his death. He married Han- 
nah Sharp. 

William Daggett, the father of our 
subject, was married in Pennsylvania. 
He was by trade a miller and stone 
mason. In connection with the opera- 
tion of a saw and grist mill, he also car- 
ried on farming. In 1868 he came to 
Marinette, and. with E. Parmenter, pur- 
chased 200 acres of land, now partly 



included in 



Higgins' 



Park. There he 



built a log house, continuing the cultiva- 
tion of the farm until his removal some 
years later to Norway, Mich. On Janu- 
ary 22, 1837, he married Miss Mary 
Cazott, by whom there were seven chil- 
dren, as follows: Lyman, who died in 
Pennsylvania June 6, 1849, aged six 
years; Mary Jane, wife of Philip Cress, 
residing near Elmira, N. Y. ; Elmer, who 
is living near Elmira; Jerome, who met 
with a railroad accident and died later, 
July 22, 1888, of Bright's disease, at Min- 
neapolis, where he was employed as an 
engineer; William E., our subject; Frank, 
who is located in Marinette; and Clara, 
wife of Thomas Faulkner, of Menominee, 
Mich. Elmer and Jerome were soldiers 
during the Civil war, serving in the first 
New York Artillery. The mother of this 
family died in Tioga county, Penn., No- 
vember 20, 1856, and in May, 1885, 
William Daggett married Mrs. Jane 
Obern, by whom he had no children. 
The father died in Marinette. Wis., in 
1887; he also was a soldier in the war of 
the Rebellion, serving in a Pennsylvania 
regiment, and had a fine record. 

William E. Daggett, whose name in- 
troduces this sketch, was reared and edu- 




l^M^y^ r^' 0,^^^btt~^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



663 



cated in the county of his nativity, and in 
1872 — then a young man of twenty-two 
summers — came to Marinette, locating on 
his present farm, which was then in tlie 
midst of the forest. He first purchased 
forty acres, and has added thereto from 
time to time until he now has a valuable 
property of 400 acres, 1 20 of which are 
within the city limits. The farm is under 
a high state of cultivation and well im- 
proved, owing to the persistent labors of 
the owner, who is a practical and enter- 
prising business man. In addition to 
general farming he is now engaged in bus- 
iness as a milk dealer, and has succeeded 
in building up an excellent trade. His 
residence, which for solid comfort and at- 
tractiveness is not excelled in the locality, 
stands within the city limits, and is sup- 
plied with all modern conveniences, in- 
cluding city water. The commodious 
out-buildings — barns, etc. — are models in 
themselves, and the entire property bears 
evidence of a substantial and prosperous 
ownership. Mr. Daggett has also dealt 
e.xtensively in real estate, and is the owner 
of a large amount of city property, both 
improved and unimproved. 

On April 29, 1874, William E. Dag- 
gett was married in Springfield, Bradford 
Co., Penn., to Miss Sarah A. Parmenter, 
a native of that county, and daughter of 
Asel and Abigail (Mattocks) Parmenter, 
highly respectable people, the former of 
whom was born in Franklin county, Mass. , 
and died April 23, 1880; the latter, born 
in Springfield, Bradford Co., Penn., died 
June 6, 1888. They were the parents of 
six children, namely: Ruel, who died 
December 27, 1861; James M. ; Sarah A. 
(Mrs. Daggett); Harriet L. (Mrs. John 
Hagermanj, who died July 18, 1892; 
Samuel P.; and Charles F., who lives at 
the old family home. Mr. and Mrs. Dag- 
gett have had three children, namely: 
Two daughters that died in infancy, born 
in 1875 and 1885 respectively, and one 
son, Charles, born October 18, 1876, liv- 
ing. In his political preferences our sub- 
ject is a Republican, and he is a progress- 



ive, public-spirited citizen, one who by 
his own efforts, assiduous industry and 
judicious economj' has made his own way 
in life. Unaided by influential friends, 
he by perseverance and enterprise has 
worked his way steadily upward to a 
position of prominence among the sub- 
stantial citizens of Marinette. 



G 



FORGE W. SARGENT estab- 
lished business in Abranis, in 
1885, and is now enjoying a prof- 
itable trade as a dealer in agricul- 
tural implements, machinery, engines and 
sawmill outfittings. He also handles 
grain and farm produce, and is the owner 
of a grain elevator. He has the public 
confidence, and, therefore, the public 
patronage, and his business career has 
been one of success. 

Mr. Sargent has S]ient almost his en- 
tire life in Oconto county. Descended 
from an old New England family, he was 
born in Lowell, Mass., in i860, and is a 
son of Levi and Nancy (Hardy) Sargent. 
His father was born and reared in War- 
ner, N. H., and was by trade a molder. 
He resided for some years in Lowell, 
Mass., and afterward removed to Man- 
chester, N. H., whence, in 1868, became 
to Wisconsin, locating in the midst of the 
forest in Pcnsaukee township, Oconto 
county. Here he performed the arduous 
task of opening up a farm and established 
the home wherein our subject now resides. 
In connection with general farming he 
carried on gardening, and his death oc- 
curred May 17, 1890. His wife, who 
still survives, has reached the age of sev- 
enty years. Their only child, George W. 
Sargent, was a youth of only eight sum- 
mers when the family located here. 

In the public school near his home our 
subject acquired his education, and sub- 
sequently engaged in teaching in Oconto 
county some eight years, displaying con- 
siderable ability along that line. He then 
turned his attention to his present busi- 
ness, and is one of the oldest merchants 



664 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



in years of continuous trade in Abrams. 
In connection with his business he also 
owns a good farm, comprising 1 20 acres 
of land, twenty of which are under culti- 
vation. Enterprising and progressive, he 
is always found on the side of improve- 
ment and progress, and lends a willing 
and hearty support to any enterprise 
which he believes calculated to promote 
the general welfare. He has witnessed 
much of the development of the county, 
has seen its wild lands transformed into 
good homes and farms, has witnessed the 
building of railroads, and the introduc- 
tion of all modern improvements. 

Mr. Sargent was married in Abrams, 
Wis., in 1 891, to Miss Etta Knowles, who 
was born at that place (then West Pen- 
saukee), and is a daughter of S. A. 
Knowles, an earl}' settler of Pensaukee 
township. They have one child, Bert K. 
Mr. Sargent gives his political support to 
the Republican party; in his social rela- 
tions he is connected with Pine Lodge 
No. 184, F. & A. M. 



TC. TULLY, of Florence, who 
was a Union soldier in the war of 
the Rebellion, was born in Wayne 
county, Penn., in 1842, and is a 
son of James and Mary (Daily) Tully, 
who were also born in Pennsylvania. 

James Tully has alwajs made his home 
in Pennsylvania, now residing in Wayne 
county. His wife died in 1890. They 
reared three children, namely: T. C, 
our subject; Frank, on a farm in Penn- 
sylvania; and Margaret, widow of James 
McCabe, of Forest City, Penn. T. C. 
Tully was reared in his native county, and 
educated in the schools there. In 1861 
he enlisted, in Wayne county, in Com- 
pany C, Si.xth P. R. v., for three years or 
during the war, and was sworn into 
service at Harrisburg, Penn. He was in 
the battle of Drancsville, in the seven- 
days' fight before Richmond, the second 
battle of Bull Run, at South Mountain, 
and Antietam; received a shell wound De- 



cember 13, 1862, at the battle of Freder- 
icksburg, and was taken prisoner, being 
paroled March 20, 1863, and sent to An- 
napolis, Md., where he was honorably 
discharged in the same year, and returned 
to Wajne county, Penn. After his return 
from the war Mr. Tullj' learned the trades 
of carpenter and millwright. 

In 1868, in Pennsylvania, he was 
united in marriage with Miss Margaret 
Foote, and they had the following chil- 
dren: May, who resides at Crystal Falls, 
Mich. ; Nettie, also a resident of Crystal 
Falls, teaching in the public schools 
there; Kate, in Florence; Wayne, in 
Crystal Falls, and Leonard, in Florence. 
In 1 87 1 Mr. Tully came from Preston, 
Wayne Co., Penn., to Oconto, Oconto 
Co., Wis., and assisted in putting up the 
Orr mill, as well as the Anson Eldred 
mill, and the A. C. Coon mill at Little 
Suamico, Oconto county. He helped 
build the mill at Stiles, in the same 
count}', continuing to follow his trade 
of millwright until he came to Florence, 
in 18S0, here building a hotel, called the 
"Avenue House," 30x70 feet in dimen- 
sions. In 1S82 he built the Tully Opera 
House, 30x94 feet, at the corner of Main 
and Cyclops streets, the lower portion of 
which is used as a drug store and doctor's 
office, and the total length is 120 feet. 

Mrs. Margaret Tully died in Florence 
in 1887, and Mr. Tully was again married, 
this time in Florence, to Miss Eliza 
Abel, who was born in Wisconsin, and 
they have had two children: Zella and 
Aria. The father of Mrs. Eliza Tully, 
George Abel, was one of the early settlers 
of Florence, where he now resides. 

The " Avenue House " burned in Sep- 
tember, 1888, and in that year Mr. Tully 
built his residence and livery stable. He 
was in the saloon business from 1880 till 
1894, is interested in the livery business, 
owns a fine summer resort at Spread 
Eagle Lake, in F"lorence county, and has 
there a two-story frame hotel, known as 
the "Eagle Island Club House," which 
was built in 1892, and can accommodate 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



6r,5 



a large number of guests. There are sail 
and rowboats, fishing is excellent, and 
game in season is plentiful. Mr. Tully now 
looks after his summer resort at Spread 
Eagle Lake and his Opera House. Po- 
litically, he votes with the Populist party, 
and, socially, is a member of Dupont 
Post No. 268, G. A. R., of which he is 
past commander. He is one of the oldest 
settlers in the locality, and assisted in the 
organization of Florence county. 



GEORGE T. JOHNSTONE, son 
of Thomas and Mary (Halliday) 
Johnstone, was born in 1848, and 
grew to young manhood on a 
farm in the Province of New Brunswick, 
Canada. 

Our subject was educated in the schools 
of his native province, and at the age of 
twenty years left home. Coming to the 
West from New Brunswick he concluded to 
cast his lot with and seek his fortune in the 
State of Wisconsin, and during the fall of 
1868 he worked in the woods at Oshkosh. 
Finally, in 1869, he selected the county of 
Marinette as the scene of his future oper- 
ations, and since the year 1S75 he has 
done a large and prosperous business in 
the city of Marinette, dealing in hay, tiour, 
feed and grain, being the first exclusive 
merchant in that line in the city. He 
was the first man to sell oatmeal to the 
general trade — the drugstores, only, hand- 
ling it in filling physicians' prescriptions. 

Mr. Johnstone first located on the cor- 
ner of Pierce and Main streets, doing 
business there for a few years; he then 
removed to Main and Wells streets, re- 
maining there until his business outgrew 
his facilities for handling it successfully. 
About the year 1883 he removed to his 
present commodious quarters on Main 
street, having erected the building espe- 
cially for the accommodation of his large 
and constantly increasing trade. He also 
owns two other fine buildings on Main 
street, one having 20 feet frontage, the 
other 22, I 35 feet deep. At the time these 



buildings were erected they were the only 
ones on the South side between his place of 
business and Jordan's, on the corner of 
Main and Wells streets. When Mr. John- 
stone came to Marinette county, in 1869, 
he entered the service of the N. Ludington 
Co., and worked in the woods three 
winters, during two of which he was fore- 
man of the camp. He then acted as 
foreman one winter for Archie McAllister, 
whom he left to go into business on his 
own account. 

On May 3, 1876, Mr. Johnstone was 
married to Miss Frankie Mary Place, 
daughter of Anson and Caroline (Jack- 
son) Place, pioneers of Marinette county, 
to which union two daughters were born, 
Caroline Mary and Nellie May, both now 
deceased. Mr. Johnstone in politics is 
independent, voting for the best man. 
He was deputy sheriff of Marinette coun- 
ty in 1876, and was a member of the 
board of supervisors two terms. Both 
himself and wife were at one time mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian Church, but 
since 1889 they have belonged to the 
Church of Christ Scientists. Mr. John- 
stone is a member of Olive Branch Lodge 
No. 250, F. & A. M., and of Marinette 
Chapter; was at one time a member of 
Marinette Lodge No. 182. He took the 
Chapter Degrees in Green Bay Lodge, at 
Green Bay. Although by no means an 
old man, he has lived long enough in 
northern Wisconsin to have witnessed 
the great changes in that section of the 
State. He has seen, and aided and par- 
ticipated in, much of the advancement and 
progress of both the city and county of 
Marinette. 

The parents of Mr. Johnstone were 
both born in Dumfriesshire, Scotland, 
married there, crossed the Atlantic to 
settle in New Brunswick, and success- 
fully engaged in farming for many years. 
The father died in 1892, the mother in 
1894, both at the time of their demise 
being over ninety years of age. Mr. and 
Mrs. Johnstone were the parents of twelve 
children, six of whom are now living, 



666 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



namely: Barbara (wife of Neil Gordon, 
of Miramichi, N. B.), Jean, David and 
Margaret (unmarried), all four residing in 
Miramichi, N. B. ; John, who resides on 
and cultivates the old farm, and George T. 



JOHN C. WEZENAAR, gardener and 
milk dealer, whose residence in Mari- 
nette county dates from 1855, cov- 
ering a period of forty consecutive 
years, was born in the Harlem province 
of Holland, June 24, 1850, and is a son 
of William and Mary Catherine ("Van 
Boonj Wezenaar, both of whom were also 
natives ot that country, the mother born 
in Leyden, the father in South Holland. 
They received academic educations in 
Leyden, and the father was a botanist in 
the service of King William II, while he 
also carried on business as a florist. In 
1852 he left his native land and sailed for 
Hackensack, N. J., whence he came to 
Marinette county, Wis., locating on the 
bank of the Menominee river. Entering 
the employ of Dr. J. C. Hall, he remained 
with him four years, after which he re- 
moved to Menekaunee, Wis., where he 
engaged with the New York Lumber Co., 
continuing in their employ until 1871. In 
1866 he had purchased and located on a 
tract of land of eighty acres, and from 
1 87 1 engaged in the cultivation and de- 
velopment of his farm. His death oc- 
curred in I.S85, that of his wife in 1889. 
Their children were as follows: W^illiam 
Nicholas, who is living near the old home 
place; John C. ; Anna, wife of J. S. Wil- 
son, of Woodstock, Ontario; Nicholas 
P., a resident of Astoria, Ore.; Mary, 
wife of Rudolph Hyting, of Washington; 
Gilmer; Albert, of Marinette; Wilbur R., 
also of Marinette; and Lydia, wife of 
Frank Adams, living on Pearce avenue, 
in the same city. 

Our subject, who was five years of 
age when brought by his parents to Mari- 
nette county, attended school in the city 
for eight months, but is largely self-edu- 
cated and through his own efforts has be- 



come well informed. He located on his 
present farm two and a half miles from 
Marinette, in 1865, and has since been 
engaged in the cultivation and improve- 
ment of his property, comprising eighty- 
five acres of rich land. He is now exten- 
sively and successfully engaged in garden- 
ing, and since 1879 has been engaged in 
the milk business, running one route for 
thirteen years and eleven months without 
losing a day. His capable management, 
industry and steady application have made 
him a well-to-do citizen. 

In 1873, in Marinette, Mr. Wezenaar 
was joined in wedlock with Mary Eliza- 
beth Berner, who was born at St. Charles, 
111., a daughter of Frederick and Freder- 
icka (Gotzlaff) Berner, natives of Ger- 
many, and pioneers of Peshtigo, Wis. 
Their property was destroyed in the great 
fire of that place in 1871. The mother 
died the following year, but Mr. Berner 
is now living in Minnesota. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Wezenaar have come children as 
follows: Catherine (Mrs. Lydia Ham- 
mond, of Marinette), Ruth, George, Inez, 
Irene, Jessie and Albert Edward. 

Mr. Wezenaar is a Republican in poli- 
tics; socially he is connected with the 
Modern Woodmen of America. He has 
witnessed the entire development of the 
city and county of Marinette, and has 
watched the growth of the former from a 
mere village to a city of several thousand 
inhabitants. In the work of public im- 
provement he has ever borne his part, 
and well deserves mention 
valued citizens. 



among the 



ERNEST KUNTZE is the owner of 
one of the fine farms of Oconto 
county, and his possessions stand 
as a monument to his thrift and 
enterprise, for all that he possesses he 
has acquirt;d through his own efforts, and 
self-reliance and indefatigable energy have 
been the means employed to secure his 
prosperity. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



667 



Mr. Knntze was born in Saxony, Ger- 
many, July 28, I 83 I, and is a son of Ern- 
est A. and Johanna ( Jmigj Kuntze, also 
natives of that country, where throughout 
his entire life the father followed the tan- 
ning business. His death occurred in 
1870, that of his wife in i S90. They 
reared a family of five sons: Ernest; 
Julius, who came to Oconto county in 
1857, but is now living in Pennsylvania; 
Gus, who died in Philadelphia, Penn. ; 
and Emil and Louis, both in Saxony. 

Our subject was reared in his native 
country and the privileges which the com- 
mon schools afforded him for securing an 
education were supplemented with a col- 
legiate course. When a young man of 
twenty years he bade adieu to friends and 
native land, and sailed fi)r America, em- 
barking at Bremen July 12, 1S52. After 
a voyage of sixty-three days he landed at 
New York, and thence proceeded to Mil- 
waukee, Wis., where he arrived in Sep- 
tember, 1852. For one year he worked 
in a tannery, and was afterward employed 
at his trade in St. Paul, St. Louis and 
New Orleans, respectivel}'. He then en- 
gaged in steamboating for three months 
on the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee 
rivers, then returned to Milwaukee, where 
he once more worked at his trade. In 
1854 he began working in the lumber 
woods near Peshtigo, Wis. (at that time 
in Oconto county), and in 1856 he came 
to Little Suamico, where he pre-empted 
forty acres of swamp land in Section 19, 
Town 26, Range 21. In the same year 
he built a log cabin and began improving 
the place. He also engaged in fishing, 
hunting and lumbering, following any 
employment that would yield him an hon- 
est living. He cleared his land as rapidly 
as possible, and also dealt in bark. Being 
a tanner by trade, he established a tan- 
nery in i860, preparing the rough leather, 
and continued in the business until 1874. 
Since that time he has devoted his atten- 
tion exclusively to agricultural pursuits, 
and now owns 270 acres of valuable land, 
100 of which are cleared and highly cul- 



tivated. This being marsh land, it is 
splendidly adapred to the raising of hay, 
and his hay crops have been a source of 
considerable income to him. On his place 
is a good flowing well, and his farm is now 
one of the most desirable in this section 
of the county. During the Civil war he 
was the first man drafted for service, but 
having a family of little children depend- 
ing upon him he felt that he could not 
leave them, so paid $300 for a substitute. 

Mr. Kuntze was married, in 1859, to 
Miss Christina Hansman, the wedding 
being the first one celebrated in Little 
Suamico township. She was born in Ger- 
many, in 1835, and is a daughter of 
Christopher and Catherine (Frische) 
Hansman, also natives of Germany, in 
which country they spent their entire 
lives. Mrs. Kuntze came to America in 
1857 with her sister Elizabeth Blase, now 
deceased. By her marriage she has be- 
come the mother of five children — Elvina 
(now Mrs. De Maiffe), of Little Suamico 
township; Louie, born in 1861, died in 
1873; Herman, born in 1863, died in 1873, 
the two deaths, occasioned b}' typhoid 
fever, occurring within two weeks of each 
other; Walter, who was born in 1876, 
and is a telegraph operator of Norway, 
Mich.; and Anna, l)orn in 1878, still at 
home. 

Mr. Kuntze has taken a very active 
and prominent part in the upbuilding and 
development of his adopted county. He 
assisted in organizing his township in 
1859, served as its treasurer during the 
next two years; was chairman of the town 
board in 1862; has been town clerk and 
school clerk for seventeen years, and in 
1883 was again elected chairman of 
the board of supervisors, serving for three 
years. He has been census enumerator 
for the State twice, and in 1880 and 1890 
took the United States census. He is 
ever ready to extend a helping hand to 
all enterprises calculated to advance the 
general welfare, and among the honored 
pioneers of Oconto county is numbered 
Ernest Kuntze. 



668 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



ADOLPH WILSON (deceased), 
who in his Hfetime was one of the 
honored pioneers of Marinette, 
and for nearly half a century a 
resident of that locality, well deserves 
honorable mention in the annals of the 
founders of that now thriving city. 

A native of Sweden, Mr. \\'ilson was 
born, in 1818, in Sutter Haver, and was 
a son of Noah and Catherine (Normount) 
Barry, the former of whom, by trade a 
shoemaker, passed his entire life in Swe- 
den. After his death the widowed mother 
came to the United States, for a time 
making her home in Marinette, Wis., and 
from there moving to Indiana, where she 
died about the year 1870. Two of their 
children came to Marinette — Adolph, the 
subject proper of this memoir, and An- 
drew, who arrived about the year 1870, 
dying there. 

Adolph Wilson was educated at the 
public schools of Sweden, and at the age 
of fifteen, crossing the North Sea to Lon- 
don, England, there shipped before the 
mast. For some sixteen years he fol- 
lowed a seafaring life, sailing the Medi- 
terranean Sea, and visiting all the prin- 
cipal ports of the world. He was a ship's 
carpenter, though he had never learned 
the trade, taking to it naturally. In 1844 
Mr. Wilson was married in Sweden to 
Miss Martha Johnson, a native of that 
country, and in 1849 the entire family 
emigrated to America, the then new State 
of Wisconsin being their destination. 
They came by way of Chicago, where Mr. 
Wilson left his wife and children, pro- 
ceeding from there alone to Marinette, 
which was then a mere hamlet consisting 
of but three houses and a small store kept 
by Dr. Hall. There was no lake traffic, 
and railroads were unknown in this sec- 
tion; but with willing heart and hands he 
set to work at once to aid in the work of 
progress and improvement. Here he pre- 
pared a home for his little family, and in 
1850 brought them from Chicago to the 
wilds of northern Wisconsin. 

For a month after his arrival in Mari- 



nette Mr. Wilson worked for Dr. Hall, 
and then took up the trade of shoemaker, 
which he followed some twenty or thirty 
years. His first shop was in his house, 
but in course of time, as business in- 
creased with the influx of settlers, he 
opened a place of business on Main street. 
B}' industry and fair dealing he soon won 
success, building up an excellent trade, 
and as his financial resources increased he 
made judicious investments in real estate. 
In 1888 he built the "Wilson block," 
and he became the owner of several lots 
on Main street which he leased, owning 
all the ground from Dunlap square to the 
"Marinette House." The first building 
he put up in Marinette was the frame one 
now occupied by Mr. Meyer, the clothier, 
and his home was the first residence 
erected in the city. By his investments 
in real estate he accumulated a comfort- 
able competence, and for man\- years 
prior to his death was looked upon as one 
of the wealthiest of Marinette's well-to-do 
citizens. All that he acquired was through 
his own well-directed efforts, and he was 
known far and wide as a typical repre- 
sentative self-made man. Mr. Wilson 
was called from earth September 26, 
1895, at the age of seventy-seven jears, 
deeply regretted and sincerely mourned. 
For many years he was a member of the 
Pioneer Presbyterian Church of Marinette, 
and in politics was a stalwart Republican. 
By his first wife Mr. Wilson- had four 
children, namely: Catherine (wife of D. 
Cook), Mrs. Charles Shields and John, all 
three residents of Marinette, and \\'ill- 
iam, who lives in Daggett, Menominee 
Co., Mich. The mother of these passed 
away in 1889, deeply mourned by all who 
knew her, and in 1892 Mr. \\'ilson mar- 
ried Mrs. Mary Wheeler, a native of 
Canada, daughter of William Cummings, 
who died in Michigan in 1893. Bj- her 
first husband Mrs. Wilson had a son, 
James, who, with true filial devotion, is 
still living with his mother. From the 
days when Indians were far moie numer- 
ous than whites Mr. Wilson was a con- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPIIIVAL RECORD. 



GGc, 



tinuous resident of Marinette, and his 
name deserves to be perpetuated among 
the honored pioneers of this section of 
Wisconsin. 



WILLIAM W. De LANO, whose 
residence is now at Descanso, 
San Diego Co., Cal., was one 
of the best and most favorably 
known citizens of Oconto connty. Wis., 
toward whose settlement, growth and up- 
building he probably did more than any 
other one man. He migrated thither 
when a young man, and was actively 
identified with the interests of this section 
for over forty years. 

Mr. De Lano is a native of Water- 
town, Jefferson Co., N. Y. , born in 1831, 
and is of French descent, his grandfather, 
Thomas De Lano, having been a native 
of "La Belle France." He came to this 
country with LaFayette to serve in the 
Revolutionary war, and, remaining here, 
also served as captain in the war of 18 12, 
in Gen. Scott's regiment, being retired 
as brevet major; he was a thorough sol- 
dier. In Jefferson county, N. Y., he 
married, and he was one of the founders 
of the city of Watertown. in that county, 
owning 200 acres of land now included in 
that corporation. His death occurred in 
Watertown, in i 833. Leonard and Sylva 
(Piper) De Lano, parents of our subject, 
were born in Connecticut and New Hamp- 
shire, respectively, and the father died in 
Watertown, N. Y. , in 1868, the mother 
surviving him two years. Leonard De- 
Lano was a farmer and lumberman 
by occupation; like his father, he 
served in the war of 1812. Tiiere 
were seven children in the family 
who grew to maturity — four sons and 
three daughters — a brief record of whom 
is as follows: Harriet became the wife of 
Albert Knight, and located in Jefferson 
county, Wis.; her death occurred in 1873 
in St. Peter, Minn. Evelyn married J. 
C. Burbank, and died in 1894 at Thomas- 
ville, Ga. ; Mr. Burbank started the first 



express and stage company in the State 
of Minnesota. Marcus came to Oconto 
county in 1853, and assisted in building 
Stiles' mill; he enlisted in the Thirty- 
eighth Wis. V. I., and served till the close 
of the war, taking part in the engage- 
ments at Vicksburg and Petersburg; he 
died in 1892 at Brookside. Mortimer 
came to De Pere, Wis., in 1849, -^i"*^! i'l 
1850 to Oak Orchard, here engaging in 
fishing and farming; in Oconto county he 
enlisted in Company F, Twelfth Wis. V. 
I., was discharged for disability and re- 
turned to his home; l)Ut recovering his 
health he re-enlisted, in the same com- 
pany and regiment, and served till the 
close of the war, participating in the 
march to the sea; after his return he set- 
tled on a farm, where he remained until 
his death, which occurred in 1872, in 
Pensaukee township. Laura M. resides 
in San Diego, Cal. William W. is men- 
tioned farther on. George W. came to 
Pensaukee in 1854, and opened up a farm 
here, whereon he lived until his removal 
to California, in which State he now re- 
sides, in San Diego; he enlisted, in Ocon- 
to county, for the one-hundred-days' 
service. 

William W. De Lano passed his youth 
and early manhood in New York State, 
in his native county, receiving his educa- 
tion under private teachers, in the semi- 
nary at Watertown, and in the college at 
Clinton, N. Y. When about nineteen 
years of age, in August, 1851, he came 
westward to Wisconsin, and settling in 
the section now known as Pensaukee, 
Oconto county, became a prominent and 
active citizen of the locality. When he 
came here Oconto was included in Brown 
county, and he took an active part in the 
organization, first of the township of 
Oconto, and lastly of the county. Dur- 
ing his residence in this section he was 
engaged in "cruising" and land-looking 
for Eastern speculators, and he was the 
lirst elected county surveyor of Oconto 
county, serving four years. Up to this 
time he had lived at Oak Orchard, along 



670 



COyndEMORATIVE BroORAPBICAL RECORD. 



the bay shore, engaged in fishing, but he 
now purchased 160 acres in the woods, 
which he cleared, the property being the 
site of the present village of Brookside. 
Selling out, he opened up the Brookside 
farm, and then bought from the govern- 
ment and opened up what is now the 
Urdman farm. On selling this place he, 
in 1874, settled a farm in Pensaukee 
township, buying 320 acres in the woods, 
1 30 of which he yet retains, his tract 
lying in Sections 32, 27 and 21, and here 
he resided until his removal to California 
with five of his sons and one daughter. 
In San Diego county he has a ranch of 
400 acres of land, all fenced. 

Mr. De Lano was married in 1S56, on 
the steamer "Morgan L. Martin," while 
that vessel was en route to Green Baj', 
to Miss Eliza J. Bundy, a native of Ver- 
mont, whose parents, James C. and Mary 
(Cummings) Bundy, were born in Vermont 
and New Hampshire, respectively. They 
were married in \'ermont, and came to 
Kenosha county. Wis., before the admis- 
sion of the State to the Union, subse- 
quently, in 1852, removing to Pensaukee, 
where Mr. Bundy worked for F. B. Gard- 
ner. He died in Nebraska in 1S83; Mrs. 
Bund}' passed away in Kenosha county, 
Wis. Of the ten children born to Mr. 
and Mrs. De Lano nine are yet living, 
namely: Alice A. (Mrs. H. D. Coole), liv- 
ing in Pensaukee township; Fred J.; Etta 
fwife of George H. Russell), residing in 
Pembine, Wis. ; Lillian (Sirs. \\'illiam 
M. Jones), of Armstrong Creek, Marinette 
county; Mark T. ; Thomas P.; Lora E. ; 
George L. , and Willis R. Marion mar- 
ried P. Evcrhart, and died in Kansas in 
1891. 

Like all his brothers Mr. De Lano 
served in the war of the Rebellion, en- 
listing in October, 1861, in Company F, 
Twelfth Wis. V. I., for three years, and 
was mustered into the service at Madison, 
being assigned to the army of the West. 
He was injured on a construction hand 
car, and came home in the fall of 1862, 
receiving an honorable discharge at Madi- 



most useful 

zens have 

actuated by 

and competences, and 

or no capital, decided 



son. Our subject is an ardent Republic- 
an in politics, and served as chairman 
of Pensaukee township, which he helped 
to organize. Many of Wisconsin's best, 
and most progressive citi- 
been Eastern men, who, 
the desire to secure homes 
having little 
to cast their 
fortunes in a region where competi- 
tion and numbers had not yet crowded 
out the toilers; but we doubt if there are 
many men who have worked more zeal- 
ously for the advancement and growth of 
their adopted homes than Mr. De Lano. 
He has won his way to an honorable po- 
sition among his fellow men, and deserves 
the prosperity and respect which have 
followed him throughout his career. 



HUFF JONES. There is scarcely 
a man in Oconto county more 
popular or widely known than 
this gentleman, who has lived in 
this section of Wisconsin for about sixty 
years, and has been an eye witness to the 
wonderful development and change which 
has taken place here during that time. 

Mr. Jones is a son of Col. David 
Jones, who was born in New York State, 
and was a soldier in the war of 1812. In 
18 1 8 he moved to West \'irginia, and in 
1832 migrated with his family to what 
was then the " Far West," remaining for 
three years in Mackinac, where he was a 
government trader. In 1835 he removed 
to Green Bay, Wis., and was also a gov- 
ernment trader at Fort Howard. He 
died at Green Bay in 1854, survived by 
his wife and nine children, a brief record 
of whom is as follows: Henry is now 
deceased. Eliza married Saterlee Clark, 
and is now deceased. Tarleton, also de- 
ceased, was one of the most prominent 
and successful lumbermen here in the 
early days, making his headquarters at 
Chicago. Mary is now deceased. Rob- 
ert A. died at Oconto in 18S1. Huff is 
the subject proper of these lines. Kath- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEIOAL RECORD. 



671 



erine is deceased. Agnes B. married 
Col. Joseph B. Collins, who served in the 
Civil war; he died in 1890, and Mrs. Col- 
lins now makes her home in Washington, 
D. C. Porter resides at Green Bay, 
where he has been connected with the 
Advocate, a well-known daily, for many 
years; he was married, but his wife died 
in 1893, leaving no children. 

Huff Jones was born in 1823 in Wells- 
burg, W. Va., and when he came west 
with the family to what was then an al- 
most new region was a mere boy. In a 
few years, together with his father and 
brother Tarleton, he came to Oconto 
and engaged in the lumbering business, 
in which they continued together for 
some eighteen years. They might in- 
deed be called the pioneer lumbermen of 
this section, for they logged and built the 
first camp on the Oconto river, and cut, 
hauled, banked and drove the first log 
that was ever put into the Oconto river 
for manufacturing purposes. The father 
and two sons worked together under the 
firm name of the Jones Lumber Co. At 
that early day there were few men in the 
vicinity besides the Indians, and help was 
brought from Chicago and Green Bay. 
After the death of Col. David Jones, the 
business was conducted by Huff, Tarle- 
ton and Robert A. Jones, and they were 
widely known as enterprising, successful 
men. 

On August 14, 1854, Mr. Jones was 
married, at De Pere, Wis., to Miss Mary 
Turner, the ceremony being performed 
by Rev. Jeremiah Porter. Four children 
blessed this union, two of whom are now 
living, as follows: Robert, who resides 
in Chicago, and is engaged in the lumber 
business (he is married and has two chil- 
dren — Mary and Paul); Mary Janette, 
who married E. G. Mullen, of Milwau- 
kee, and has one child living — Edward 
Huff; David Huff, who is deceased; and 
Julia Angeline, also deceased. 

Mr. Jones is well and most favorably 
known throughout the county, and held 
the office of register of deeds of the county 

39 



for the long term of twenty-two years, 
from 1 87 1 to 1893, when the Democratic 
candidate came into office. It is hardly 
necessary to say that he is a Republican 
in political sentiment, and an ardent be- 
liever in the principles of his party. He 
now lives a retired life, enjoying a well- 
deserved rest after his active, useful life. 
Mr. Jones helped to form the Episcopal 
Church in Oconto, of which he is an 
active member, and in 1882 he was ap- 
pointed senior warden of the Church. 
He is not a member of any secret society. 



HERBERT F. JONES, justice of 
the peace, is one of the most 
acti\'e of the younger citizens of 
Oconto, and is a member of one 
of the earliest families of this section of 
Wisconsin. 

A native of the city of Ociinto, he was 
born in 1S70, and there received his edu- 
cation at the public schools. In 1891, 
he was elected justice of the peace, an 
office he has since filled with ability. 
Although yet young, Mr. Jones is admir- 
ably fitted for the responsible position 
which he occupies, and by his honesty, 
energy and legal ability has won the con- 
fidence and respect of his fellow citizens 
wherever known. In political sentiment 
he is a Republican. 



LS. HITCHCOCK is one of the 
honored veterans of the Civil war, 
who faithfully served the Union 
cause until the stars and stripes 
once more waved over the united na- 
tion. He is now engaged in the general 
hardware business as a member of the 
firm of Watson Brothers & Hitchcock. 

A native of Rochester, Monroe Co., 
N. Y., Mr. Hitchcock was born in 1845, 
and is a son of Amos H. and Julia (ReedJ 
Hitchcock, natives of Connecticut. The 
father, a millwright by trade, removed in 
an early day to Rochester, where he 
built a large water mill, and made his 



672 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGliAPEICAL RECORD. 



home for thirtj- years. About 1850 he 
became a resident of Walworth county, 
Wis., where he developed a farm. Sub- 
sequently he put up a mill at Delavan 
and other places, and his death occurred 
in that city in 1S85; his wife died in In- 
dependence, Iowa, in 1882. The Hitch- 
cock famil}^ is of English origin, and was 
early established in Connecticut. The 
grandfather, Leonard Hitchcock, was one 
of the heroes of the Revolution. Four 
children survive the parents, namely: 
Mrs. Charlotte Reeder, of Delavan, Wis. ; 
Mrs. Julia Sharp, of Beloit, Wis. ; Amos, 
who served for three years in the Tenth 
Wis. V. I., and is now living in Walworth 
tow^nship, Walworth county; and L. S., 
subject of this sketch. 

The last named was only five years of 
age when brought bj- his parents to Wis- 
consin. He was reared amid the wild 
scenes of frontier life in Walworth county, 
attended the common schools of the 
neighborhood, and afterward entered an 
academy where he pursued his studies 
until August, 1862, when he responded to 
the country's call for troops, joining Com- 
pany K, Twenty-eighth Wis. V. I. He 
was mustered into service at Milwaukee, 
and with the Trans-Mississippi army par- 
ticipated in the battles of Helena, Little 
Rock, Pine Bluff, Spanish Fort, DuvalTs 
Bluff and Mobile, after which he went to 
Louisiana, where he participated in the 
engagement at Sabine Cross Roads, and 
then proceeded to Brownsville, Texas. 
He was honorablj' discharged in Madison, 
Wis., in September, 1865, and at once 
returned to his home. 

Mr. Hitchcock soon afterward went to 
Iowa, locating near Hazelton, and estab- 
lishing the town site there. For three 
years he was engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits, and then left his farm to assume 
the management of two stores and eleva- 
tors at that place, of which he continued 
in charge for five years. He ne.\t dis- 
posed of his farm and removed to Har- 
vard, III., but engaged in dealing in lands 
in northern Wisconsin. In 1879 he re- 



moved from Harvard to Marinette, but 
after eighteen months went to Quinnesec, 
Mich., where for five years he carried on 
mercantile pursuits. In 1887 he came to 
Marinette, and entered into partnership 
with Watson Brothers, dealers in general 
hardware, under the present firm style. 
Their store is located at the corner of 
Liberty and Main streets, and is a first- 
class establishment of the kind, supplied 
with everything found in their line. The 
members of the firm are enterprising and 
energetic business men, and a large trade 
now crowns their efforts. 

The lady who now bears the name of 
Mrs. Hitchcock was in her maidenhood 
Kittie Lake, and the marriage between 
her and Mr. Hitchcock was celebrated in 
Harvard, 111. She was born in New 
York, and is a daughter of Levi Lake, a 
pioneer of Walworth count}-, \\' is. , who 
returned to New York, and on again com- 
ing to the West located in Harvard, 111., 
where he is engaged in the lumber busi- 
ness. His wife died in 1892. Socially, Mr. 
Hitchcock is connected with Samuel H. 
Sizer Post, G. A. R., and with the 
Knights of Pythias Lodge, Marinette. He 
takes quite an active interest in political 
affairs, and by his ballot supports the Re- 
publican party. He is a self-made man, 
one who has w'on prosperitj' through his 
own resources, and to-day, as the result 
of his earnest labors, occupies a foremost 
place among the representative business 
men of his locality. He discharges his 
duties of citizenship with the same loyalty 
that he manifested when on Southern 
battle fields he followed the old flag to 
victory. 



CHARLES LASELLE,a prosperous 
farmer of Florence township, 
Ilorence county, is one of the 
early pioneers of northern Wis- 
consin, and the oldest pioneer of Flor- 
ence county, having settled where he now 
resides, at the junction of the Popple and 
Pine rivers, in the spring of 1S68. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPnWAL KECORI). 



673 



Our subject was born in Swanton, 
Franklin Co., Vt., July 10, 1S32, and is 
a son of John P. and Caroline (Gove) 
Laselle, also natives of Franklin county, 
Vt., the former of whom was a farmer by 
occupation. He married Caroline Gove, 
and they had three children, of whom two 
are still living — Charles, the subject of 
this sketch, and Frances, who is married 
and resides in Wausau, Marathon Co., 
Wis. Mrs. Caroline Laselle died in Ver- 
mont in 1 84 1, and Mr. Laselle was again 
married, in that State, this time to Eliza 
Flint. In 1849 they came west to Wis- 
consin, settling in Waushara county, near 
Hancock, and there John P. Laselle opened 
up a farm, on which he made a perma- 
nent home. He died in Plainfield, Wau- 
shara Co., Wis., in 1889; his wife Eliza 
had preceded him, having passed away at 
Hancock, in the same county, in 1884. 
They had three children, namely: Will- 
iam, who now resides in Plainfield, Wis. ; 
Zachariah T. , a farmer on the old home- 
stead in Hancock township, Waushara 
county, and Alice, now Mrs. Bardwell, of 
Plainfield. 

Charles Laselle received his education 
in the schools of Vermont, residing there 
until 1847, when he came to Wisconsin, 
locating in what is now Langlade county, 
then a part of Oconto county, near Eagle 
River, and engaged in working in the 
woods, which vocation he followed three 
years. The nearest town was Wausau. 
In 1850 he went to Forest county, then a 
part of Oconto county, where he engaged 
in hunting and fishing, and commenced 
trading with the Indians at Rice Lake. 
He was the only white man in that local- 
ity, and remained there until his removal 
to Florence county, of which he was the 
first white settler. As above stated, he 
located on his present farm, at the junc- 
tion of the Popple and Pine rivers, in 
1868. A partner, named A. Palmer, ac- 
companied him to Florence county, en- 
gaging in trapping, and died here on the 
Pine river in 1871, having been hurt by 
falling with a canoe. Mr. Laselle con- 



veyed the remains a hundred miles by 
dog sleigh and team to Embarrass, Wau- 
paca Co., Wis., where there were friends 
of the deceased, and buried him. Left 
alone by the death of Mr. Palmer, Charles 
Laselle followed trapping and hunting for 
years. In 1871, the year of his jiartner's 
death, he took up a homestead of 160 
acres, his present farm, on which there 
were no improvements, and he has since 
cleared over forty acres of the land, cut- 
ting the road out from his farm to Flor- 
ence in the winter (jf 1879. b'irst, he 
erected a log cabin, in which he lived 
until, in i88j, he built his residence, a 
story and a half frame, 18x26 feet. In 
I 886 he erected a good frame barn, 30 x 40 
feet. 

In July, 1 88 1, at Marinette, Marinette 
Co., Wis., Charles Laselle was united in 
marriage with Mary E. Carpenter, who 
was born in Winnebago county. Wis., 
and they have four children, whose names, 
and whose ages, at this writing (1895), 
are as follows: John, thirteen; Olive, 
eleven; Alice, nine; and Jesse, foiu". Mrs. 
Laselle was first married to Martin Weber. 
The father of Mrs. Charles Laselle, J. D. 
Carpenter, was born in New York, and 
was an early pioneer of Winnebago county, 
now residing in Clintonville, Waupaca 
county. He was a Union soldier in the 
war of the Rebellion, being a member of 
a Wisconsin regiment. 

Mr. Laselle is engaged in general 
farming, and to some extent in stock 
raising. He was in this part of the coun- 
try before the railrtjad by more than 
thirty years, came by boat on the Wis- 
consin river and on the Pine river, brought 
provisions and supplies to his post winters 
and summers by dog-team and by boat, 
and established himself here when Flor- 
ence was a part of Oconto. No one in 
northern Wisconsin is better known than 
Charles Laselle. His name is familiar in 
every household as the hardy pioneer who 
for twenty-five years lived in the northern 
country, only seeing a white man now 
and then, when some lumbermen called 



674 



COifVEMORATTTE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



at his trading post. His companions for 
many jears were the Indians, and his 
gun. dog and dog-sleigh. Mr. Laselle 
votes with the Republican party, takes 
an interest in politics and in educational 
matters, and is a member of the school 
board. 



M 



ICH.\EL COSGROVE. who 
does a general lumbering and 
jobbing business in Florence 
county, was born in 1S48 near 
Ottawa, Canada, and is a son of Patrick 
and Mary (McAndrew) Cosgrove, also na- 
tives of Canada, who were early pioneers 
in their section. Patrick Cosgrove, who 
was a farmer, opened up a farm in Canada, 
and died there in 1S85, his wife surviving 
until 1S87. They reared a family of nine 
children, seven of whom are now living, 
two residing in Wisconsin, namely: P. J., 
who is engaged in lumbering at Eau Claire, 
Eau Claire count), and Michael, whose 
name opens this sketch. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in Canada, and in 1864, at the age of 
sixteen, came from there to Menominee, 
Mich., engaging in lumbering for the dif- 
ferent lumber companies. There he was 
united in marriage, in 1878. with Miss Mary 
Merton, who was born in New York, and 
they have had three children, as follows: 
\'aleria M. and John Walter, living, and 
Stella, who died in 1893 in Oshkosh, Wis. 
The parents of Mrs. Cosgrove, Thomas 
and Mary (Murray) Merton, were very 
early settlers in Oshkosh, Wis. , where they 
now reside. 

In February-, 1S80, Mr. Cosgrove came 
from Menominee, ^fich., to Common- 
wealth, Florence Co. , Wis., in which vil- 
lage he built the first house and kept a 
boarding-house. In 1S81 he moved to 
Florence, Florence county, and engaged 
in cruising in timber. In 1882 he was 
elected assessor, and served two years; 
was again elected in 1887, and served 
continuously until 1894. also being en- 
gaged in lumbering and logging. Mr. 



Cosgrove is a member of Badger Tent 
No. 12, K. O. T. M. He is a Democrat 
in politics, and has held township office 
in Florence longer than any other man. 
He owns 240 acres of land in Florence 
township, Florence county, and employs 
ten or fifteen men in his lumbering and 
jobbing business and in taking out logs. 
He is one of the earliest settlers of Com- 
monwealth township, aud in 18S2 assisted 
in the organization of Florence county 
from Marinette county, having ever been 
actively identified with the progress and 
interests of his section. 



s 



V. D. PHILBROOK. shipbuilder, 
with yards located at Menominee, 
Mich., and Marinette, Wis., has 
been engaged in that business for 
many years. He is a native of Cumber- 
land county, Maine, born October 29, 
1 83 1, and is a son of Ezekiel and Mar- 
tha (Young) Philbrook, both of whom 
were natives of Maine, as was also his 
grandfather, Jeremiah Philbrook, who 
lived and died there. Ezekiel Philbrook, 
the father, was a teacher by profession 
and was engaged in that calling for many 
years, devoting the greater part of his life 
to it, though he also engaged in farming. 
During the war of 1812, he served his 
country well and faithfully. He died at 
the advanced age of ninety-one years. 
His wife also died at an advanced age. 
They reared a family of eleven children, 
ten of whom are living: . Horace, of 
Brunswick, Maine; Delphina, now Mrs. 
Harmon, also of Brunswick, Maine; Mi- 
randa Ann, now Mrs. Jury, of Freeport, 
Maine; Ezekiel, of Waldoboro. Maine; 
Martha Jane, now Mrs. Wilson, of Yar- 
mouth, Maine; Cordelia, now Mrs. Aus- 
tin, of Bath, Maine; R. D. Y., of Web- 
ster, Maine; Lydia Sarah, now Mrs. Syl- 
vester, of Brunswick, Maine; R. O., of 
Peshtigo, Wis. ; and S. V. D. 

The subject of this sketch traces his 
ancestry for eight generations in America, 
the greater number of them being citizens 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



675 



of Maine. He was educated in the 
schools of his native State, and in }'outh 
learned the trade of a ship-carpenter. 
Soon after leaving school he was engaged 
in the building of a five-hundred-ton ves- 
sel, the brig" Stella," at I-iichmond, Maine. 
He followed ship-carpentering in Afaine, 
and the fishing business along the coast of 
Labrador and Newfoundland for four 
seasons, feeing principally engaged in 
ship- building, which has been his business 
up to the present time. In 1858 became 
west to Fort Howard, Wis., where he 
engaged in ship-building, remaining there 
about six years, and then removed to 
Peshtigo, same State, where he continued 
in the same line of business, and built the 
"Boscobel." In about 1868 he estab- 
lished the yards at ^fa^inette, Wis., and 
Menominee, Mich., giving employment 
to from ten to forty men, but has usually 
about twelve regular employes. 

Mr. Philbrook was united in marriage 
in 1857, at Riclmiond, Maine, with Miss 
Ellen Fowles, a native of that State, born 
in Whitefield, and daughter of Samuel 
and Eleanor (Colsen) Fowles, also natives 
of Maine. Her father came to Fort How- 
ard, Wis., where he established a ship- 
yard and continued in the business for 
many years. He died at Fort Howard in 
1892, his wife some years previous. In 
connection with his father-in-law, Mr. 
Fowles, our subject, built the ship "Pica- 
yune," and took her to New Orleans in 
the fall of i860, there selling it. He has 
been in the ship-building business ever 
since coming to Wisconsin, and has 
usually been very successful. In the 
great fire of 1871, his residence, shipyard 
and everything that he had at Marinette 
were burneil. While his loss was great, 
he went to work with characteristic en- 
ergy to retrieve his fortune, and to-day is 
numbered among the well-to-do men of 
the county. In politics he was originally 
a Whig, and since the organization of the 
Republican party has voted that ticket. 

Mr. Philbrook is one of the pioneers 
of the west shore of Green Bay. He 



came on foot from Fond du Lac to Green 
Bay, and has since continued to reside in 
this section of the country. He was here 
years before railroads were constructed, 
and has witnessed its change from a 
wilderness to a prosperous community 
now filled with happy and contented peo- 
ple. In connection with his business of 
ship-building, Mr. Philbrook deals in lime, 
brick, plastering hair, stone and wood. 
He is a thorf)ugh business man, and is 
well respected thr(jughout this region, in 
which few men are better known. 



ROBERT HITCHON is the popular 
sheriff of Marinette county, and is 
numbered among its pioneers, hav- 
ing resided there since 1867. He 
was first elected sheriff in 1890, served 
his term, and after an interval of two 
years was again elected, in 1894, and en- 
tered upon the duties of the office January 
I, 1895. He is a native of Brantford, 
Canada, born in 1857, and is a son of 
Henry and Ann (Marston) Hitchon, both 
of whom were natives of England, and in 
early life removed to Canada. 

Henry Hitchon, the father, was a 
boiler maker by trade, and followed that 
occupation in Canada. In 1S57 he re- 
moved with his famil}- to Aurora, 111., 
and there continued to work at his trade 
until 1867, when he came to Marinette 
county, then a part of Oconto, with 
which it remained until 1879, when it 
was set off, and duly organized as a 
separate county. On his arrival in Mari- 
nette, Mr. Hitchon again took up his 
trade, at which he continued until 1870, 
when he built a blacksmith and wagon 
shop on \\'ells street, and continued in 
that business until his death, in 1881. 
Few men in Marinette county were better 
known, and none more universally es- 
teemed. A pioneer of the county, he 
formed many acquaintances, and made 
many lasting friendships. Politically he 
was a Republican, an active worker in the 
party, and before Marinette was set off as 



676 



COMMEMORATrVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



a separate county, he was deputj' sheriff 
of Oconto count}'. It has already been 
stated that he was well-known through- 
out the couniy, but it can be said that he 
was also well-known throughout northern 
Wisconsin. His wife survived him some 
j'ears, dying in 1892. They reared a family 
of children as follows : Robert, our sub- 
ject; Grace, the wife of Burr Catlin, 
sheriff of Dickinson county, Mich. ; Charles, 
residing in Marinette; Alice, wife of Gail 
Allen, bookkeeper for the Marinette Iron 
Works at Marinette; Anna, an assistant 
in the Menominee post office; and Nell 
and Bessie, at home. 

In his infancy our subject was taken 
by his parents from Brantford, Canada, 
to Aurora, 111., and in 1867 was brought 
by them to Marinette, where he has since 
continued to reside. His educational ad- 
vantages were only such as could be ob- 
tained in the common schools. In his 
)'outh he learned the trade of a molder, 
and worked in the Marinette Iron \\'orks 
for about twelve years, being thus en- 
gaged when first elected sheriff of the 
county. After serving his first term Mr. 
Hitchon engaged in lumbering, which 
business he continued from 1892 to 1894, 
with good success. 

In 18S0 Mr. Hitchon was united in 
marriage with Miss Helen Hubbeli, a na- 
tive of Pensaukee, Wis. , and a daughter 
of William and Lucy Minerva (Howe) 
Hubbeli, who were natives of New York, 
and numbered among the very early set- 
tlers of Lake county, 111., from where 
they removed to Oconto county, Wis. 
They were also pioneers of Pensaukee, 
where Mr. Hubbeli was engaged in the 
lumbering business; they now reside in 
Marinette. To Mr. and Mrs. Hitchon 
have been born three children : Anna, 
Lotta and Robert. 

In politics Mr. Hitchon is an uncom- 
promising Republican, and takes an active 
interest in the public questions of the day. 
He is ever ready to do his part in the 
promotion of the interests of his party, 
and his popularity is attested by his elec- 



tion to the responsible position which he 
holds. Fraternally he is a member of 
Marinette Lodge No. 182, F. & A. M. 
Coming to this count}' in his boyhood, he 
has grown with its growth, and has been 
not only a witness of its growth, but has 
materially assisted in developing its in- 
terests. Few men are better known in 
the county, and none more highly re- 
spected. 



JOSHUA HODGINS, the highly effi- 
cient and popular chief of the Fire 
Department, Marinette, with which 
he has been associated for the past 
eighteen years, is a native of Canada, 
having been born March 18, 1856, in the 
town of Kincardine, County of Bruce, 
Ontario. 

Thomas Hodgins, his father, was a 
native of the North of Ireland, and was 
there married to Elizabeth McGuire, of 
the same locality, by whom he had five 
children, as follows: David resides in Hor- 
tonville. Wis. ; Ellen is the wife of Her- 
bert P. Chase, of Marinette; Joseph resides 
in Tacoma, Wash, (he was the first chief 
of police in Marinette); Hester Ann is the 
wife of J. L. Brown, of Marinette; Joshua 
is the subject proper of this sketch. In 
an early day the parents came to the New 
W^orld, for some years, or until 1864, 
residing in Canada, whence they n)igrated 
to Lemont, 111., thence after a year re- 
moving to Escanaba, Mich., and from 
there, in 1865, to Appleton, Wis. Here 
the father died in his seventy-second year; 
the mother passed away at Marinette in 
1882. 

Joshua Hodgins, of whom these lines 
chiefly relate, was eight years old when he 
left his native town, Kincardine, and nine 
when the family came to Appleton, at the 
public schools of which city he received 
the greater part of his education. He 
there worked at the tinner's trade one 
year. In 1S73 he came to Marinette, 
where he worked at the tinner's trade for 



COMMEMOliAriVE BIOGIIAPIIICAL UEVORD. 



(>11 



Watson Bros., remaining with them until 
1 88 1. In the fall of iSSi he entered 
'Milton College, Wisconsin, where he con- 
tinued his studies till June, 1S83; then 
engaged in the hardware business in Mari- 
nette until 1SS7, the next year commenc- 
ing to deal in coal, in 1889 establishing an 
agency for P. S. Hanford (for the sale of 
coal oil), which later merged into the 
Standard Oil Co. In 1892 he gave up 
the Standard Oil Co. agency, and estab- 
lished one for the Cleveland Oil Co., con- 
tinuing as their agent until 1894, when he 
retired from that line of business. In 
1 891 he was appointed chief of the Mari- 
nette Fire Department. 

In 1884 Mr. Hodgins was married at 
Marinette to Miss Maggie Stephenson, 
daughter of Hon. Isaac Stephenson, a 
prominent lumberman of Marinette, and 
to this union has been born one daughter, 
named Margaret. Mrs. Hodgins is a mem- 
ber of the M. E. Church. In politics our 
subject is a Republican, active in the 
workings of his party. Socially he is a 
member of Marinette Lodge No. 182, F. 
& A. M., and of Marinette Chapter No. 
53, K. A. M. He has seen Marinette grow 
from a city of 3,000 inhabitants to one of 
17,000, together with the full growth and 
development of the country, and has him- 
self advanced with its spirit of progressive- 
ness. At Marinette he established the 
first coal agency and first dock, also the 
first oil station for P. S. Hanford. 

In 1877 Mr. Hodgins became asso- 
ciated with the Marinette Fire Depart- 
ment in the capacity of pipeman, became 
assistant chief in 1889, and chief in 1891, 
on full pay, prior to which he had been on 
half pay. Tne entire Department is now 
partly on half pay, and partly on full |)ay, 
there being eight members under the latter 
status, while the complete equipment at 
the present time consists of two steam 
fire engines, four hose wagons, one hose 
cart, one hook and ladder truck ant! equip- 
ments, three sleighs and boxes, three sup- 
ply wagons, two hook and ladder sleighs 
and racks for ladders complete, besides 



all the other paraphernalia, including sig- 
nal boxes and telephone stations, essential 
to a first-class and well-conducted fire de- 
partment. During the corporate year 
ending the first Tuesday in April, 1894, 
according to the official report of Chief 
Hodgins, the Department responded to 
129 alarms of lire. Under his manage- 
ment the Departmtmt has attained a very 
high efficiency. The loss by fire in the 
city during the year 1895 was less than 
nine thousand dollars. 



REV. P. J. LOCHMAN, pastor of 
St. Joseph's Church, Oconto, is a 
native of Wisconsin, born in 1857 
in Green Bay, in which city his 
parents settled in an early day. 

August Lochman, his father, was born 
in Holland, and in 1848 came to Green 
Bay, Wis. Here he married Sophia 
Bulick, a native of New York State, who 
came to Green Bay with her parents in 
1840, and here they still reside. Twelve 
children were born to them, five of whom 
are still living, two sons and three daugh- 
ters, namely: Mrs. Bcier, of Appleton; 
Leonida, who is a Sister in a convent at 
St. Paul, Minn.; G. L. , of Baltimore, 
Md. ; Rev. P. J. ; and S. Fidelia, who is a 
Sister in a convent at Silver Lake, Wis. 
During the Civil war August Lochman 
enlisted in Company F, Twelfth Wiscon- 
sin Infantry, and served to the close of 
the struggle. 

P. J. Lochman passed his early life in 
Green Bay, receiving his primary educa- 
tion in the common and private schools. 
He subsequently entered Calvary College, 
Calvary, Wis., wliere he took the classical 
course, graduating with the class of 1876, 
an<l then took a theological course in St. 
I'rancis Seminary, Milwaukee, Wis. In 
I 88 I he was ordained by Bishop Kraut- 
bauer, and was first assigned to St. Rose 
Congregation, at Clintonville, Wis., of 
which he was the first regular priest. 
While there he was also in charge of con- 
gregations at eleven or twelve different 



6yS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



places, going from place to place, the 
first year on horseback; and some idea of 
the magnitude and extent of his labors is 
gained from the mere statement that his 
circuit covered about two hundred square 
miles. And of all the places he visited 
only two had churches, Clintonville and 
Bear Creek. He did mission work at 
Antigo, Rhinelander, Pelican Lake, Eagle 
River, Tigerton, Aniwa, Norrie, and 
various other points. He built the first 
church at Antigo, and also established 
the Church at Tigerton. Father Loch- 
man was on this work nearly three years, 
in 1SS3 being transferred from Clinton- 
ville to Freedom, Outagamie county, 
where he was pastor in charge of St. 
Nicholas Church until November i, 1S91. 
the date of his removal to Oconto. While 
there he also had charge of the Church at 
the Oneida Reservation, which he estab- 
lished. 

St. Joseph's Church was established 
from St. Peter's Church, of Oconto, in 
1870, the first church, a good frame 
building, being erected in that j'ear. The 
parish has since continued to grow and 
prosper, and during the quarter of a cen- 
tury- of its existence has had but two 
priests. Father Schwebach — who served 
the congregation from 1S6S — and Father 
Lochman. There are now about 400 
families connected with the Church, and 
the property is valued at about $30,000. 
In 1 874 a good two-storj' school building 
was put up, which in 1 892 was remodeled 
at an outlay of $3,000, another story be- 
ing also added. The priest's house, 
which was erected in 1S72, was moved 
and remodeled in 1895 at an e.xpense of 
$1,000. and during the same year the 
church was also moved and refitted at a 
cost of $15,000. The parochial school 
has an attendance of about 350 children. 
Father Lochman is a member of Oconto 
Lodge, Catholic Knights of Wisconsin, 
and of St. William's Court No. 365, 
Catholic Order of Foresters. He is also 
spiritual director in the Ancient Order of 
Hibernians. 



ROBERT O. HUNT, clerk of the 
court of Marinette county, was 
elected to his present position No- 
vember 6. 1894, and assumed the 
duties of the office in January, 1S95. He 
is the youngest county official ever elected 
in Marinette county. 

Our subject was born midway be- 
tween Peshtigo and Marinette, in 1873, 
and is a son of David and .\ugusta (Lentz) 
Hunt. The father, who was a native of 
Sullivan county, N. Y. , removed when a 
young man to Minnesota, where he took 
part in the Indian war which occurred 
about the time of the breaking out of the 
Rebellion, and was shot through the leg. 
Soon after his recovery, in about 1862, 
he came to Peshtigo, where he engaged in 
lumbering, and where he met and was 
united in marriage, in May, 1863, with 
Augusta Lentz, a daughter of Charles and 
Augusta Lentz, both of whom were na- 
tives of Germany, and who are numbered 
among the pioneers of Marinette county. 
Her father on his arrival here opened up 
a farm near Peshtigo, where he still con- 
tinues to reside. David Hunt, on coming 
to Marinette county, engaged in the lumber 
business, and was superintendent of the 
Peshtigo Lumber Co. mills during the fire 
of 1871, at the time when the mills and 
entire manufactured product were burned. 
His death occurred at Peshtigo in May. 
1877, when he was forty-four years of 
age, and his wife yet resides in that place. 
There their family of five children were 
reared, viz. : Wilbert D. . who died in 
September. 1892; Orin, a scaler of logs, 
residing in Peshtigo; Arthur, who is en- 
gaged in the same business at the same 
place; Robert O., our subject; and Nel- 
lie P. 

Robert O. Hunt grew to manhood in 
his native village, received his primary 
education in the public schools, and fin- 
ished his course in college at Menominee, 
Mich. On finishing his education, he ac- 
cepted a position with the Peshtigo Lum- 
ber Co., as scaler, and was there em- 
ployed when elected to the office of clerk 



COMMEMOHATIVI<: BIOGUAPUWAL liKVOlW. 



679 



of court. As stated, Mr. Hunt is the 
youngest officer ever elected in Marinette 
county. He is a man of exceptional 
ability, and has a bright future before 
him. In every position held by him \\r 
has discharged his duties in a faithful 
manner, and in a way to meet the ap- 
proval and win the respect of his asso- 
ciates. The family were among the iirst 
to settle on the Old State Road, and are 
well known and universally respected 
throughout the county. 



M 



KIRKl'ATI^ICK, superintend- 
ent of the city water works of 
Marinette, is the son of W. and 
Maggie Kirkpatrick, natives of 
New I->runswick, Canada, and was l)orn 
in Milwaukee, in July, 1864. His parents 
came to Carlton, Wis., in an early day, 
and there the father became superintend- 
ent of a lumber mill, later being foreman 
at Manistique, Mich., and he is now in 
the employ of the Ivirby-Carpenter I^um- 
ber Company. 

M. Kirkpatrick, the only child, was 
reared in Milvvaukee and educated in the 
public schools of Manistitpie, Mich., and 
at the age of fifteen years liegan life in 
the eiufjloy of O. B. Prime, dealer in 
general merchandise. In 1S79 he came 
from Manisticjue to Marinette, and en- 
gaged in the dry-goods business for five 
years. He then went into the commis- 
sion l)usiness, in which he continued until 
entering the service of the Water Wcjrks 
Co., in the spring of 1888, his entire time 
now being devoted to the superintend- 
ence of their plant. The power house is 
situated at the corner of Fifth and Water 
streets. The water works vvi'rc; estab- 
lished in 1888, at which time J. 11 I'nrdy, 
of Pittsburg, Penn., was president. The 
company is incorporated and has eighteen 
miles of pipe line in service, giving em- 
ployment to six men. 

In 1892 Mr. Kirkpatrick built on Ella 
C(jurt a new two-story frame residence 
for his own use. He was married in 



Marinette, in 1886, to Miss Bertha A. 
Witting, daughter of Dr. N. Witting, one 
of the pioneers of Green Hay, Wis., wlu) 
now resitles in Marinette. Three chil- 
dren were the fruit of this union, Marvin 
Clyde, Hazel, and Wayne. In ])olitics 
Mr. Kirkpatrick is a Democrat, and takes 
considerable interest in the success of his 
party. Socially he is a member of the 
Koyal Arcaiunn. He takes a lively in- 
terest in the growth and improvement of 
the city, having been closely identified 
with it in a business way for over si.\teen 
years. He is a self-made man, and in; 
won his way to his present position by 
the e.xercise of his native ability, for he 
commenced in the spring of 1888 as time- 
kee[)er, and rose from that position to the 
rank of superintendent. He is an up- 
right, honest man, and is respected ami 
esteemed by his fellow citizens generally. 



CI'KITIHOF LARSON, M. D., 
the well-known and popular phy- 
sician and surgeon, residing at 
No. 1225 Main street, Marinette, 
came to that city in May, 1894, but not- 
withstanding his comparatively short resi- 
dence here has succeefled in l)uilding up 
a large and lucrative clientele as a gen- 
eral practitioner of the healing art. The 
Doctor came here from Iron Mountain, 
Mich., where he had located in the fall 
of 1891. Graduating from Rush Medical 
College, Chicago, and obtaining three 
out (jf the six i)ri/es offered by that famous 
medical institution, he began the practice 
of his profession in that city in 1888, and 
continued there until his removal to Iron 
Moimtaiu. 

Dr. Larson is the son of Frederick 
and Charlotte (Anderson) Larson, both 
of whom were natives of Sweden, where 
they died, the mother in 1880, and the 
father in 1889. They reared a family of 
four children, all of whom are still living: 
Hilda, the eldest, wife of Oscar Anderson, 
an officer in the Swedish army; C. F., 
whose name introduces this sketch; Arvid, 



6So 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



an agriculturist, who owns and cultivates 
a large farm in his native country; and 
Axel, the joungest, who was brought to 
this country by the Doctor in 1S89, and is 
now employed by the Story & Clark 
Organ Company, 

Our subject was born and reared in 
Sweden, and educated in the schools of 
Nykoping, graduating in the literary 
course in iSSo. He then entered the 
University of Upsala, taking a course 
preparatory to the study of medicine, and 
graduated from that celebrated school in 
iSS:?. Coming direct to Chicago, he en- 
tered the railway service of the Central 
Traffic Association as a clerk in 1SS3, 
and remained with that organization for 
four years. In 1SS4 (while still in their 
employ^i he began the study of medicine 
with Dr. Anderson, and in 1SS7 he severed 
his connection with the railway associa- 
tion to enter Rush Medical College, as re- 
lated above. 

In I S89 the Doctor returned to Swe- 
den, and spent si.\ months in different 
hospitals in that country and in Germany, 
returning to Chicago. He was a mem- 
ber of the Chicago Medical Society and 
the Scandinavian .Medical Society, and is 
at present connected with the Menom- 
inee River Medical Society, the Fox 
River Medical Society, and the Wiscon- 
sin State Medical Society. He is also 
chief ranger of Marinette Lodge No. 994. 
I. O. F. ; a member of Marinette Lodge 
No. 72, K. of P. ; Uniformed Rank, K. of 
P., at Iron Mountain; Sons of Sweden, 
of Menominee; Scandinavian Benevolent 
Society, of Marinette, and of the Mari- 
nette Gun Club. He is an enthusiastic 
advocate of gymnastic training, organized 
the first Swedish Gymnastic Club in Chi- 
cago, and introduced gymnastic e.xercises 
in the public schools of Iron Mountain. 
He is a member of the Bicycle Club and 
the Y. M. C. A. In politics Dr. Larson 
is a Republican. He was health officer in 
Iron Mountain for two years, and mem- 
ber and secretary of the school board for 
two years, taking a lively interest in 



everything pertaining to the welfare of 
the city, more especially so in all educa- 
tional matters. 

In 1 888 the Doctor was married, in 
Chicago, to Miss Emma Seaburg, daugh- 
ter of Carl Seaburg, a native of Sweden, 
who died in Chicago in 1S83. The Doc- 
tor and his wife have two children — Her- 
bert and Bertel. 



AM. FAIRCHILD. Among the 
many prominent and influential 
business men of Marinette is the 
gentleman whose name introduces 
this sketch. He has been continuously and 
successfully engaged in the drug business 
in that city for over a quarter of a century, 
having opened his establishment in 1869 
with as full and complete a line of goods 
, as any similar concern in the State, and 
this high standard has been maintained 
throughout his business career. 

Mr. Fairchild was born in Fountain 
county, Ind., in 1843, and is the son of 
Rev. John and L. P. (Bigelow) Fairchild, 
both of whom were natives of \'ermont, 
where they were married. The father 
was educated and ordained as a minister 
of the Presbyterian Church while living 
in the Green Mountain State, removed to 
Fountain county. Ind., and officiated in 
that capacity there until 1863, when he 
removed to Marinette, then a village of 
400 inhabitants. He there founded the 
Pioneer Presbyterian Church, and was 
pastor in charge for twenty-two years. 
He also founded the Presbyterian Church 
at Menominee, and was identified with 
both organizations, residing in Marinette. 
He was school commissioner here for a 
while. He died here in 18S5, in the 
eighty-fifth year of his age, and his wife, 
! who still lives in Marinette, was eighty- 
five years old in August. 1S95. They had 
seven children, as follows: Mrs. H. B. 
Bird, of Menominee. Mich.; Mrs. Ely 
Wright, of Minneapolis. Minn.; J. B., an 
attorney at law; A. M. ; H. O.. also an 
attorney at law; C. M., editor of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



681 



North Star, and A. A. , casliior fi.ir the 
N. Liuliiif^ton Company. 

Our subject was reared in Iiuliana, in 
different localities, and was educated in the 
schools of Indianapolis. In 1863 he en- 
listed from Wabash county in Company 
A, Seventy-fifth Ind. \'. I., forthree years 
or during the war; was mustered into the 
service at Indianapolis, Ind., and was as- 
signed to the Fourteenth Army Corps, 
taking part in the battles of Chickamauga, 
Missionary Ridge, Resaca and Kenesaw 
Mountain, and in all of the engagments 
from Chattanooga to Savannah. He also 
took part in the Carolina campaigns, and 
participated in the Grand Review in 
Washington, D. C, at the close of the 
war, where the troops were held for a 
short time. He was honorablv discharged 
Jul)- 29, 1865, at Indianapolis, Indiana. 

Upon his discharge from tiic army Mr. 
Fairchild came direct to Marinette, arriv- 
ing August 5, 1865, and there entered 
the employ of the N. Ludington Co. 
as bookkeeper, in whose service he re- 
mained until he engaged in the drug busi- 
ness, in which particular line of trade he 
is the oldest representative in Marinette. 
He was married in Marinette to Miss M. 
E. Wright, daughter of J. K. and Maria E. 
(Ely) Wright, of Pennsylvania, and to 
this union two children were born — 
Richard, local editor of the Nortli Star, 
and Pauline. Mrs. Fairchild dying in 
1887, Mr. Fairchild was married, in 
1891, to Miss Phyllis B. Brown, a native 
of New Brunswick, and to this marriage 
one child, Stafford, was born. 

In politics Mr. Fairchild is a Republic- 
an, and takes an active interest in all 
jiublic: questions. He is president of the 
Marinette school board, was here at its 
organization, and takes a vital interest in 
all matters pertaining to the welfare of 
the schools. He was also organizer of 
the Marinette Fire Department, and its 
chief for si.xteen years; was for seven 
years clerk of the court, and one year 
town clerk. Mr. P'airchild was at one 
time ofliciating as member of the school 



board, town clerk and chief of the fire de- 
partment at the same time. Socially he 
is connected with \arious lodges, and is 
P. M. of Marinette Lodge No. 182, F. 
cV- A. M.; P. H. P. Marinette Chapter 
No. 57; It. C. Marinette (x)nimandery 
No. 2(r, present Commander of Saladin 
Temple No. 8, A. A. O. N. M. S., C.rand 
Rapids. He is also a member and director 
of the Marinette Business Men's Associa- 
tion, and of S. II. Si/er Post, G. A. R. 
One of the "old-timers," he has wit- 
nessed the growth of the city of Mari- 
nette from its handful of 400 to its present 
size, and from both his business and 
official records it is eN-ident that he is 
one of the best known, most inlhiential 
and most popular citizens of Marinette 
county. 



JW. MOLLOV, slu-riff of Florence 
county, was born in Russell county, 
Canada West, January 6, 1858, 
and is a son of Michael and Sarah 
(Uowningj MoUoy, who wi're born in 
Canada, where they now reside. 

The father was a farmer by oc(U[)a- 
tion. They had a family of six children, 
three sons and three daughters, as fol- 
lows: Sarah, now Mrs. James, of Can- 
ada; Catharine, now Mrs. Frej'niicr, of 
Toronto, Canada; Nellie, married, who is 
a resident of Cornwall, Canada; James, 
residing in Russell county, Canada; 
Michael, in P'lorence courty. Wis., and 
J. W., whose name introduces this sketch. 
J. W. MoUoy was reared in Russell 
county, Canada, and educated in the 
schools of that country. In 1876, at the 
age of eighteen, he came to Marinette, 
Wis., and drove logs on the river, work- 
ing in the woods until his removal to 
(Juinnesec, Mich. In September, 1880, 
he came from Ouinnesec to Florence, 
Wis., when there were no roads here, 
built a livery barn, and was in the livery 
business one year. In 1882 he conducted 
a hotel at Crystal I'alls, Mich., then re- 
turning to Florence kept a restaurant and 



682 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



saloon. The barn which he had erected 
here was burned in i88S, and he then built 
his present barn. He has a fine stock of 
rigs, horses, buggies, etc., and has been 
interested in the livery business in 
Florence since the town was organized. 
He also owns eighty acres of land adjoin- 
ing the city, and, in connection with his 
other interests, is engaged in lumbering 
and logging. 

Mr. MoUoy was united in marriage in 
1885, at Ishpeming, Mich., with Mary 
Bresnehen, who was born in that place, 
and they have had four children, namely: 
Clara, Sarah, Florence and Howard. 
Mr. Molloy was the first man naturalized 
in Marinette county, and has seen the 
progress and growth of Marinette. He 
is a Republican in politics. For one 
year he was under sheriff of Florence 
county, in 1888 was elected sheriff, and 
was again elected in 1894, coming into 
office in January, 1895; he has also served 
two terms as supervisor. Socially he is 
a member of Fisher Lodge No. 222, F. 
& A. M., and has held office in the 
Lodge. 



J.AMES L. MURPHY, ex-sheriff of 
Marinette county, came to Peshtigo, 
September 22, 1872, and was in the 
emplo)' of the Peshtigo Lumber Co. 
for about twelve years. He has been 
prominent in public affairs here for a num- 
ber of years, having served as sheriff three 
times, as under sheriff one term, and one 
term as assemblyman, his official record 
being as follows: Elected sheriff in 1884, 
serving one term; elected to Assembly in 
1886, serving 1887-88; sheriff, 1889-90; 
under sheriff, 1891-92; sheriff, 1893-94. 
Mr. Murphy came to Marinette, Mari- 
nette county, from Norfolk, St. Lawrence 
Co., N. Y. He was born in 1849 in 
Franklin county, X. Y. , son of John W. 
and Joanna (Ouinn) Murphy, the former 
of whom was a native of Ireland, and a 
very early settler in F"ranklin county; the 
mother was born in St. Lawrence county. 



Mr. Murphy was reared in New York, 
married there, and became a farmer in 
Franklin and St. Lawrence counties, al- 
ways making his home in that State. He 
died in 1892 in St. Lawrence county, 
where his widow still resides. They had 
seven children, all of whom are living: 
James L. , our subject; William, residing 
in the State of Washington; M. L. , of 
Stillwater, Minn.; P. R., of Red Wing, 
Minn. ; John; Mrs Mary Lowe, of Lowell, 
Mass. ; and Lottie, living in New York. 

James L. Murphy was reared in St. 
Lawrence county on a farm, and received 
his education in the schools of that county. 
He followed farming until coming to Pesh- 
tigo, Wis., where he was employed by 
the Peshtigo Lumber Co. until elected 
sheriff of Marinette count}-. In 1S78 he 
married, in Marinette, Miss Martha Hale, 
who was born in Peshtigo, daughter of 
Levi and Hannah (Windross) Hale, na- 
tives of the East, who were among the 
pioneers of Marinette county. Mr. Hale 
now resides in Peshtigo. Mr. and Mrs. 
Murphy have three children — Edward, 
Robert and Francis. Mr. Murphy is a 
Republican, and his record shows him to 
be a very energetic and popular politician. 
He has been identified with the political 
history of Marinette county ever since it 
was organized, and even while it was still 
a part of Oconto county. He is now 
managing the Schick estate at Ellis Junc- 
tion. 



WA. ANDREW, real-estate dealer 
and insurance agent at Mari- 
nette, came to that city in May, 
I 882. when it was a small strug- 
gling village. He remained there, how- 
ever, but a short time, and then went to 
Menominee, where he filled the office of 
register of deeds of Menominee county. 
Subsequently he moved to northern Mich- 
igan, there remaining for a time, and then 
returning to Marinette, where he has 
since continued to reside. His present 
business was established in 1893. Mr. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOItAPniGAL RECORD. 



683 



Andrew is a native of New Brunswick, 
born in 1855, and is a son of James and 
Mary (Miller) Andrew, both of whom 
were natives of Scotland, but who emi- 
grated to New I3runswick in an early day. 
James Andrew was a ship carpenter by 
trade, and followed that occupation for 
many years, later engaging in steamboat- 
ing. He and his estimable wife yet re- 
side in New Brunswick. They reared a 
family of seven children: W. A., our 
subject; J. Af., who has been in the gro- 
cery business at Afarinette since 1884; 
Mary; John, who resides in Marinette, and 
who is engaged in lumbering; Jane and 
Maggie, also of Marinette; and I'red, who 
resides in British Columbia. 

Mr. Andrew grew to manhood in his 
native land, and was educated in its pub- 
lic schools. After leaving school he en- 
gaged in teaching, and for five years 
taught the public schools of Superior. 
Health failing him, he came to northern 
Wisconsin, where he has since continued 
to reside, with the exception of a short 
time already mentioned, which he spent 
in Michigan. Before his removal to the 
States he was united in marriage in New 
Brunswick, in 1877, with Miss Hannah 
Knowles, who was born in New Bruns- 
wick, daughter of Thomas Knowles; her 
father was of Scotch and her mother of 
English ancestry; they were among the 
pioneers of that section and both died in 
New Brunswick. To Mr. and Mrs. Andrew 
have been born four children: Mary Etta, 
J. Harvey, Veda and Verna. 

In politics Mr. Andrew is a Democrat, 
and a firm beliver in the principles of that 
party. Fraternally he is a member of 
Marinette Lodge, I. O. O. I"., and relig- 
iously he is a member of the Pioneer Pres- 
byterian Church. When he first settled 
in Marinette, and built his house on 
Pierce avenue, there was only one house 
beyond. The street now extends a mile 
farther, and there are many handsome 
residences on it. Mr. Andrew is one of 
the successful business men of Marinette, 
and one of the representative men of the 



county. His acquaintance with the peo- 
ple of the county is very extensive, and no 
man in Marinette city is held in higher 
esteem. In every good word and work 
he is willing to do his part, and never 
shirks an opportunity that would advance 
the material or moral interest of his 
adopted city. 



JAMES JOHNSTON, the well-known 
liveryman of Oconto, was born June 
13, 1859, in Ottawa, Canada, son of 
Henry and Ann (Ivobinsonj John- 
ston, both of whom were natives of Scot- 
land. They were reared and married in 
their native land, and after crossing the 
Atlantic settled in Ottawa, Canada, where 
Mr. Johnston engaged in teaching, which 
profession he had also followed in Scot- 
land. He died in Ottawa in 1S73, pre- 
ceded to the grave by his wife, who passed 
from earth in 1866. They had a family 
of three children — James; l-^obert, who 
died in Canada at the age of fourteen; and 
Jennie, Mrs. Charles Knox, of Winnipeg. 
Our subject was reared and educated 
in Ottawa, Canada, and there learned the 
trade of lilacksmith, becoming an expert 
shoer, and also learning to make his own 
shoes and nails. He continued to follow his 
trade in Ottawa until 1881, when became 
to Oconto county. Wis., arriving in 
Oconto April 9. Here he commenced 
the blacksmith business, in a shop on Hu- 
ron street, where he continued for years, 
finally selling out and renting a shop on 
Main street, where he remained until he 
embarked in his present business. On 
November 12, 1894, he embarked in the 
livery business as a member of the firm of 
Johnston cS: Kane, the establishment being 
the old McGoff stand, on Section street. 
In 1895 ^Ir. Johnston became sole pro- 
prietor, and the business has been a suc- 
cessful one from the start. He has the 
best stand and patronage in the town, and 
is well prepared to do a large business, 
having a full line of carriages, single and 



684 



COilMEMORATTVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



double buggies, and cutters, and, in ad- 
dition, owning a complete funeral equip- 
ment. 

In 1S83 Mr. Johnston was married in 
Oconto to Miss Jennie McAllister, a na- 
tive of Canada, and three children have 
blessed this union — Mary Jane, Anna 
Pearl and Angus James. Mrs. Johnston's 
father, Archie McAllister, was also born 
in Canada, and now lives in Oconto town- 
ship. Mr. Johnston is a Republican in 
political sentiment, and is actively in- 
terested in local affairs; in 1886 he was 
alderman from the South ward of Oconto. 
Socially he is a member of Oconto Lodge 
No. 190, I. O. O. F., in which he has 
passed all the chairs. 



BENJAMIN F. SIMPSON, a lead- 
ing and influential attorney at 
law, of Marinette, is descended 
from hardy and plodding Scottish 
ancestry, intermingled with a strain of 
gentle Teutonic and English blood, his 
grandfather Simpson having married, in 
Pennsylvania, a German lady, by name 
Rosanna Self, and his grandfather 
Coombs having been a native of England. 
Harrison Simpson, father of our sub- 
ject, carried on farming and stock raising 
on a large scale in Marshall and Wood- 
ford counties. 111., later becoming an e.x- 
tensive buyer of grain, live stock, etc., at 
Minonk, Woodford county. He was also 
an operator on the Chicago board of 
trade, where, in the famous wheat corner 
of 1 87 1 or '72, he met with serious losses 
through the failure of John B. Lyon. He 
died in 1883, while on a trip South, and 
his remains were interred at Minonk, 111., 
his later-day home, the coal mines at 
which place he projected and opened out, 
and was their leading owner and stock- 
holder. His widow, whose maiden name 
was Ntaria Coombs, and who is a native 
of Wheeling, W. Va., is yet living in Mi- 
nonk, the possessor of the large undi- 
vided estate left by her husband. They 
had a family of si.\ sons and two daugh- 



ters, to wit: William H., a farmer in 
Iowa; James Allen, a wealthy grain 
dealer at Minonk (he served three years 
during the Civil war in Company I, Forty- 
seventh 111. \. I., and participated in 
eighteen engagements); Ann C, who 
married John Hopwood, an extensive 
farmer and stockraiser of McLean coun- 
ty, 111.; Woolsey C. , State attorney of 
Kansas, residing at Emporia, that State; 
George Marquis, an extensive grain dealer 
at Woodford, III.; Benjamin F. ; Laura 
J., wife of Eliakim B. Kipp, a lumberman 
of Kenosha, Wis., and Charles Thomas, 
a farmer of Woodford county, Illinois. 

The subject of this sketch was born 
December 12, 1S51, in Belle Plaine town- 
ship, Marshall Co., 111., at the common 
schools of which locality he received his 
elementar}' education, continuing there 
until he was seventeen years old, when 
he attended Minonk High School two 
j'ears. He then commenced a course of 
study at Shurtliff College, Upper Alton, 
111., remaining in its Academic depart- 
ment two years, and in the College proper 
one year, after which he attended Roch- 
ester (N. Y.) University, and after a 
three-years' course there graduated, in 
July, 1877, taking the degree of B. A. 
From Rochester Mr. Simpson proceeded 
to Kingston, Ind., where he was elected 
superintendent of city schools, in which 
capacity he served two years, and then 
for some twelve months traveled through 
Texas in order to recuperate his impaired 
health. In the fall of 1879 he became a 
student in the Law Department of the 
Wesleyan University, at Bloomington, 
111., from which institution he graduated 
in 1 88 1, and in the summer of the same 
year was admitted to practice before the 
Supreme Court of Illinois at Springfield; 
but soon afterward, being proferred the 
superintendentship of the public schools 
at Atlanta, 111., he accepted same, and 
served in that incumbency three years, or 
until 1885. in the month of June, of that 
year, moving to Marinette, Wis., where 
he at once commenced the practice of 



Commemorative DioanAPmcAL record. 



685 



law. Since taking up his residence in 
that city he has attained eminent (hs- 
tinction as a successful lawyer, and has 
secured the respect of the community as 
a thoroughh' enterprising and substantial 
citizen. 

While pursuing his law studies Mr. 
Simpson met the lady who afterward be- 
came his wife — Miss Hattie M. Packer, 
daughter t)f Joseph Packer, of Blooming- 
ton, 111. — who was at that time a member 
of the junior class in the Literary Depart- 
ment of the W'esleyan University, after- 
ward coming to Menominee, Mich., 
where she taught in the city schools. At 
Menominee they were married, August 25, 
1885. and the young couple commenced 
keeping house at Atlanta, 111. Two chil- 
dren were born to them, Arthur R., now 
(i890)an interesting little lad of seven 
summers, and Lawrence Packer. The 
family have their home in the elegant 
and commodious dwelling which Mr. 
Simpson built, at No. 2504 Hall avenue, 
Marinette, one of the finest residences in 
the city. Mr. and Mrs. Simpson are 
members of the Baptist Church, of the 
board of trustees of which he is chairman; 
he superintended the building of the First 
Baptist Church at Marinette, which was 
erected at a cost of $18,000, and toward 
which he contributed $1,000 in cash, be- 
sides his time. Politically he was a Re- 
publican till 1888, since when he has 
been a strong upholder of the Prohibition 
party, by whom he was nominated for 
representative in 1888; but he is no office- 
seeker, his extensive business demanding 
and receiving his close attention and all 
his time. 



PT. WILLIAMS occupies a promi- 
nent place among the well-to-do 
self-made men of Oconto county, 
where he has lived and labored 
from the age of seventeen years. Walk- 
ing from Green Bay, he landed in Oconto 
without a penny, and the prosperity 



^vhich he now enjoys has been won by 
years of toil in various lines of industry. 

Mr. Williams is a native of Belgium, 
born in 1838, and in 1854 came to Amer- 
ica with his parents, (ieorgc and Henri- 
etta (Menardj Williams, who were also 
born in that country. The voyage on 
the Atlantic, from Antwerp to New York 
City, lasted thirty-nine days, and after 
landing the family proceeded westward, 
coming to Green Bay, Wis. The father 
died in 1858, in what is now Robinson- 
ville. Green Bay township, I >rown county ; 
the mother survived liini until 1888, 
reaching the advanced age of eighty- 
three years, and at the time of her de- 
cease was making her home with our sub- 
ject. There were seven children in this 
family, namely: P. T. ; Joseph, who is 
married and lives at Bronkside, Oconto 
county; Clement, who is married and re- 
sides in Oconto, Wis. ; Angelina, Mrs. 
Vaes, of Little River township, Oconto 
county; Victor, Mrs. Vandcrneck, who 
resides in Pensaukee township, Oconto 
county; Theresa, Mrs. Depa, who died 
in Brown county; and Lucy, Mrs. Burton, 
of Bay Settlement, P>rnwn county, Wis- 
consin. 

Our subject was educated in the com- 
mon schools of his native country. When 
about seventeen years of age he set out 
from Bay Settlement, Brown county, 
with two companions, their total capital 
being twenty- five cents, which was spent 
for food in Green Bay. From that city 
they came the entire distance to Oconto 
on foot, by way of Stiles, following trails 
through the woods, for at that time there 
were no roads. Here Mr. Williams com- 
menced life without a cent, and he re- 
mained here two years, being employed 
by a Mr. Hubbell, and also working for 
Norton. Going to Stiles, he worked 
there three or four years for Eldred & 
Balcolm, meanwhile working also in 
Menominee, Mich., and after leaving 
Stiles he worked in Pensaukee. In 1865 
he went to Chicago, obtaining a position 
there in the " Tremont House," but re- 



6S6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



turning to Oconto the same year he was 
engaged by Holt, Balcolm & King as 
cook, working in the woods. The next 
year he conducted their boarding-house, 
and in 1868 the McDonald boarding- 
house. In the fall of 1868 he opened a 
bakery business, building a shop, and in 
1869 engaged in general mercantile busi- 
ness, erecting a frame store. This build- 
ing was burned, and was replaced by a 
substantial two-story brick edifice, which 
_Mr. Williams has ever since occupied, 
carrying a full line of general merchan- 
dise. This business has grown and pros- 
pered ever since its establishment, twentj-- 
eight years ago, and Mr. Williams has 
not only gained a large patronage, but 
has acquired that which an honorable 
man most highly prizes, a reputation for 
honesty and strict fairness in all his trans- 
actions. 

However, though he has made a suc- 
cess of the mercantile business, Mr. Will- 
iams has not devoted all his time and 
attention to it. A few years after his 
arrival in the county he purchased si.xty 
acres of land, and subsequently added to 
it until he now owns 120 acres, all of 
which is now cleared. He has engaged 
to considerable extent in lumbering and 
dealing in lands, and has at times had in 
his employ from twenty to fifty men, car- 
rying on a general logging business. He 
has been active in business circles from 
early manhood, and has done much to 
promote the welfare and advancement of 
his adopted county and town. Oconto 
was but a village when he came, con- 
taining one steam and two water mills; 
there were no roads in this section, no 
bridges, and very few marks of civiliza- 
tion of any kind. As a public-spirited 
citizen, interested in everything which 
would tend to place Oconto county on a 
level with her sister counties, he has 
watched with pride the development 
which has followed the opening up and 
settlement of the region, and has done 
his share of the work. 

Mr. Williams was married in 1865, in 



Brown county, to Miss Matilda Hannon, 
like himself a native of Belgium, whence 
in 1864 she came with her father, John 
Philip Hannon, and mother, to America, 
the family locating in Bay Settlement, 
Brown Co., Wis. Here they opened up 
a farm, on which the parents passed the 
remainder of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. 
Williams have a family of eleven chil- 
dren, all living, of whom Matilda manages 
her father's store; Louisa and Jennie 
clerk in the store; Joseph is in Green 
Bay, employed by the Cargill Elevator 
Co., as stenographer. Mr.s. Williams 
and the family are Roman Catholics in 
religious connection. Mr. Williams was 
a charter member of Oconto Lodge. L O. 
O. F. Politically he is a Democrat, and 
he served five years as supervisor from 
Oconto. 



OHN INGRAM, member of the firm 



of Ingram & Archibald, who do a 



^ f general logging business in Oconto 
county, has lived here since 1867, 
and during all these years has been con- 
nected in some capacity with the lumber- 
ing industry. 

Mr. Ingram is a native of Canada, 
born October 3, 1843, in the Province 
of Quebec. His father, Peter Ingram, 
was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, and 
grew up in his native country. Coming 
to Canada, he was there married to Nancy 
Murray, a native of that country, and 
they had a family of seven children, 
namely: Jane, James and Elspie, all of 
whom are residents of Canada; Peter, 
who died in that country; John; Nathan- 
iel, who lives in Nahma, Mich., and 
Charles, who came to Oconto in 1880, 
and still resides here, being in the em- 
ploy of the Holt Lumber Co. The 
father of this family was a farmer by oc- 
cupation. He died in Canada in 1S70, 
at the age of seventy years, and his widow 
still resides there. 

John Ingram received his education 
in his native country, and was there 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



6S7 



reared to agricultural life. When nearly 
twenty-four years of age he came to 
Oconto, Wis. , then a most insignificant 
place, arriving here in September, 1867. 
Here he commenced work with the 
Oconto Lumber Co., working in their 
mill twenty days, after which he went 
to work in the woods, continuing thus all 
that winter. The next winter he engaged 
with G. T. Porter, driving team for two 
winters, and then ran a camp for one win- 
ter. The following year he drove team, 
antl then for eight successive winters had 
charge of a lumber camp for Chamber- 
lain. In the winter of 1881 he was em- 
plojed in that capacity by the Oconto 
Co., and he has since been in business on 
his own account. In 1883 the firm of 
Ingram & Riley was formed, and after its 
dissolution, two years later, Mr. Ingram 
continued alone until 1893, when he 
formed his present partnership. The 
firm have been engaged in logging for 
the Menominee River Lumber Company, 
and are doing an extensive business, in 
the winter of 1893-94 employing about 
seventy-five men, in the winter of 
1894-95 about one hundred men, and the 
present winter (1895-96) have about 
seventy-five men. They put in about 
five million feet of lumber this season. 
Mr. Ingram has seen man\' desir- 
able and notable changes in the coun- 
try since his arrival here, and, in his 
positicjn of employer alone has aided in 
no small way in the advancement and 
opening up of this region. 

In 1872 our subject was married, in 
Canada, to Miss Mary Chamberlain, 
daughter of George W. and Robina (Fair) 
Chamberlain, who were also Canadians 
by birth. Mrs. Chamberlain died in 
Oconto, Wis., where Mr. Chamberlain 
now resides. Ten children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Ingram, namely: 
William George, Walter R., John, Anna, 
Dean, Carrie, Georgie, Nathaniel, Lula 
and Sarah. Mr. Ingram supports the 
Republican party. Socially he is a mem- 
ber of Pine Lodge No. 118, F. & A. M. 

40 



LN. LARSEN, proprietor of the 
Star Grocery, Menekaunee, Mari- 
nette ccMuit}-, is a native of Wis- 
consin, born laiHiarj- 4, 1857, in 
Winneconne, Winnebago county. 

His parents, Onon and Johanna (On- 
sen) Larsen, were natives of Norway, 
where they were reared. In 1852 the 
father lt>ft his native land to seek his for- 
tune in the New World, and in this country 
decided on the great Nortiiwest as being 
the most desirable point of location ("as 
many of his felknv countrjnien had al- 
ready done), where he would be among 
people of his own race, where the fa- 
miliar and loved language was constantly 
spoken, and wheri; the traditions, customs, 
habits, etc., of the native land would not 
be entirely lost. Accordingly lie settled 
in Winneconne, Winnebago county, where 
he went into business as a dealer in coal, 
and procuring some land engaged in farm- 
ing to some extent. The family have 
always made their home here. Nfrs. Lar- 
sen died in 1880. They had eight chil- 
dren, six of whom are living, namely: L. 
N., Frank A., a resident of Tomahawk, 
Wis., of which city he was postmaster 
for seven years, and is now city treasurer 
in that place; Mary, Mrs. William H. 
ISronson, of Winnebago count}'; Ludwig 
H., register of deeds at Marinette; Julia 
B., living at home on the farm; Nora N., 
a saleslady at Iron Mountain. The two 
eldest children are dead. 

The gentleman whose name begins 
this sketch was reared on the farm of his 
father near Winneconne, was educated in 
the schools of that ])lace, and on leaving 
school became an assistant in the general 
mercantile store of his father. Leaving 
home, he first went to Neenah, as a clerk, 
and from there to Menekaunee, where in 
1885 he began business for himself, in which 
he is still successfully engaged. In 1891 
he erected his present two-story brick 
building, 30 x I 15 feet, in which he car- 
ries a large and complete stock of gro- 
ceries, provisions, crockery, glassware, etc. 
Mr. Larsen was married at Neenah in 



68S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECOIit). 



April, 1885, to Miss Mabel M. Whipple, 
a native of Jefferson, Jefferson Co., Wis., 
daugfiter of Zebulon \\'hipple, one of the 
pioneers of that section of the State, who 
now resides in Chicago. Two children 
were born to Mr. and Mrs. Larsen — Hazel 
E. and Louis N., Jr. Mr. Larsen is a 
Republican, and is interested in politics, 
in which he takes quite an active part. 
Socially he is a member of Marinette Lodge 
No. 181, I. O. O. F., and of the Encamp- 
ment, is record keeper in Menekaunee 
Tent No. 2, K. O. T. M., and is also a 
member of Marinette Lodge, K. of P. 
Being a native of the part of Wisconsin 
in which he resides, he has, of course, 
seen its growth and improvement from 
year to year, and has participated and as- 
sisted in no small measure. He is a 
straightforward and energetic business 
man, and is greatly respected b\- his fel- 
low townsmen. 



WM. LEE, the well-known pho- 
tographer of Oconto, has the 
oldest business in his line north 
of Green Bay, and has estab- 
lished a reputation for satisfactory, artistic 
work of which he may well be proud. 

Mr. Lee is a native of Wisconsin, born 
May 29, 1862, at Neosha, Dodge county, 
son of Rufus v. and Asenith (Angel) 
Lee, both of whom were born in New 
York State. The father came to Dodge 
county. Wis., when a young man, mar- 
ried there, and subsequently removed 
to Menasha, Wis. , where he was employed 
in the mills, he being a saw-filer and mill- 
wright by trade. From Menasha he went 
to Saginaw. Mich., then to Flint City, 
that State, thence to De Pere, Wis., and 
finally to Green Bay, where he worked for 
D. W. Britton. All this time he had fol- 
lowed his trade, but in the fall of 1S82 he 
came to Oconto and embarked in the gro- 
cery business, in which he continued two 
years. He and his wife now reside at 
Appleton, Wis. They had a family of 
seven children, four sons and three daugh- 



ters, as follows: Charles, who lives in 
Menasha, and is foreman of the Menasha 
Wooden Ware Co. ; W' . M. ; Bert, who 
was killed in 1891 in the Kimberly-Clark 
Pulp Mill; Harry, who lives in Appleton, 
Wis. ; Jessie, who died in 1890, at Apple- 
ton; Bessie, Mrs. Lockwood, of Appleton, 
Wis. ; and Alice, who lives with her parents 
at Appleton. Mr. Lee enlisted in 1861, 
in Dodge county, in the Tenth \\'is. V. L, 
and served with his command in the Civil 
war. 

W. M. I^ee was educated in the schools 
of Menasha, \\'is. , and Flint city, Mich. 
On coming to De Pere he commenced 
work in the lath mill, and was also in the 
employ of D. W. Britton and Hagen & 
English, working in the mills. For a time 
he sailed on the bay, and was on the 
"Constitution" one season, after which 
he, in 1881, commenced to learn photog- 
raphy, to which he has since devoted his 
entire time and attention. He learned 
the business under F. W. Schneider, of 
Green Baj'. In 1882 he came to Oconto, 
locating at his present stand June 5, and 
here he has since continued to do busi- 
ness, practically growing up with the 
place, for Oconto was but a small village 
when he settled here. He is thoroughly 
acquainted with the various branches of 
the art, enlarging pictures, etc., and has 
a well-equipped gallery. 

On Januar\' i, 1883, Mr. Lee was 
united in marriage in Oconto, Wis., with 
Miss Mary Freeward, a native of Green 
Bay, and five children have been born to 
them, namely: Maud, Ora, Lucille, Jessie 
and \\'ilber, who died at the age of one 
year. The family are Episcopalians in 
religious belief. Mrs. Lee's parents, Peter 
and Mary Freeward, were born in Ger- 
many, and were early settlers of Green 
Bay, where they are jet living. Mr. Lee 
is a Democrat in political sentiment, and 
is an active worker for any cause which he 
considers beneficial to his town or county. 
He has served two years as city treasurer, 
filling the office with his customary ability 
and fidelity. Socially he affiliates with 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOUAPHTCAL RECORD. 



689 



Oconto Lodge No. 94, K. of P., and of 
Oconto Camp, Modern Woodmen of Amer- 
ica. He is captain of Company M, Second 
Regiment Wisconsin National Guard. 



CORNELIUS OLSON, who is en- 
gaged in business as a wiiolesale 
and retail dealer in fish and fish- 
ermen's supplies, in East Mari- 
nette, is a native of Sweden, born in Got- 
tenborg, in November, 1844. His parents, 
Ole and Anna R. (Christianson) Anderson, 
were also natives of the same country, 
and there the father followed the occupa- 
tion of farming throughout his entire life. 
He was called to the home beyond in 
1876, and his wife, who survived him 
several years, passed away in 1884. They 
reared a family of six children, two of 
whom came to Wisconsin. Nicholas and 
Carl still reside in Sweden. John Edward 
was formerly a resident of Marinette and 
is now living in Minnesota. Lena is the 
wife of Mr. Nelson, a merchant of Swe- 
den. Sophia is married and resides in 
that country. 

In taking up the personal history of 
Cornelius Olson we present to our read- 
ers the life record of one who is widely 
and favorably known in his locality. He 
was reared in the land of his birth, and 
its public schools afforded him his educa- 
tional privileges. At length he resolved 
to try his fortune in America, and in 1871 
bade adieu to home and friends and 
crossed the broad Atlantic, locating near 
Toledo, Ohio. For about a year he 
worked in the mills twelve miles from 
that city, and in 1S72 went to Chicago, 
where he made his home for several 
months. The following year he came to 
Marinette, and entered the employ of the 
Menominee River Lumber Company. 
For the past nine years he has been en- 
gaged in business as a dealer in fish, sell- 
ing both to the wholesale and retail trade. 
He also handles fishermen's supplies, 
twine, etc., and in the winter time gives 



employment to a number of men both 
here and at Sturgeon Bay. 

In 1866 Mr. Olson was joined in wetl- 
lock with Miss Mary Elizabeth Hanson, 
who was born in Sweden, and died Octo- 
ber 3, 1872, in Ohio. They had two 
daughters — Hihna, who became Mrs. 
Lindgren, formerly resided in Menominee, 
Mich., but is now a resident of Oconto, 
Wis. ; and Mrs. Helena Guyde, who is 
living in Locust Point, Ottawa Co., Ohio. 
In 1894 Mr. Olson was again married, in 
Marinette, his seconii union being with 
Miss Augusta Johnson. In 1S8S he 
erected a good two-story frame residence, 
and their pleasant home is noted for its 
hospitality. Marinette claims them among 
its highly esteemed citizens, and our sub- 
ject has lived here since the city contained 
onlj' 1000 inhabitants. He has been 
identified with its development for twenty- 
two years, and whatever is calculated to 
prove of public benefit, whatever tends to 
promote the social, educational, moral or 
material welfare of the community, re- 
ceives his support. He votes with the 
Republican party, and holds membership 
in the Lutheran Church. 



EUGENE FITZPATKICK is one of 
the prominent and inlluential citi- 
zens of Oconto county, and is now 
serving as county surveyor, a po- 
sition which he has acceptably filled- for 
si.x years. A native of Watertown, N. Y. , 
he is nevertheless a typical western man, 
full of the spirit of progress and enter- 
prise which characterizes tliis section of 
the country. He was born in September, 
1842, and is a son of Matthew and Mar- 
garet (Farley) Fitzpatrick, who were also 
natives of the Empire State, and there 
spent their entire li\cs. Of their family 
Mrs. Bauder and Eugene are living in 
Oconto county. One son, Matthew, en- 
listed at Marquette, Mich., in the First 
Michigan Cavalry, for service in the Civil 
war, and died in Andersonville prison. 
In the schools of his natix'e place our 



690 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



subject obtained his education. He was 
but sixteen years of age when he cast in 
his lot with the early settlers of Oconto 
county, locating in Pensaukee township in 
1858. He worked in the woods, superin- 
tending lumber camps forD. L. ]3ush, and 
was also employed for eight years by F. 
B. Gardner, scaling and sawing lumber. 
Among the first to respond to the coun- 
try's call for troops, he enlisted on May 16, 

1 86 1, in Company A, Fourth Wisconsin 
Cavalry — known as the Oconto River 
Drivers, and was mustered into service at 
Racine, Wis. The order then came to 
report for duty at Baltimore, and he spent 
the winter at Patterson Park, near that 
place. In the spring he was sent to Fortress 
Monroe and Newport News, and in May, 

1862, went to New Orleans, his regiment 
being attached to the Department of the 
Gulf. He was at Camp Bisland, and par- 
ticipated in the engagements there, at 
Baton Rouge and at Port Hudson. In 
1864 he veteranized, continuing with the 
same company, and was made a corporal. 
He participated in the siege of of Fort 
Blakely and other engagements at the 
South, and when the war was over was 
honorably discharged at Madison, Wis , 
July 8, 1865. 

Immediately afterward Mr. Fitzpat- 
rick returned to Oconto, and again en- 
tered the employ of Mr. Gardner. W'hcther 
on the field of battle or in private service 
he has manifested a loyalty to duty that 
has ever won him high regard and the 
confidence of all with whom he has been 
brought in contact. This is demonstrated 
by his faithful service in the oflice of 
county surveyor, which he has filled for 
six years. He was re-elected in 1 894, 
and prior to entering upon the office for 
the first term he acted as assistant sur- 
veyor. His political support is given the 
Republican party. 

Mr. Fit/patrick was married in 1881, 
in Pensaukee, to Miss Jennie Peters, who 
was born in Outagamie, Wis., a daughter 
of Herman Peters, one of the early set- 
tlers of northern Wisconsin, now deceased. 



Her death occurred in Pensaukee in 1885, 
and our subject was married in Chase 
township, Oconto county, in 1886 to Miss 
Gracie Ladd, who was born in Fort How- 
ard, Wis., and is a daughter of Byron K. 
Ladd, of that township. 



WILLIAM T. SNYDER, a pros- 
perous farmer and fisherman, is 
one of the inlluential citizens of 
Pensaukee township, Oconto 
county. He is a native of Wisconsin, 
born on Doty's Island, Winnebago coun- 
ty, in 1853, son of Joshua and Rachel 
(Traver) Snyder, both of w horn were born 
in New York — the father in the Mohawk 
\'alley, the mother in Albany — and were 
reared and married in their native State. 
Joshua Snyder was a millwright, and 
followed his trade at Jancsville, Rock 
Co., Wis., whither he came from the east 
in 1 849, shortly afterward removing to 
Menasha, where he continued to work at 
his trade. In 1850 he came to Pensau- 
kee, Oconto count)', here working in the 
water mill for F. B. Gardner, where he 
was steadily employed as millwright for 
twenty-two years. He then bought an 
eighty-acre farm at Oak Orchard, partly 
improved, and made this his home until 
his death, which occurred in 1889; his 
wife died on the farm in 1894. In 1856 
he moved the family to Pensaukee, and 
they remained here seven years, return- 
ing to Menasha in order that their son, 
our subject, who was their only child, 
should have better educational facilities. 
Mr. Snyder took an active interest in 
politics, giving his influence and support 
to the Republican party. 

William T. Snyder received his edu- 
cation in the schools of Menasha, and 
after leaving school, at about the age of 
twenty, returned to the homestead, where 
he has been engaged in farming for the 
past four or five years. At about the age 
of twenty he went on the lakes, and in 
1883 received a captain's license. He 
sailed first on the " John Spry," and then 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOaRAPIIIC'AL RECORD. 



6c 



took command of that boat till the death 
of F. B. Gardner, in 1885, when he went 
on the tug "Thomas Spears," which he 
commanded four years. During this time 
he was also mate on the "Welcome," 
but in 1 89 1 he abandoned sailing and en- 
gaged in fishing and agricultural pursuits. 
He owns eighty acres of good land, forty 
acres of which are cleared, and does a 
profitable general farming business, in the 
season also devoting his time to fishing, 
employing three men. 

In 1886 Mr. Snyder was married, in 
Pensaukee, to Miss Hannah Windross, a 
native of that township, whose father, 
John Windross, one of the early pioneers 
of Pensaukee, resides on the same farm 
where he settled over forty years ago. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Snyder have been born 
two children, William and Esther. Mr. 
Snyder in politics is a Republican, and 
takes a warm interest in party affairs. 
While in Forest county he served as 
justice of the peace. 



JD. SMITH. As long as strains of 
martial music and tales of heroism 
awaken the patriotism of hearers, so 
long will the stories of the boys in 
blue prove of interest to the nation. Our 
subject was numbered among those who 
valiantly responded to the country's call 
for aid, and for three years followed the 
starry banner on Southern battlefields, 
participating in many important engage- 
ments of the war. 

Mr. Smith was born in Germantown, 
Penn., in 1839, a son of Joseph and 
Elizabeth (Klickner) Smith, who were 
also natives of the Keystone State. The 
mother died during the early childhood of 
her son, and the father died in Bradford 
county, Penn., in 1859. J. D. Smith at- 
tended the public schools of his native 
State, acquiring a good practical English 
education, and there remained until 
eighteen years of age, in 1857 coming to 
the West, hoping to secure a good home 
and comfortable living in this new section 



of the country. He located in Menekau- 
nee, Wis., and entered the employ of the 
New York Lumber Co., working in their 
store for sixteen years, a fact which well 
indicates his fidelity to the interest of the 
company and his efficiency. His labors 
were interrupted during this period, how- 
ever, by his service in the Civil war. 

In {86 1 Mr. Smith responded to the 
call for troops, and at Mcnekaunee joineii 
Company F, Twelfth Wis. V. I., for three 
years. He was mustered in at Madison, 
Wis., and went at once to Leavenworth, 
Kans., thence to Fort Scott, Kans. , and 
to Fort Riley, remaining on the frontier 
for some time. He afterward participated 
in the battle of Natchez, the siege of 
Vicksburg and the battle of Meridian, 
Miss., and remained in the South until 
after the fall of Atlanta, when he was 
honorably discharged at Chattanooga, in 
1864, after which he returned home and 
for some years longer had charge of the 
store of the New York Lumber Company. 

Mr. Smith continued to reside in 
Marinette county for many years, and in 
1872 began merchandising on his own ac- 
count, following that pursuit in Ouinnesec, 
Iron Mountain and Florence, as a mem- 
ber of the firm of Smith & Loughrey. He 
retired from the trade in 1894, and corn- 
ing to Oconto county has since followed 
farming in Section 35, Pensaukee town- 
ship. He has the finest improved farm 
in the county, supplied with all the con- 
veniences and accessories of a model 
farm of the nineteenth century. 

Mr. Smith was married in Marinette, 
Wis., in 1874, to Miss Georgiana Morris, 
who was born in Maine, as were also her 
parents, F. A. and Hannah (Porter) Mor- 
ris. Her father was one of the "Argo- 
nauts of '49," and after some time spent 
in California went to Butte City, Mont., 
where his death occurred. The widow 
is now living with Mrs. Smith. Our sub- 
ject and his wife have five children — 
William H., Laura B., Jennie B., May 
and Stella. The eldest daughter is now 
teaching school in Pensaukee township. 



692 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



In his political views Mr. Smith is a stal- 
wart Republican, and served as the third 
mayor of Marinette, holding that office in 
1892. He also assisted in organising 
Marinette county, and was chairman of 
the county board. His duties of citizen- 
ship are ever faithfully performed, and he 
is earnestly devoted to the best interests 
of his adopted State. He maintains his 
interest in military affairs through his 
connection with Lyon Post, G. A. R. , of 
Menominee, Michigan. 



JAMES I. SCOTT, dealer in horses 
and carriages, Marinette, is a native, 
of Vermont, born in Alburg, Grand 
Isle county, in 1852. He is a son of 
Edward and Margaret (Young) Scott, 
both of whom were natives of Canada, 
where they resided until after their mar- 
riage. The father was a farmer and spec- 
ulator. Both are now living in Canada. 
Of their family si.x are living, while one 
son is deceased; in order of birth they are 
as follows: Mrs. Eltnira McLean, of Can- 
ada; Henry, who served for one year in 
the Sixth Mass. V. I., and after his re-en- 
listment in a New York regiment was 
never heard from; James I., subject of 
this sketch: Adeline, now Mrs. Derrick, 
of V'ermont; Isaiah and Edward, who are 
both living in Canada; and Margaret, Mrs. 
Wright, of Winchendon, Massachusetts. 
During his early childhood Mr. Scott 
went with his parents to Canada, where 
he spent his boyhood and acquired his 
education. At the age of thirteen he 
went to Massachusetts, where he worked 
in a drug store for two years. Subse- 
quently he went to Williamsport, Penn., 
where he entered the employ of the 
Bianchard Lumber Company, operating 
a lath mill for three months. He after- 
ward went to the lumber camp, and con- 
tinued his connection with that business 
for some time. Returning to his home 
he there remained until sixteen years of 
age, when he came to the West, locating 
in Menasha, Wis., living with an uncle 



and attending school for two years. He 
was subsequently in the engineering de- 
partment of the Wisconsin Central rail- 
road for six months, his uncle being a rail- 
road contractor, and when he left that 
line of business engaged in dealing in 
horses, and in real-estate speculations. 

In 1878 he arrived in Marinette, and 
has since carried on the same line of bus- 
iness, in which he has met with a high 
degree of success. He also deals quite 
extensively in carriages, and has bought 
and sold real estate. He owns a large 
sheep ranch in Wyoming, upon which he 
has 5,500 sheep, which he purchased in 
Oregon, driving them across the moun- 
tains to his ranch near Fort Laramie. He 
also raises large numbers of horses there. 
His business interests are varied and ex- 
tensive, and indicate his broad capabilities 
and many resources. He is one of the 
stockholders in the Marinette Hotel, and 
is part owner of a large tract of timber 
land in Louisiana. 

Mr. Scott was married in Vermont, in 
1874, to Miss Ellen Barnes, and they 
had one daughter, Jessie, who died at the 
age of three months; the mother died in 
Marinette in 1884. In March, 1886, 
Mr. Scott was married in Marinette, his 
second union being with Julia L. Baker, 
a native of New York, by whom he had 
two children — Nellie Baker and Harold 
Edward. Her death occurred in March, 
1890, and in 1892 Mr. Scott was joined 
in wedlock with Miss Johanna Gifford, 
a native of the Empire State, and a daugh- 
ter of Aaron Gifford, who came to Wis- 
consin in 1890. A daughter, Hulda, 
graces this union. Their home is one of 
the finest residences of the city, and in ad- 
dition Mr. Scott owns five other dwellings 
and about forty unimproved lots in Mari- 
nette. He also owns several good farms, 
including one in Canada valued at $6,000. 
He is a wide-awake, energetic business 
man, possessed of the true western spirit 
of enterprise and progress. He is saga- 
cious and far-sighted, his executive ability 
is of a superior order, and by his own ex- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPUWAL RECORD. 



693 



ertions lie has worked his waj- steadily up- 
ward from ail humble position to one of 
affluence. Socially he is a member of the 
Business Men's Association, and of the 
Knights of Pythias fraternity. In manner 
he is social and genial, and is very popular 
with all classes of people. 



CHARLES E. PETERSON. — 
Among the representative citi- 
zens of Sweden, who have sought 
homes in the New World and at- 
tained success through honorable business 
dealing, is numbered this gentleman. He 
was the pioneer furniture dealer of Mari- 
nette, for almost thirty years has been 
connected with the commercial interests 
and prosperity of that city, and is to-day 
the oldest merchant in years of continuous 
business. 

Born in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1843, 
Mr. Peterson is a son of Peter and Jose- 
phine (Statein) Peterson, who were natives 
of the same land. The father was a stone 
cutter in Stockholm, and continued his 
residence there until called to his final rest 
at the age of fifty years; his wife died at 
the advanced age of eighty-nine. The 
grandfather, Peter Peterson, lived to the 
advanced age of one hundred and two 
years, while his wife passed away in her 
ninety-sixth year. Our subject was one of 
a family of five children, of whom Otto, 
the eldest, died in Sweden; John came 
with our subject to Marinette, and died in 
Oakland, Cal., in 1S92; A.xel, who is a 
blacksmith, is in Oakland; Clara died 
in Sweden. 

Charles E. Peterson was reared and 
educated in his native city, but his school 
privileges were meager, for at the age of 
eleven years he began learning the cab- 
inet maker's trade, continuing thus up to 
the age of eighteen, when he began serv- 
ice as a journeyman. About the same 
time he resolved to seek a home and for- 
tune in the New World, and took passage 
on a steamer at Stockholm, which, after a 
long and tedious voyage of thirty days, 



reached the harbor of Oucbec. He went 
from there to Montreal, Canada, where 
he secured work in a cabinet shop that 
gave employment to 600 men. Three 
weeks later he went with the force to Bos- 
ton, where, with the exception of ten all 
joined the army. Mr. Peterson worked at 
his trade in that city for a Mr. Hickson 
until 1867, when he migrated to Pesh- 
tigo. Wis., securing employment in a sash 
and door factory. He made all the frame 
work for the residence of William 1>. 
Ogden, of Chicagij, and was emjiloycd on 
some fine work for (nni. Strong, making 
a guncase of native woods. 

In Peshtigo, Wis., in iSjo, our sub- 
ject married Miss Jennie Church, a native 
of New York, and a daughter of Rev. Lot 
and Josephine (Utter) Church, the former 
of whom was a Congregatif)nal minister, 
and served here as justice of the peace. 
He too was born in the Empire State and 
his death occurred in Marinette in 1882. 
His wife, who belonge(.l to (jnc of the old 
Southern families, and was born in the 
South, died in Marinette in 1877. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Peterson have l)een born five 
children — Mary Maud, who wasgraduated 
from the Conservatory of Music in 15oston 
in 1892; Frank Lot; William W. ; Clara 
and Otto. In the year of his marriage 
Mr. Peterson came to Marinette, and en- 
gaged in the furniture business near the 
bridge, where the Stephenson sawmill 
now stands. There he remained for three 
years, when he purchased a lot on what 
is now Hall avenue, but was then in the 
woods, and built a frame building, carry- 
ing on his store there for some time. He 
was the pioneer furniture dealer of the 
city, and was the only undertaker in Mar- 
inette for fifteen years. In 1879 he 
erected a two-story brick block with a 30- 
foot frontage on Hall avenue, 160 feet in 
depth, and 40 feet in width, except the 
front. The upper floor was for office 
purposes. Mr. Peterson continued in the 
furniture business until [891, when he 
began the manufacture of spirit levels, one 
of his own patents. He then engaged in 



694 



COMMEMOUATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the grocery business, which he now car- 
ries on. He is an active, energetic man, 
who owes his success entirely to his own 
efforts, and is an illustrious prototype of a 
self-made American citizen. He belongs 
to the Business Men's Association, and 
has been a prominent factor in promoting 
the material welfare of his adopted city. 
Socially he is connected with Marinette 
Lodge No. 82, F. & A. M. , Marinette 
Chapter, No. 57, K. A. M. ; and Mari- 
nette Commandery, No. 25, K. T. He 
takes quite an active interest in politics, 
although not an office seeker, and votes 
with the Republican party. He and his 
wife hold membership with the Swedish 
Lutheran Church, and are prominent in 
social circles and highly esteemed by a 
large number of friends. They have a 
comfortable two-story frame residence 
which was erected in 1887, and is one of 
the fine homes of Marinette. Mr. Peter- 
son has made two visits to his native land, 
having crossed the Atlantic in 1881 and 
again in 1885. 



JOHN McDowell, farmer of Lit- 
tle River township, who has been 
a resident of Oconto county for the 
past thirty years, is a Canadian by 
birth, having first seen the light Decem- 
ber 17, 1836, in Pontiac county, about 
fifty miles from Ottawa. 

Samuel and Mary Jane (Wilson) Mc- 
Dowell, parents of our subject, were born, 
reared and married in "the Dominion," 
where the father followed farming. In 
1865 they came with their family to 
Oconto county. Wis., first opening up a 
farm in Little River township, near Ocon- 
to, which they afterward sold, buying a 
place in Marinette county. Here, in 
Grover township, Mr. and Mrs. McDowell 
both died, he in February, 1894, she in 
1893. They had a large family, as fol- 
lows: William, living; John, whose 
name opens this sketch; Richard, who 
lives in Little River township; Mary, Mrs. 
Smiley, of Grover township, Marinette 



county; Margaret, Mrs. Deacon, of In- 
galls, Mich. ; Eliza Jane, who died in 
Oconto county. Wis. ; Samuel, of Little 
River township; Thomas, also a resident 
of that township; Robert, a resident of 
Peshtigo, Wis.; Nancy, deceased; Nancy 
(2), also deceased; Sarah Ann, deceased; 
David, who resides in Marinette county; 
Erastus, of Grover township, Marinette 
county; and Emma, a resident of the 
same township. 

John McDowell was reared and edu- 
cated in the country of his birth. On 
leaving Canada he first went to New 
York, thence to Erie, Penn., and thence 
to Ohio, doing laborer's work at these 
various places, and also owning and oper- 
ating a boat on the Erie canal. In the fall 
of 1865 became from Cleveland, Ohio, to 
Oconto county. Wis., which was then a 
wild forest-covered region, lived one year 
in Oconto, and in 1866 took up an eighty- 
acre tract of government land in what is 
now Section 24, Little River township; 
the farm is in Town 29, Range 21. At 
the time of his location here the nearest 
settlement was three miles distant. Mr. 
McDowell commenced at once to clear 
and improve his land, and now has forty 
acres under cultivation, has erected a 
good barn and residence, and has made 
numerous other improvements which add 
to the value and neat appearance of the 
place. Mr. McDowell certainly deserves 
a place among the pioneers of his section, 
for he has experienced many of the vicis- 
situdes to which early settlers in such a 
country are subjected. He was here at 
the time of the great Peshtigo fire of 1871, 
when he was fortunate enough to save 
his buildings, but his fences and every- 
thing else on the place were completely 
wiped out. 

In 1864 Mr. McDowell was married 
in Ohio, to Miss Sarah Forman, a native 
of that State, and three children blessed 
this union — Ida, Mrs. Lawrence, of Iron 
River, Mich. ; Samuel, who resides in 
Lena, Oconto county; and John, who 
died when four years and six months old. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



695 



The mother of these (hed in 18S1 on the 
farm in Little River township, and in 
1887 Mr. McDowell wedded Miss Mary 
Hall, a native of Canada, by whom he 
has one child, Nora Irene. Her parents, 
Robert and Mary Jane (McGee) Hall, 
who were also born in Canada, came to 
Oconto county in 1881, and Mr. Hall 
still resides in Little River township, 
where Mrs. Hall passed away September 
16, 1885. Mr. McDowell has been an 
active worker in the coninumitj' where he 
resides, taking a loyal interest in local 
public affairs. He assisted in organizing 
and forming Little River township, of 
which he was the first town clerk, being 
elected to that office in 1888, and he was 
also active in having the school district 
formed, and served as member of the 
school board. During his public service 
he has proved himself a useful, honorable 
citizen, one worthy the trust reposed in 
him by his fellow citizens. In sentiment 
he is a Republican. 



WA. BROWN, president of the 
Marinette Soap Company, is 
one of the young and active 
business men of Marinette. The 
company was organized in 1887, and Mr. 
Brown has been associated with it since 
June, 1890. The works, located there, 
give employment to thirty people. 

Mr. Brown was born in Menekaunee, 
Wis., September 9, 1864, son of A. C. 
and Parmelia A. (Gould) Brown. The 
father was born in Fort Ann, N. Y., in 
1834, grew to manhood in his native 
State, and was there educated in the pub- 
lic schools. When about nineteen years 
of age he removed to Pensaukee, Wis. , 
thence to Oconto, same State, and com- 
menced his business career as a day 
laborer. He remained at Oconto for 
some years, and then, about 1856, re- 
moved to Menekaunee, where he engaged 
as bookkeeper for the New York Lumber 
Company, and shortly became superin- 
tendent for them. After being with this 



company for several years, he resigned his 
position and entered the employ of the N. 
Ludington Company as manager, remain- 
ing with that company from 1867 until 
1872. He then went to Sioux City, Iowa, 
and engaged in farming, continuing there 
foroneseason. In 1873 he returned to Wis- 
consin and located at Marinette, where he 
engaged in the private-banking business 
for some years. After the failure of the 
Milwaukee Mining Company, he re-organ- 
ized it into the Menominee Mining Com- 
pany, and developed the Breem mines, 
which were a failure. He subsequently 
developed other mines, including the 
Ouinnesec, at the same time he was 
president of the Stephenson ]>ank. Mr. 
Brown was married in Oconto, and to 
himself and wife were born four children: 
Hattie L., wife of C. P. Gould, of Arkan- 
sas City, Kans. ; Charles S. and W. A., 
twins; and Fred L. , now marrieil and re- 
siding in Philadelphia. The father of 
this family was a Mason, and a member 
of Marinette Lodge No. 182, F. & A. M., 
and of Marinette Chapter. Politically he 
was an earnest Republican, and for nine 
years he served as town treasurer. His 
death occurred in i 890. His wife survives 
him, and is now residing in Marinette. 

The subject of this sketch was reared 
in Marinette, and began his education in 
the schools of that city, subsequently 
attending the university at Lake Forest, 
111., in the years 1879 to 1S81 inclusive. 
He left college in his junior year and 
learned the trade of a machinist, after 
completing which he worked some years 
for the Marinette Iron Works, and then 
engaged as bookkeeper in the Stephenson 
National Bank. Later he was with the 
Witbeck Lumber Company for thirteen 
months as bookkeper, when he accepted 
a situation with the Marinette Iron Works 
as shipper and receiver. Since that time 
he has engaged in various lines of busi- 
ness, and is at present engaged in the 
mining business. He is also a director 
in the Stephenson National Bank at 
Marinette, Wis., and the First National 



696 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Bank at Menominee, and a stockholder in 
the National Exchange of Milwaukee. 

In 1888, at Necnaii, Wis., Mr. Brown 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
Grace Wright, a daughter of Dr. Isaac 
and Rebecca Wright, who are now resi- 
dents of Neenah. Four children have 
been born of this union: Florence, A. C, 
Irene and William Walker. In politics 
Mr. Brown has been a Republican since 
attaining his majority. He is one of the 
Regents of the Normal schools of Wis- 
consin, having been appointed in 1895. 
He is chairman of the Marinette county 
Republican committee, and a member of 
the State central committee of Wisconsin. 
He always takes an active interest in all 
political afTairs, believing it to be bounden 
to every citizen to do his duty faithfully 
in connection with the rights of franchise. 
Fraternally he is a member of Olive 
Branch Lodge No. 250, E. lS; A. M. ; 
Marinette Chapter No. 57, R. A. M.; 
Marinette Commander}', K. T. , and the 
Wisconsin Consistory; Saladin Temple, 
A. A. O. N. M. S. ; of Marinette Lodge 
No. 72, K. of P., and of the Grand Rap- 
ids (Mich.) Shrine. Socially he is a mem- 
ber of the Milwaukee Club. 

The family with which our subject is 
connected is one of the oldest in this sec- 
tion of the country. His father was at 
the head of the relief committee during 
the great fire of 1 87 1 , and took very active 
measures to assist the sufferers at that 
time. In all the changes that have taken 
place in the history of Marinette county, 
none have been more active participants 
than this pioneer family. They are well 
known and universally respected. 



GEORGE E. WHITE, proprietor 
of the " Dunlap House," Mari- 
nette, was born in the village of 
Dunnville, Haldimand county, 
Ontario, F"ebruary 25, 1850, son of James 
White, a farmer of that locality. 

Our subject started out in life for 
himself, when fourteen years of age, when 



he secured a clerkship in a store in Dunn- 
ville, remaining there four jears. In 
18C8 he came to Wisconsin, and for four 
years was employed as clerk in a hotel 
in Green Bay. In 1872 he opened the 
"Commercial Hotel," at De Pere. Wis., 
which he carried on for a year, when he 
was appointed under sheriff of Brown 
county, his superior officer being Garrett 
Bong. He officiated in that position for 
two years, and on the expiration of that 
period was appointed a member of the 
police force in Green Bay, serving for 
two years. Mr. White next removed to 
Black Creek, Outagamie Co., Wis., where 
he engaged in hotel-keeping for about thir- 
teen months, after which he spent a short 
time in Appleton, Wis. Since 1882 Mr. 
White has been identified with the busi- 
ness interests of Marinette, having at that 
time opened a hotel called the "Mari- 
nette House," which he successfully con- 
ducted for about thirteen years. In the 
fall of 1894 he opened the "Dunlap 
House," which he is still conducting, 
having won the support of the traveling 
public, and receiving a very liberal pat- 
ronage. He also had a livery stable for 
two years. He possesses the genial and 
social manner necessary for one in his 
line of business, and the popular host of 
the "Dunlap Hotel" has many friends. 
Mr. White has taken quite a prominent 
part in the work of public improvement 
in Marinette, and is now serving as one 
of the aldermen of the city, which posi- 
tion he has continuously filled since the 
spring of 1889. For five years he served 
as chairman of the committee on streets, 
alleys and bridges, and for three years 
was president of the council. His polit- 
ical support is given to the Democratic 
party, and he is one of its leaders in this 
locality. Mr. White was married in 
1882, "at Green Bay. Wis., to Adda 
Thomas, and they have two children — 
Lelia and Edward C. 

Mr. White's parents, James and Mary 
(Connors) White, were born in the North 
of Ireland, in County Mayo, and the 



COMMEMOltATIVI': BIOORAPUICAL liKCOIlD. 



697 



mother died at Dunnville, Canada. The 
father afterward came to the United 
States, locating in Pittsfield township, 
Brown Co., Wis., and is still living on 
his farm there, at the advanced age of 
eighty years. 



JOHN S. HARVI£Y. History deals 
with the lives of those who have 
been prominent in political, military 
or literary circles. From the very 
nature of the work it could not be other- 
wise; but it leaves unrecorded the careers 
of men whose importance to the com- 
munity and to the country at large is 
even greater. It is the business men, 
those who remain at home and quietly 
and faithfully perform each day's duties, 
that keep in operation the machinery of 
national existence. Belonging to this 
quiet, yet useful class, is our subject, and 
with pleasure we present his life record 
to our readers. 

Mr. Harvey was born in Belchertown, 
Mass., ill 1838, and is a son of Nathaniel 
and Permelia (Snow) Harvey, the former 
a native of Vermont, and the latter of 
Massachusetts. Their marriage was 
celebrated in the Bay State, whence they 
removed to Vermont, later to Pennsyl- 
vania, and in 1855 to Lind township, 
Waupaca Co., Wis., settling on an im- 
proved farm, where they made their 
home for fourteen years. They then 
moved to Minnesota where they are still 
living. In their family were nine chil- 
dren, of whom the following survive: 
Elijah, of Pennsylvania; John S. ; Mrs. 
Ann Radley, of Waupaca, Wis.; David, a 
resident of Escanaba, Mich. ; Mrs. Caro- 
line Plume, of Marinette, Wis. ; Lydia, 
married, who resides in Minneapolis, 
Minn.; Mrs. Julia Swandollar, of Sioux 
City, Iowa; and Scott, who is living with 
his parents. 

Our subject accompanied the family 
on their various removals, acquired his 
education in the schools of Vermont 
and Pennsylvania, and arrived in W^au- 



paca county, Wis., when about eighteen 
years of age. He learned the trade of a 
carpenter, which he followed for some 
years. In 1.S61 he married Miss Martha 
Dickey, who is a native of Franklin 
count}', N. Y., and a daughter of Andrew 
and Jane (McCombs) Dickey, the father 
born in the North of Ireland, the mother 
in Scotland. At the age of fifteen Mr. 
Dickey arrived in New York, was there 
married, and there made his home until 
1850, when he migrated westward and 
opened up a farm near Berlin, Wis., 
afterward removing to that town. His 
death occurred in Oconto county, in 
1874, and his wife passed away February 
2, 1877. They reared a family of nine 
children, eight of whom are now living, 
viz.: Isaac, living in De Pere, Wis., who 
was at one time in the hunber business in 
Chase township, and afterward lived in 
Little Suamico, Oconto county; Joseph, 
who is located in East Wrightstown, 
Brown Co., Wis.; Mary Elizabeth, now 
Mrs. Raymond, of Whitcomb, Shawano 
Co., Wis.; Mrs. Martha Harvey; Robert, 
of Chase township; William, who is living 
in Wausau, Wis. ; and Seymour, a resi- 
dent of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

At the time of the Ci\-il war Mr. 
Harvey left home in 1864, and at Berlin 
Wis., joined Company I, Forty-third 
Wis. V. I., being mustered in at Mil- 
waukee. The regiment was assigned to 
the Department of the Tennessee, Twen- 
tieth Army Corps, and went to Johnson- 
ville, Tenn., thence to Nashville, and 
afterward to Decherd Station. He was 
honorably discharged in Milwaukee, June 
24, 1865, and returned to his family 
and his carpenter work in Berlin. The 
following year he removed to Oconto 
county, purchased a tract oi 200 acres 
of timber land, and located thereon in 
1867. In that year he built the Chase 
& Dickey mill, and he now owns 160 
acres of land in Section 25, Chase town- 
ship, of which fifty acres are cleared. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Harvey have been 
born three children — Leslie C, register 



698 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



of deeds of Oconto county; Walter A. 
and Bessie M. The family is one of 
prominence in the community. Mr. Har- 
vey is a member of T. O. Howe Post, No. 
124, G. A. R., of Green Bay, Wis. In 
politics he is a stalwart I'Jepublican, 
served as a member of the side board of 
Chase township, when it was included in 
Little Suamico, and for four years was 
chairman of the board of Chase town- 
ship, which he assisted in organizing, and 
has taken an active and commendable in- 
terest in everything pertaining to its wel- 
fare. 



EDWARD JOHNSON. In giving 
a history cjf business interests of 
Marinette not the least important 
is the boarding house of the N. 
Ludington Co., of which Mr. Johnson has 
been the proprietor since 1875. He has 
been a resident of Marinette since 1870, 
and during the first winter of his residence 
there worked in the lumber woods. The 
following year he took charge of a board- 
ing house for the firm of Ludington & 
\'an Schaick at the mouth of the Me- 
nominee river, where he continued until 
becoming proprietor of his present board- 
ing house. 

Mr. Johnson is a native of the Em- 
erald Isle, born in County Cork in Ajiril, 
1843, but was reared in lingland. He is 
a son of William and Alice (Carey) John- 
son, natives of Yorkshire, England, and 
County Cork, Ireland, respectively, the 
former of whom was an iron merchant 
and for several years lived in Liverpool. 
There the mother died, and Mr. Johnson 
emigrated to America, locating in Chicago, 
where his remaining days were passed. 
Seven of their children are yet living: 
Charles, a resident of Chicago; Alfred and 
Willie, who are located in California; 
Mrs. Eleanor Atkinson, also living in Cali- 
fornia; Alice; Agnes, whose home is in 
California; and Edward. 

Our subject spent his boyhood days in 
Liverpool, and the public schools of that 



city afforded him his educational privi- 
leges. Before the age of fourteen he en- 
tered upon a sea-faring life, and was thus 
engaged for four years, sailing along the 
coast of South America on a schooner 
which carried supplies to Pernambuco and 
Monte \'ideo, also securing mail for the 
mail packets. W'hen about eighteen years 
of age he went to Chicago, where for a time 
he worked at any employment that he 
could secure. Subsequently he went to 
St. Louis, Mo., and there entered the cm- 
ploy of the Sanitary Commission, contin- 
uing thus until the close of the war. In 
1864 he was sent to Vicksburg, Miss., in 
charge of supplies for that place, and 
there remained for a year, after which he 
leased a plantation from Mrs. Jeff Davis, 
which he operated for two years. On the 
expiration of that period he returned to 
St. Louis, and ran on the steamer 
" Stewart " until coming to Marinette. 

Mr. Johnson was married in St. Louis, 
in 1 86 1, to Miss Mary Howe, a native of 
the Emerald Isle. They have an adopted 
daughter, Lillie. When they came here 
Marinette had only about 800 inhabitants, 
and they have therefore witnessed almost 
the entire growth and development of this 
place. Mr. Johnson owns the Rock 
Block on Hall avenue, a two-story brick 
building, 55x60 feet, standing on a lot 
240 feet deep, which is occupied by the 
" Windsor Hotel " and a grocery store. 
Both he and his wife are members of Our 
Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, and in 
politics he is a stalwart advocate of Repub- 
lican principles. His pleasant, genial 
manner has made him very popular, and 
well fits him for the business in which he 
is now engaged. 



EW. SEYMOUR has been for 
o\er forty j'ears a resident of Cole- 
man township, Marinette county, 
of which he has been chairman 
since 1893, riow serving his second term 
in that important position. 

Mr. Seymour was born October 11, 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOOIiAPITICAL RECORD. 



699 



1848, in Washtenaw county, Mich. His 
parents, I. I. and Mary Ann (Warren) 
Seymour, were married in New York, in 
which State they were both born, the 
father in Canandaigua county, the mother 
in New York City. The paternal grand- 
parents were born in England and Scot- 
land, respectively. The Seymour family 
moved to Michigan in an early day, and 
thence in iS5 5to Marinette (then Oconto) 
county. Wis., the father opening up a 
farm in Sugar Bush, Grover township, 
near Harmony Corners, where he passed 
the remainder of his days, his death oc- 
curring in 1893. Mrs. Seymour passed 
away the year previously. They had a 
large family, of whom seven are now liv- 
ing, as follows: Julia, Mrs. Turtelott, of 
Kansas; Eliza, Mrs. Jacobs, of Peshtigo; 
W. T., residing in Peshtigo township; 
Charles A., of Peshtigo; E. W., whose 
name ojiens this sketch; Charlotte, who 
was drowned in the Peshtigo river October 
8, 1 87 1, at the time of the fire; S. S., liv- 
ing on the old homestesrd in Grover town- 
ship; Fred D., who was burned October 
8, 187 I, the time of the big fire; John H., 
who died July 6, 1859; Isaac, who died 
in 1 88 1 in Marinette, having been acci- 
dentally shot; and W. B., residing in 
Peshtigo. 

Up to the age of nearly seven years 
E. W. Seymour remained m his native 
State, and in May, 1855, came with his 
father's family to Wisconsin, growing to 
manhood on the pioneer farm in Mari- 
nette county, on which they settled. In 
1882 Mr. Seymour commenced farming 
on his own account, in that year pur- 
chasing the eighty-acre tract in Section 3, 
Coleman township, on which he has since 
resided. Since taking up his residence 
here he has been continuously engaged in 
improving and cultivating his farm, and 
now has si.xty acres under the plow as a 
result of his labors. When he first re- 
moved to Marinette county it was for the 
most part in the woods, the now thriving 
city of Marinette was a mere trading- 
pomt, and settlers were few and far be- 



tween. From this primitive state of af- 
fairs Mr. Seymour has seen the surround- 
ing country cleared, the land cultivated, 
the resources of the region developed, the 
advent of the railroad and the other great 
evidences of progress which have bene- 
fited and improved this section so im- 
mensely. He has always taken an inter- 
est in the advancement of his town and 
county, and as above intimated was elect- 
ed chairman of Coleman township in 
1893, and re-elected for a second term — 
a fact which testifies better than words 
to his popularity and efficiency. 

Mr. Seymour was married, in 1S79, 
in Peshtigo, to Miss Mary W. Ramsey, 
daughter of John and Jane (Craig) Ram- 
sey, early pioneers of Marinette county, 
who since 1870 have resided in Peshtigo 
township, To this union were born five 
children, namely: Lulu, Edith, Merrill, 
Howard and Leland. Mrs. Seymour 
passed from earth June 22, 1895. 



ANGUS COOK is one of the early 
settlers of Marinette, having for 
almost a century made his home 
in that city. He belongs to that 
class of representative men who have 
been important factors in the work of 
public progress and upbuilding, and 
has aided in many ways in the promotion 
of the best interests of his locality. 

Mr. Cook was born in New Bruns- 
wick, in 1843, son of Daniel and Mary 
(McDonald) Cook, both of whom were 
natives of Scotland, and in an early day 
located in New Brunswick, where the 
father died in 1862. The mother after- 
ward came to Marinette, and departed 
this life in 1889. One of their sons, 
Ale.x, was a soldier in the Civil war, en- 
listing on the first call for troops at Ban- 
gor, Maine, in the Eighteenth Maine V. 
I. ; he afterward enlisted for three years, 
served as orderly sergeant, and was a 
loyal defender of the Union cause; he 
came to Marinette in 1870, and died in 
1875. Daniel arrived here in 1857 and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



followed the lumber business until his 
death in 1889. James, who was also one 
of the early settlers of 1857, died in 1 873. 
Robert has been a resident of Marinette 
since pioneer days. Belle is the wife of 
Archie Cook, of Marinette. Merron 
came to the city in 1866, and died Sep- 
tember 28, 1894; she was the wife of 
Charles Graves. Charles Cook, the ne.xt 
of the family, is a resident of Ontonagon, 
Wis., while John has made his home in 
Marinette since 1865. 

Our subject was reared and educated 
in New Brunswick, and there followed 
farming until 1864, when he started for 
Wisconsin, traveling by boat to Peshtigo, 
and coming thence to Marinette. Here 
he secured a position with the N. Lud- 
dington Co., driving logs, and later en- 
tered the employ of the firm of Daniel & 
James Cook, with whom he continued for 
two years. On the expiration of that 
period he was made foreman for the N. 
Ludington Company, in which capacity he 
served for four years, after which he was 
foreman with the H. Whitbeck Company, 
for three years. The succeeding year he 
passed in California, traveling over the Pa- 
cific coast, and upon his return he engaged 
in lumbering and cruising for some years. 
In 1890 he erected the Cook Block, a 
two-story brick building with 60 feet 
frontage on Main street and a depth of 80 
feet. It contains three stores on the 
lower floor, and the upper iioor is used 
for hall and office purposes. 

Mr. Cook came to Marinette a single 
man, and was married here in 1872 to 
Miss Elizabeth Swalwell, a native f>f On- 
tario, Upper Canada, and a daughter of 
John and Elizabeth (Johnston) Swalwell, 
the former of whom was born in Canada 
of English ancestry, and the latter in 
Scotland. In 1868 Mr. Swalwell came 
to Marinette, and he and his wife are 
still living here, on Main street. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Cook have been born four chil- 
dren — John, Diilie, Edith and Lucile. 

Our subject lakes an active interest in 
political affairs, and warmly supports the 



Republican party. He is a member of 
the Caledonia Society, and is a straight- 
forward, honorable business man, one 
who well deserves the confidence and 
high regard in which he is universally 
held. A well-spent life has made him a 
valued citizen of his adopted State, and 
the important part which he has taken in 
the work of public improvement is widely 
acknowledged. 



HENRY C. SHIELDS, who for over 
five years has held the important 
position of chairman inWausaukee 
township, Marinette county, has 
spent the greater part of his active life in 
the county, having come here from his 
native State, Maine, shortly after reach- 
ing his majority. 

Thomas O. and Betsey (Collins) 
Shields, parents of Henry C. Shields, 
were also natives of Maine, and have 
always made their home there, both now 
living in Aroostook county. The lather 
was by occupation a lumberman and 
farmer. Of their family Henry C. is the 
subject proper of these lines; Theodore 
came in 1873 to Marinette, thence remov- 
ing to California, where he now resides; 
Luther lives in Maine; P. A. resides in 
Superior, Wis., whither he came in 1888; 
Alice, Mrs. Sterrett, lives in Maine; Eben 
resides in Maine; Carrie, Mrs. Hand, lives 
in Maine; Edward has his home near In- 
galls, Mich.; James B. is living in Maine; 
Millie resides in Boston, Mass. ; Sophro- 
nia lives in Superior, W^isconsin. 

Henry C. Shields was born in 1848 in 
Aroostook county, Maine, was educated 
in the schools of the county, and was 
reared to agricultural pursuits. In 1S69, 
at the age of twenty-one, he migrated to 
\\'isconsin, taking up his residence in 
Marinette county, where he has remained 
ever since. He first entered the employ 
of the N. Ludington Co., and subse- 
quently engaging with the K. C. Lumber 
Co. has continued in their emploj' ever 
since. At first he was employed in the 



COMMEMORAriVE BWORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



701 



woods, but he is now foreman on their 
farm, known as the Pike farm, where 
he has had charj^^e at times of a 
large number of men. Up to 1892 he 
resided" on the farm, but has since had his 
home in Wausaukee. As Wausaukee and 
vicinity have been vastly improved during 
the last quarter of a century, Mr. Shields 
has during his long residence here been 
an interested witness of its development. 
In 1885 Wausaukee township was set oft 
from Peshtigo, and he has taken an act- 
ive interest in its welfare, and has been 
called upon to serve his fellow citizens in 
different capacities, proving in every po- 
sition worthy of the confidence reposed in 
him. In 1889 he was elected chairman 
of Wausaukee township, and with the 
exception of one year has since filled that 
office, to the satisfaction of all concerned; 
in 1 891 he served as township assessor. 
In political affiliation Mr. Shields is a 
Democrat; socially he is a member of the 
K. O. T. M., at Wausaukee, and in re- 
ligious connection he and his wife are 
members of the M. E. Church. 

In 1885 Mr. Shields was united in 
marriage, at Menominee, Mich., to Miss 
Catharine Hendges, who was born in 
Wisconsin, daughter of Mathias Hendges, 
an early pioneer of Sheboygan county, 
who is now deceased. Five children have 
blessed this union: Anna A., William 
H., Corey, Clarence and Frank. 



JUDGE F. J. BARTELS, superin- 
tendent and general mianager of the 
Butler & Mueller Lumber Co., whose 
mills are located at Ellis Junction, 
Marinette county, is a native of Germany, 
born October 31, 1832, at Crivitz, Mcck- 
lenburg-Schwerin. 

Christof Bartels, father of our subject, 
was also of Mecklenburg-Schweriii na- 
tivity, and was married in the Fatherland 
to Hannah Schuette, who was born in 
Schleswig, Prussia. They had a family 
of three sons and two daughters, as fol- 
lows: Charles, who after leaving college 



came, in 1849, to Chicago, 111., thence to 
Peshtigo township, Marinette Co., Wis., 
where he died in 1863; Henry, who came 
to Wisconsin in 1853, settling on a farm 
in Peshtigo township, Marinette county, 
where he died in 1893; ¥. J., subject of 
sketch; Sophia, widow of Louis Felardo, 
now making her home in Chicago; and 
Louisa, now Mrs. Bakinan, of Snohomish, 
Wash. The mother of these died in 
Germany, in 1852, and in 1856 the father 
came to Peshtigo, Wis., where his death 
occurred in 1887; he was a linen manu- 
facturer in his native land, giving employ- 
ment to about eighteen hands. 

F. J. Bartels, the subject proper of 
these lines, received his education in Ger- 
many, and at the age of twenty years, in 
1852, he came to the United States, first 
locating at Buffalo, N. Y., where for a 
year and a half he worked in an edge-tool 
factory. He then moved westward to 
Wisconsin, settling in Peshtigo (at that 
time called " Pe-she-tigo"), at which time 
there were less than 100 people in the 
village. Here he at once found employ- 
ment with the J. H. Leavenworth Lumber 
Co., of that place, working by the month, 
which company afterward merged into the 
Beebe-L}'on Co., and still later into the 
Peshtigo Co., now the Peshtigo Lumber 
Co., and with them he remained till the 
fall of 1 86 1. 

In 1858 he purchased, opened out and 
improved a farm in what is now Gro- 
ver township, Marinette county, and which 
at the present time is owned by Amos 
Colburn. At the breaking out of the 
Rebellion ludge Bartels enlisted, in Sep- 
tember, 1861, in Company F, Twelfth 
Wis. V. I., for three years or during the 
war, was mustered in on November 7, 
following, at Madison, Wis., and was at- 
tached to tiie army of the West. He 
served with his regiment in Kansas — at 
Ft. Riley and I'^t. Scott — later partici- 
pating in the battles of Pittsburg Landing, 
Vicksburg (siege of), Ferando, Natchez, 
and Jackson (both battles at the latter 
place). At Natchez our subject veteran- 



702 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ized into the same company and regiment, 
thereafter engaging in the battles of Chat- 
tanooga, Resaca, Snake Creek Gap and 
Atlanta, after which the Twelfth followed 
the fortunes of Gen. Hood, and then took 
part in the memorable march to the sea. 
At Bald Hill, Ga., they defeated Pat Cle- 
burne. At the close of the war our sub- 
ject was present with his regiment at the 
Grand Review, and in August, 1865, he 
was mustered out at Madison, Wis., with 
the rank of captain, to which he had been 
promoted for his soldierly bearing and 
bravery in action, passing through the sev- 
eral gradations in his company, from pri- 
vate upward. 

Returning to Peshtigo, Judge Bartels 
on May i, 1866, engaged in a general 
mercantile business there, the style of the 
firm (for he had a partner) being at first 
Marshall & Co., which later was changed 
to Marshall cS: Hartels, the latter finally 
securing entire control of the busi- 
ness, managing it alone until the 
great fire of 1 87 1 , when it was swept out 
of existence. Mr. Bartels lost everything 
by this catastrophe, as much as $30,000, 
for he had put in a new full stock, yet he 
was found among the foremost in the 
work of relieving others, serving for a 
time upon the committee organized for 
that purpose. The ne.xt year, 1872, he 
became postmaster at Peshtigo; in 1879 
was appointed county judge, for a three- 
years' term; in 1882 was elected to that 
office, for the term ending January i, 
1886, filling that incumbency seven years 
in all. As postmaster at Peshtigo he 
served from January i, 1872, to January 
8. 1886, in which latter year he removed 
to Ellis Junction, locating on a ranche. 
This village he had platted in 1882. In 
1876 Judge Bartels commenced in the 
lumbering business, having secured a 
tract in Peshtigo township of 2700 acres 
of pine land, which he lumbered, selling 
the pine to the present company for 
$1.50 per thousand feet, they to take out 
two million feet per annum. At the 
present time the Judge owns from 28,000 



to 30,000 acres of pine and farm lands in 
Marinette, Oconto, Florence and Forest 
counties, being one of the most extensive 
land owners of northern Wisconsin. In 
1882 the Butler & Mueller Lumber Co. 
was established at Ellis Junction, and in 
1895 Judge Bartels became general super- 
intendent and manager of same. Em- 
ployment is given to some eighty-five 
hands, and in the mills are manufactured 
shingles, lath, lumber, etc., while the 
firm deal in cedar posts, railroad ties, 
etc., and also in land. 

In March, 1856, at Peshtigo, Judge 
F. J. Bartels was married to Miss Adelia 
A. Newton, who was born in New York, 
a daughter of Adnath Newton, an early 
pioneer of Marinette county, who had his 
home in Grover township. To this union 
were born two children : Anna, who died 
in 1 86 1, and Augusta, burned in the fire 
of October 8, 1871. The mother of these 
died in March, 1861, and in 1867, at 
Oconto, Wis., our subject for his second 
wife married Miss Louisa Hall, a na- 
tive of England, born, in London, to 
Joseph and Louisa (Garrard) Hall, also 
of English birth, who came to Brown 
county. Wis., in an early day, in 1855 
moving to Oconto, where the father at 
present makes his home, the mother being 
deceased. By this marriage of Judge 
Bartels there are seven children, to wit : 
Lula, wife of B. G. Woodruf?, of Everett. 
Wash.; Hall H., married and residing at 
Ellis Junction, Wis.; Mira; Wilbert; 
George; F. Jay, and Robert. 

In politics Judge Bartels is a pro- 
nounced Republican, taking a zealous 
interest in the affairs of the party, and 
has served in several ofTices of honor and 
trust. He has been postmaster at Crivitz 
since February, 1895; has been justice of 
the peace thirty-six years, and held the 
position of chairman of the board of 
supervisors; was chairman of Peshtigo 
township at one time, and was chairman 
of the county board when Marinette was 
part of Oconto county, besides filling the 
office of town clerk of Peshtigo township. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUTGAL RECOItD. 



703 



As will be seen he has been a resident of 
the county over forty years, and has been 
an eye-witness to and closely identified 
with its development and material growth, 
the roads and railroads having all been 
built since he first set foot on its soil. 
The Judge is a man of ability and deter- 
mination, and has well retained the con- 
fidence and esteem of the community at 
large, evidence in itself of the unusually 
strong and sincere character of which he 
is possessed. 



JB. WENSING is one of the most 
prominent citizens of Pensaukee 
township, Oconto county, where he 

has been active in agricultural, busi- 
ness and political circles. 

He was born in Prussia, Germany, in 
July, 1848, son of Gerhard and Elizabeth 
(Huerung) Wensing, also natives of Ger- 
many, who came to the United States in 
1857, settling in Racine county. Wis., at 
Waterford, in which city they passed the 
remainder of their lives, the father dying 
there in June, 1895, the mother in 1886. 
They were the parents of thirteen chil- 
dren, five of whom grew to maturity, as 
follows: Sophia (Mrs. Charles Alby1, of 
Waterford, Wis.; J. B., at Pensaukee, 
Oconto county; J. H., who resides in 
Menasha, Wis. ; Anna (Mrs. Brooks), of 
Rochester, Racine Co., Wis.; and Mary 
(Mrs. Maley), of Waterford, Wis., living 
in the old home. 

Our subject came to Wisconsin with 
his parents when nine years old, and in 
Racine county received a good English 
and German education. In 1871 he came 
to Pensaukee township, where he has 
since resided, and he has proved a most 
active, public-spirited and valuable citi- 
zen. For three years after his arrival 
here he followed farming, and then en- 
gaged in fishing, an occupation to which 
he devoted the greater part of his time 
for eighteen years, or until 1893, giving 
employment during the season to from 
four to si.x men. On abandoning the 

41 



lishery industry he embarked in the hotel 
and saloon business, in 1894 building the 
"Pensaukee House," a good two-story 
building, 32 x 60 feet in dimensions, which 
he conducts, enjoying a very fair share of 
patronage from the traveling public. He 
has also been engaged in agriculture, own- 
ing a good farm of forty acres, and a dwell- 
ing near the Chicago & North Western 
railroad depot. He has always taken an 
active interest in the welfare of his town 
and county, and has been a wheelhorse 
of the Democratic party, which had but 
five supporters in the township when he 
came there. He has served in various 
local offices, having been a member of 
the school board four years, was school 
treasurer until he resigned the office, and 
in 1890 he was elected a member of the 
township board, being re-elected for four 
years, when, in 1895, he was elected to 
his present office, that of chairman of 
Pensaukee township. He has also served 
a number of times as delegate. He has 
been a faithful servant of the public, and 
holds an enviable position in the com- 
munity, where he is highly respected. 

Mr. Wensing was married, in Pen- 
saukee township, in 1871, to Miss Mary 
Plucker, a native of Racine county. Wis., 
whose parents, Henry and Susanna (Pow- 
ell) Plucker, were natives of Germany and 
Oconto county, Wis., respectively. Mr. 
Plucker came to Pensaukee in 1854, and 
opened up a farm ; he still resides in the 
township. To Mr. and Mrs. Wensing 
was born one child, Susanna E., now 
Mrs. Kreschefskie, of Pensaukee town- 
ship. Mrs. Wensing died in Cadot, Wis., 
in 1888, and on January 2, 1889, Mr. 
Wensing was married, in Little Suamico, 
to Miss Elizabeth Christianson, who was 
born in Denmark, daughter of Andrew 
Christianson, of Little Suamico. In re- 
ligious faith Mr. Wensing is a Catholic, 
being a member of the Church at Oconto, 
Wis. He has witnessed with interest 
the progress and improvement of his 
section, and has done one man's share in 
that work, having ever lived a busy, in- 



704 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



dustrious life. He witnessed the tornado 
on July 7, 1877. on which occasion the 
town was nearly destroyed. 



JOHN PLACE, a substantial farmer 
of Peshtigo township, Marinette 
county, is a son of Lyman and Su- 
san (Jackson) Place, and was born in 
St. Lawrence county, N. Y. , in 1836. 

Lyman Place was born in New York 
State, and was a farmer by occupation. 
He died in St. Lawrence county, N. Y. , 
in 1859. Mrs. Place was also born in 
New York State, and died in Peshtigo 
township, Marinette Co., Wis., in 1877. 
They reared a family of children as fol- 
lows: Abraham, now deceased, who came 
to Marinette, Marinette county, in an 
early day, and opened up a farm; Hannah, 
Mrs. Stearns, of Louisville, N. Y. ; An- 
drew, residing in New York; Kate, Mrs. 
Place, of Vermont; Job, residing in Gro- 
ver township, Marinette county; John, 
subject of these lines; Kasual G., residing 
in New York; and Ellen, Mrs. Newton, 
whose husband is an extensive farmer of 
Peshtigo township. 

John Place grew to manhood in St. 
Lawrence county, N. Y., receiving his 
education in the schools of that county, 
and was reared to farm life. Leaving 
there in 1857, while yet single, he came 
to Peshtigo, Wis., and entered the em- 
ploy of the Peshtigo Lumber Co. After 
working for that company for a time, he 
bought eighty acres in the woods of what 
is now Grover township, Marinette county, 
cleared and improved the land, and lived 
there until his removal to his present place 
of residence. 

In 18C0 John Place was united in 
marriage, at Peshtigo, with Miss Paulina 
Shappy, who was born in Marinette 
county, and they have had the following 
named children: Lyman; Maria, now Mrs. 
Phillips, of Peshtigo; Emma Marion;Kate; 
and John and Elsie, both of whom died 
in 1893. Mrs, Place's parents were born 
in Canada, were early pioneers of this 



part of Wisconsin, and lived in Marinette. 
Mr. Shappy. who was an Indian trader, 
died in Marinette in 1859. 

Mr. Place owns a fine farm of 300 
acres, well improved, one hundred of 
which are under cultivation. During the 
Peshtigo fire of 1871 he lost all of his 
buildings and fences, and, with his family, 
went to his brother's, where, after an heroic 
fight, they managed to save their lives. 
Mr. Place takes much interest in politics, 
and is an active Republican. He has 
seen much of the development of the 
county, and the growth of Marinette from 
a place of only a few families to its pres- 
ent magnitude. 



LW. FLANNIGAN. This gentle- 
man is well-known throughout 
Marinette and surrounding coun- 
ties as one of the successful self- 
made men of northern Wisconsin, with 
the lumber interests of which he is promi- 
nently identified as a member of the Fence 
River Logging Company. 

Mr. Flannigan is a native of Wiscon- 
sin, having been born February i, 1856, 
in Sheboygan county, son of William 
Flannigan. who was born in Ireland, and 
came to the United States while yet a 
young man. He was married, in Syra- 
cuse, N. Y. , to Margaret Sheridan, a na- 
tive of that State, whose father, M. J. 
Sheridan, was a first cousin of the famous 
Gen. Phil. Sheridan. In 1855 the family 
migrated westward to W'isconsin, settling 
in Mitchell, Sheboygan county, where the 
father purchased government land at $ 1 . 2 5 
an acre, and settling on the tract devoted 
some years to its improvement. Moving 
thence to Fond du Lac county, he opened 
up another farm, whereon he passed the 
remainder of his days, dying in 1879. His 
widow passed away in 1891. They 
reared a family of eight children, as fol- 
lows: Mary, Mrs. McDonald, of Mitch- 
ell, Sheboygan Co., Wis.; Louisa, Mrs. 
Beaucage, of Osceola, Fond du Lac Co., 
Wis.; Alice, Mrs. Alberts, of Milwaukee; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIWAL RECORD. 



705 



L. W. , whose name opens this sketch; 
Margaret, widow of V. Alberts, of Mil- 
waukee; W. J., a resident of Oconto, 
Wis. ; Lena, Mrs. John Alberts, of Chi- 
cago; and Sarah, Mrs. M. Brown, of 
Marinette, Wisconsin. 

The boyhood and youth of our subject 
were passed in Fond du Lac county, 
where he received his education in the 
common scfiools. At the age of seven- 
teen he came to Marinette, Wis., where 
he commenced to work in the lumber 
woods, and he has since devoted his time 
to this industry, meeting with success 
from the start. Up to 1886 he worked 
for various firms, logging on the Menomi- 
nee and Oconto rivers, and then em- 
barked in the business on his own ac- 
count, forming a partnership with John 
E. Nelligan, under the firm name of Nelli- 
gan & Flannigan. They carried on ope- 
rations together on the Menominee river 
until September, 1892, when the Fence 
River Logging Co. was organized, its 
members being L. W. Flannigan, John E. 
Nelligan, of Oconto, and Fred E. Carney, 
Jr., of Marinette. The company gives 
employment to from 300 to 400 men, and 
and as an illustration of the magnitude of 
their business operations it may be men- 
tioned that in 1894-95 they cut 34,000,- 
000 feet of timber on the Fence, Net and 
Michigami rivers. Four hundreil men 
men are employed on the drive. In con- 
nection with their business the firm owns 
two large farms, comprising some 800 
acres, both in Menominee county, Mich., 
one a seven-mile farm along the Menomi- 
nee river; over twenty men are employed 
in the improvement and cultivation of this 
land, some 750 acres of which are under 
the plow, and in a promising state of fer- 
tility, this branch of the business proving 
quite profitable. 

As a continuous resident of the place 
for almost twentj' years, Mr. Flannigan 
has naturally witnessed with interest the 
remarkable growth of Marinette, and in 
.fact of the entire region. The industry 
with which he is so prominently connected 



has, with its increasing importance, bene- 
fited the town and county in proportion, 
and he has won and retained the respect 
of his fellow citizens for his enterprise and 
energy in advancing the business and 
other interests of this section. Like many 
of Wisconsin's most worthy citizens, he 
is a self-made man — what he has acquired 
in wealth and reputation has been done 
by his own efforts; and his sociable, genial 
disposition, and courteous manners, have 
ever caused him to be liked and respected 
b}' his business and social friends and ac- 
quaintances. 

In 1 88/ Mr. Flannigan wedded, at 
Oconto, Wis., Miss Lucy N. Good, who 
was born in that city, daughter of George 
Good, an early settler of Oconto, where 
he still resides. Two children bless this 
union — Maricin, now aged five years, and 
Helen, aged three. Mrs. Flaimigan is an 
Episcopalian in religious faith, and Mr. 
Flannigan is a member of Our Lady of 
Lourdes Church; socially he is affiliated 
with the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin, 
Marinette Lodge, and also with Marinette 
Lodge K. of P. Politically he is a Demo- 
crat, but not active in public affairs, for 
though often urged to accept office he has 
always declined, his business affairs occupy- 
iner his entire time and attention. 



CHARLES H. NOYES, one of the 
early settlers of Florence, Flor- 
ence county, is engaged in the 
lumber business. He was born 
in 1845 in Oldtnwn, Maine, and is a son 
of Charles C. and Eunice Noyes, the 
former of whom is a member of one of 
the old families of New England. He 
was in early life a lumberman, and later 
engaged in mercantile pursuits. He 
moved to Berlin Falls, N. H., and now 
resides at Lancaster, N. H. , where Mrs. 
Noyes died in 1892. He married Eunice 
Annis, and they had a family of four chil- 
dren, as follows: Charles H., the sub- 
ject of this sketch; John B., who resides 
in Berlin Falls, N. H. ; W. W., who is 



7o6 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



a merchant in Florence, Wis. ; and Hol- 
inan, who resides at Lancaster, New 
Hampshire. 

Charles H. Noyes was reared in Berlin 
Falls, N. H., and educated in the schools 
of that village. He followed lumbering 
in New Hampshire, and commencing an 
apprenticeship as a filer, afterward had 
charge, as head filer, of the Ottawa River 
Lumber Co. for Cushions & Sons. In 
1S67 he came from New Hampshire to 
Shiocton, Outagamie Co., Wis., where 
he was employed in the woods until 1876, 
when he engaged in the grocery business. 

In 1S70, at Hortonville, Outagamie 
county, Charles H. Noyes was united in 
marriage with Miss Mary True, who was 
born in Litchfield, Maine, and they have 
had five children, namely: George, Clay- 
ton, Frank, Chester, and Ida Jewell. 
The father of Mrs. Noyes, John A. True, 
was born in Maine, came to Milwaukee, 
Wis., in an early day, and later moved 
with an ox-team to a location near Hor- 
tonville, where he opened up a farm and 
had his home for years. Thence he re- 
moved to Shiocton, where he died in 

1875- 

In 1880 Mr. Noyes came from Shioc- 
ton to Florence, arriving here on April 
26, by stage from Ouinnesec, Mich. He 
erected a store building, hauling the lum- 
ber from Ouinnesec, and engaged in a 
general mercantile business under the 
firm name of Noyes, True & Co., contin- 
uing thus one year, when, in 1881, the 
firm became W. W. Noyes & Co. It 
was conducted under that name until 
May, 1888, when C. H. Noyes sold out 
his interest to his brother, W. W. Noyes. 
This store contained the second grocery 
stock in Florence. Since then C. H. 
Noyes has been engaged in the business 
of lumber jobbing, handling pine lumber. 
In political affiliation Mr. Noyes is a Re- 
publican. He assisted in the organiza- 
tion of Florence county, was the first un- 
der sheriff of the county, was elected 
sheriff in 1884, was under sheriff in 1893 
and 1 894, and has been constable several 



times. Socially he is a member of Badger 
Lodge, K. O. T. M., Tent No. 12. Mr. 
Noyes has been identified with Florence 
county since its organization, has seen its 
development, and has witnessed many 
changes in this part of Wisconsin during 
the past twenty-eight years. 



AUGUST MALMSTADT, of the 
well-known firm of Malmstadt & 
Holm, liverymen, Marinette, is a 
native of Sweden, whence he came 
to this country in 1854, settling and re- 
maining inChicago for a number of years. 
He left the metropolis of the West one 
year before its great fire, and coming to 
Marinette by boat in 1870 he commenced 
work for the N. Ludington Co. He re- 
mained in the employ of that company 
for thirteen years altogether, driving a 
four-horse team for si.x years and a one- 
horse team for seven years. After leav- 
ing the Ludington Co. he worked for 
Hamilton & Merryman, also at teaming 
for six years. He then formed a partner- 
ship with Mr. Holm and engaged in his 
present business. The firm have two 
establishments — one on Ellis Court, and 
another at No. 1306 Main street, in Mari- 
nette, where they conduct a very successful 
business. 

Mr. Malmstadt is the eldest child of 
John and Bertha (Terey) Malmstadt, who 
had a family of seven children, as follows: 
August; Charles, a grocer in Marinette; 
Tillie, who died in Marinette; Mary, 
Mrs. Hanson, of Florence; Augustus, 
who died in Marinette; Axel, a printer in 
Marinette; and Adolph. a weaver in 
Marinette. The father came to Mari- 
nette in 1S63, worked in the mills for a 
number of years, and died there in 1880. 
leaving a widow, who still resides there. 
August Malmstadt was reared and edu- 
cated in his native land. When ho came 
to Marinette it was a very small place, 
full of Indians, and he attended school 
there but three days. In 1878 he was 
married to Miss Mary Olson, who was 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPUWAL KECORD. 



707 



born in Denmark, and whose fatlier served 
in the army during the war of the Rebel- 
lion, enlisting from Brown county, Wis., 
where he at present resides. Mr. and 
Mrs. Malmstadt have three children, as 
follows: Lillie, Ainonda and Otto. Mr. 
Malmstadt is a Republican in politics, a 
member of the Marinette Lodge No. 189, 
I. O. O. F., and of the Swedish Bene- 
ficial Society. He is one of the pioneers 
of Marinette, and has the esteem and re- 
spect of his fellow townsmen generally. 



P.ATRICR McGOVERN has been 
identified with the lumbering in- 
terests of Oconto county from 
earliest manhood, having from the 
time of his arrival here, in i860, been 
almost continuously employed in some 
responsible position by one of the leading 
lumber companies. He took up his home 
in Pensaukee township in 1862, and is 
now the oldest living settler there. 

Mr. McGovern came to Wisconsin 
from New Brunswick, Canada, where he 
was born in 1841, son of Philip and Ellen 
(Dolan) McGovern, natives of Ireland, 
who settled in an early day in New Bruns- 
wick, where the mother died in i860. In 
1865 the father came to Oconto, Wis., 
where he passed his remaining days, 
dying in 1870. They were the parents of 
six children, of whom, Thomas lives in 
New Brunswick; Mary, Mrs. Rourk, has 
her home in Oconto; Peter lives in Antigo, 
Wis.; Michael is a resident of Abrams, 
Pensaukee township, Oconto county; 
Jt)hn McGovern is in Marinette; Patrick 
is the subject proper of these lines. He 
was reared in New Brunswick, receiving 
his education in the common schools 
there. In i860, when about nineteen 
years of age, he came to Stiles, Oconto, 
Co., Wis., and during the thirty-four 
years of his residence there has had charge 
of a camp in the lumber woods, being 
first employed for two years by the Anson 
Eldred Lumber Co. Coming then to 
Pensaukee, he entered the employ of the 



F. B. Gardner Lumber Co., for whom he 
ran camp twenty- two consecutive years, 
or until the death of F. B. Gardner, after 
which he went up to Price county, and for a 
number of years ran camp for B. M. 
Holmes. 

Mr. McGovern was married in New 
Brunswick, in 1871, to Miss Mary Quinn, 
who was born in that province, of which 
her father, Garrett Ouinn, was an early 
pioneer; both her parents are now de- 
ceased. Seven children have blessed 
this union, Philip, Anna, Peter, John, 
Michael, James and Thomas. After his 
marriage NIr. McGovern had his home for 
a number of years in Oconto, finally trad- 
ing property in that city for his present 
farm in Pensaukee township, which com- 
prises 120 acres of good land, eighty of 
which are cleared. Mr. McGovern has 
led an industrious, busy life, and though 
he takes a loyal interest in the welfare of 
the community, he is not active in public 
or party affairs; he has, however, served 
as school treasurer of his district fourteen 
years. In local elections he casts his bal- 
lot in support of the best men and meas- 
ures, regardless of party lines. Mr. Mc- 
Govern and his family are Catholics in 
religious faith, holding membership with 
the Church at Oconto. 



JM. ANDREW, general dealer in 
groceries and crockery, Marinette, 
began business May i, 1885, at the 
corner of Wells and Main streets, 
the firm at that time being Andrew & 
Gitchell. There he remained until 1887, 
in that year removing to Hall avenue, and 
subsequently, in 1891, located on Dunlap 
Square, where he is now carrying on the 
second oldest grocery business in Mari- 
nette. In 1892 he bought Mr. Gitchell's 
interest, and has been continuously in the 
grocery trade since 1885, doing an ex- 
tensive and successful business. 

Mr. Andrew came to Marinette in 
March, 1882, from Denver, Colo., where 
he was engaged in 1879 with a lumber 



7oS 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



firm. On coming here he was first em- 
ployed at carpenter work. He went to 
Denver from New Brunswick, Canada, 
where he was born in 1857, son of 
James and Mary (Miller) Andrew, both of 
whom were born in Ayrshire, Scotland, 
the mother in Saltcoats. Mr. Andrew's 
mother came to New Brunswick, May 26, 
1830, with her father, William Miller, his 
father having come some years before in 
company with his father, Allen Andrew, 
a teacher. They were married in New 
Brunswick. James Andrew was a ship- 
builder by trade, and in 1863 built the 
"Punjab," the fastest sailing vessel 
known up to that time, and probably the 
fastest one ever built, she having made 
the voyage from New Brunswick to Liver- 
pool, England, in the remarkably quick 
time of fourteen days. At the present 
time Mr. Andrew is engaged in steam- 
boating on Baiede Chaleurs, N. B., in the 
summer, and resides with his family in 
Marinette during the winter when navi- 
gation on the bay is closed. James and 
Mary Andrew have reared a faniil)- of 
eight children, all of whom except one 
reside in Marinette, namely: W. A., 
J. M., Mary, Jack (married), Jane, Mag- 
gie, Fred, and Ida, Mrs. Catherine, the 
last named living in New Brunswick. 

J. M. Andrew received his education 
in the schools of New Brunswick, where 
he lived until going to Denver, in 1879. 
He was married in New Brunswick in 
1882 to Miss Elsie Jodry, a native of that 
place, daughter of Jacob Jodry, who was 
also a native of New Brunswick, and is 
now deceased. Mr. Andrew has two 
children, named, respectively, Sommer- 
ville Davis and Lillias Frances. Mr. 
Andrew votes with the Republicans, and 
takes an active interest in politics. He 
is a member of Marinette Lodge No. 
182, F. & A. M.; Marinette Chapter No. 
57, R. A. M. ; is swordbearcr in Marinette 
Commandery No. 26, and is also a mem- 
ber of Ahmed Temple, A. A. N. M. S., 
of Marquette, Mich. ; of Marinette Lodge, 
K. of P., and of the Modern Woodmen, 



and is First Chieftain in the Caledonian 
Society of Marinette. 

In 1894 Mr. Andrew bought the 
" Dunlap Hotel," removed it to its pres- 
ent location in the fall of that year, re- 
modeled and repaired it at a cost of 
$2,500, and opened it for business Jan- 
uary I, 1895. It is run in first-class 
style, and has proved a popular and suc- 
cessful venture. Personally our subject 
is a social, genial gentleman, one of the 
thoroughly representative men of Mari- 
nette, and is held in the highest regard 



DR. H. P. CLUTE, veterinary 
surgeon, Marinette, is a native of 
Orleans county, N. Y., born June 
18, 1866, and is a son of J. P. 
and A. M. (Jackson) Clute, both of whom 
are natives of New York, residing near 
Medina, Orleans county. Of their fam- 
ily, Charles resides in Orleans county, 
N. Y. ; H. P. is our subject; John D. 
and Lorena are in Orleans county. New 
York. 

The subject of this sketch grew to 
manhood in his native county and State, 
and was reared to farm life. He attended 
the public schools, and also the Lima 
(New York) Seminary, for two years. 
Entering the Ontario Veterinary College, 
at Toronto, Canada, he sjient two years 
there, graduating with the class of 1S87. 
On receiving his diploma, he came direct 
to Milwaukee, \Vis. , where he remained 
but a short time and then located at Mari- 
nette. Before settling down to the prac- 
tice of his profession he took a special 
course in veterinary dentistry and surgery, 
and now makes a specialty of that branch 
of his profession. He located perma- 
nently in Marinette in 1890, having an 
office on Stephenson street, and in 1892 
built the \'eterinary Infirmary, which he 
now owns. He has been very active in 
his profession, and has a large and lucra- 
tive practice. For some time he has 
been assisted by J. S. Atkinson, of the 
McPhcrson College. Few men are bet- 



COMMEMOBATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



•jog 



ter posted in liis profession, and none f;ive 
it a more honest and faithful study. The 
Doctor is a member of the Wisconsin 
State Veterinary Graduates Association, 
of which he was president in 1894. 
Fraternally he is a member of Marinette 
Lodge, K. of P., of the Fraternal Alliance, 
and of the K. O. T. M. Politically he 
is an uncompromising Republican, and 
although never an office seeker, he is at 
present a member of the board of alder- 
men of the Fifth ward of the city, having 
been elected in 1894 for a term of two 
years. 

On February 22, 1892, Dr. Clute was 
united in marriage at Marinette, Wis., 
with Miss Minnie A. Richter, who was 
born in Oconto, Wis., daughter of Will- 
iam and Amma Richter, who were num- 
bered among the pioneers of Oconto 
county, where they now reside. They 
were originally from Germany. While a 
resident of Marinette, though for a com- 
paratively short time, the Doctor has wit- 
nessed much of its growth and develop- 
ment, and has been active in promoting 
its welfare. He has traveled all over the 
Northwest, and has gathered a fund of 
information. 



HARRY McCALLUM, civil engineer 
and county surveyor of Marinette 
county, was first elected county 
surveyor in 1889, and has twice 
been re-elected. In 1890 and 1892 he 
was appointed city engineer of Marinette. 
He came to the city in 1887, in the em- 
ploy of the Milwaukee & Northern rail- 
road in Wisconsin and Michigan, on the 
extension from Iron Mountain north. He 
Was also in the survey of the " Soo " line, 
and on the construction of bridges from 
Manistique to Trout Lake, and assisted 
in surveying and constructing the logging 
lines in northern Wisconsin and Michigan. 
For some years he was associated with 
the Grand Trunk railway, was also with 
the Canadian Pacific railroad from In- 
gersoll to Detroit; was on the Northern 



Pacific Junction railroad from Brace- 
bridge to North Bay, on Lake Nipiss- 
ing, and also on the Erie & Huron rail- 
road, from Wallaceburg to Rondeau Har- 
bor, on Lake Erie. 

Mr. McCallum is a native of Toronto, 
Canada, born January 30, 1862, and is a 
son of Edward and Harriet (Tamylon) 
McCallum, both of wliom were born in 
Canada, and reside at U.xbridge. In 
early life the father was also an engineer. 
He was a merchant in Uxbridge for some 
years, and later removed to Toronto, 
where our subject was educated, and 
where he studied civil engineering. After 
leaving school he entered the employ of 
the Canadian Pacific railroad, and during 
his college days was with uncles, sur- 
veyors on the railroad. As already stated 
he came to Wisconsin in the employ of 
the Milwaukee & Northern railroad, since 
which time he has been a resident of 
Marinette. Since coming here he has 
laid out hundreds of lots, and has sur- 
veyed and platted twenty-five additions 
to the city, representing hundreds of 
acres. He also surveyed and platted 
Amberg, Pembine, Wausaukee and other 
smaller places. 

Mr. McCallum was married, in 1889, 
to Miss Ida Cecelia Mack, who was born at 

Milton, Wis., daughter of James and 

(Thurston) Mack, both of whom were 
natives of Wisconsin. The mother is now 
deceased, and the father lives in Milton. 
Fraternally, Mr. McCallum is a member 
of the I. O. O. F., and of the K. O. T. 
M. In politics he is a thorough Repub- 
lican, and an earnest advocate of the 
principles of the party. Mr. McCallum 
has been identified with the public life of 
the county and city of Marinette for eight 
years. During that time he has been 
actively engaged in his profession, and, in 
addition to what has already been said, it 
may be stated that he surveyed the 
Marinette & Menominee Park Paper Mills, 
planning and laying out the canal and 
waterway, and in fact everything in con- 
nection with the mill. As a surveyor he 



'lO 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQBAPEICAL RECORD. 



thoroughly understands his business, and 
the fact that he has located a line is a 
sufficient guarantee of its correctness. 



FRANK FARLEY, postmaster at 
Pensaukee, Oconto county, was 
born, in 1854, in Watertown, Jef- 
ferson Co., N. Y. , son of O. W. 
and Elmira (Fuller) Farley, also natives 
of Jefferson county. 

O. W. Farley came with his parents 
to Oconto county, Wis., when our sub- 
ject was but four years of age, and took 
up government land in the woods of Pen- 
saukee township, making his home thereon 
until 1864. In that year became to Pen- 
saukee village and took charge of F. B. 
Gardner's boarding house, which he con- 
ducted some eight years, at the end of 
that time returning to the farm, on which 
he remained three years. Again coming 
to Oconto, he had charge of a boarding 
house for about eighteen months, or until 
his death, which occurred in 1S78. Mrs. 
Farley passed away in Pensaukee. in 1885. 
There were three children in their family, 
viz.: Almeda (Mrs. Ellner) who resides in 
the State of Washington; Mary (Mrs. 
Powell), of Abrams, Oconto county; and 
Frank. 

Frank Farley received his primary ed- 
ucation in the common schools of Pensau- 
kee, later attending Lawrence University, 
Appleton, Wis., and the Green Bay Busi- 
ness College. He was yard foreman and 
time-keeper for F.B. Gardner up to the time 
of the lattcr's death, and then had charge 
till the mill burned, since which time he 
has been engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
He owns si.xty-five acres of land, all 
cleared, in the village of Pensaukee. In 
Little Chute township, Outagamie Co., 
Wis., in 1874, he was married to Miss 
Mary Hermsen, a native of Germany, but 
reared in Outagamie county, W^is. Her 
parents, George and Eliza Hermsen, also 
natives of Germany, came to Little Chute, 
Outagamie county, in an early day, and 
Mr. Hermsen died there; Mrs. Hermsen is 



still living. Mr. and Mrs. Farley have 
four children living: Herby, Owen, Clara 
and Edgar; one, George, was killed July 
7, 1877, when twenty-three months old, 
by the tornado which destroyed the en- 
tire town on that day. The house and 
its contents were completeh" ruined. Mr. 
Farlej' was twisted and badly injured, and 
Mrs. Farley had her collar bone and right 
leg broken. 

Mr. F'arley has witnessed the introduc- 
tion of many modern innovations into his 
vicinity, and has watched with interest 
the progress made in the region, taking 
an active part in the work himself. In 
1879 he was township clerk, has served as 
chairman, and as justice of the peace, and 
for the past four years has been postmas- 
ter of Pensaukee, filling all these positions 
with marked fidelity and acceptability. 
In voting he usually gives his support to 
the man he considers most worthy and 
best fitted for office. Mr. and Mrs. Far- 
ley are members of the Roman Catholic 
Church. 



DAN J. MAUAGIN is a representa- 
tive of one of the oldest families 
of Marinette. He is a native of 
the city, born in the "Marinette 
House" August 20, 1864, and is a son of 
John and Mary (O'Connell ) Madagin, 
both of whom were born in Ireland. 

John Madagin, the father of our sub- 
ject, came from Ireland to Canada, and 
from there to Marinette, Wis., in a very 
early day. On his arrival here he com- 
menced working in the woods, and was 
noted as being one of the best choppers 
engaged in the business. Mrs. Madagin 
crossed the ocean alone at the age of four- 
teen jears, stopped for a time in Ver- 
mont, went from there to Chicago, and 
when but eighteen j'earsof age, landed at 
Marinette. She was first married to Louis 
Brown, and they built the "Marinette 
House," the first hotel in the city. For 
her second husband she was married in 
Marinette to Dan J. Madagin, and together 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOUAPUWAL RECORD. 



711 



they continued the hotel business, until 
the death of Mr. Madagin, which occurred 
January 12, 1867. Mrs. Madagin yet re- 
sides in the city, of which she has been a 
resident since 1845, a period of fifty years. 
By her first marriage she was the mother 
of two children: Nora (now the widow of 
Theodore Lindner), who resides in Mani- 
towoc, Wis., and J. H., engaged in the 
tea business at Ishpeming, Mich. By her 
second marriage Mrs. Madagin was the 
mother of three children: M. P., who is 
in the saloon business in Chicago; Mamie, 
who died in childhood, and Dan J., oar 
subject. 

The subject of this sketch grew to 
manhood and has spent his entire h'fe in 
his native city. After leaving school, and 
while yet in his 3outh, he worked in the 
woods for two years. He was then en- 
gaged in the Temperance Reading Room 
for one year on Main street, and then 
purchased a restaurant on I)unlapS(iuare, 
in partnership with a Mr. Townsend, the 
business being conducted under the firm 
name of Madagin & Townsend. After one 
month's partnership, Mr. Madagin bought 
the interest of his partner, and conducted 
the business very successfully for some 
years. Closing out the establishment, he 
was for the succeeding two years in the 
employ of a doctor. He then purchased 
another restaurant, which he carried on 
for some time and then engaged in a livery 
business with James M. Moore, under the 
firm name of Moore & Madagin. In this 
business he continued about two years, 
when he disposed of his interest to Mr. 
Moore, and went on the road as travel- 
ing salesman for Lindquist, Westman & 
Campbell. He continued with this firm 
for two years, and was then associated 
with the New York Mercantile Company 
for a time. His present business, that of 
real estate and loans, he conunenced in 
February, 1895, and he has, with charac- 
teristic energy, built up an excellent trade 
within a short time. 

In politics Mr. Madagin is a Democrat, 
and was elected register of deeds on that 



ticket in 1892, serving two years. For 
eight years he has been a member of the 
fire department of Marinette, being ap- 
pointed by A. M. Fairchild. He is a 
member of our Lad}' of Lourdes Catholic 
Church, and is county presiilent of the 
Ancient Order of Hibernians; he is also a 
member of the Catholic Knights of \Vis- 
consin. Branch No. 5. A native-born cit- 
izen, he has witnessed the growth of 
Marinette from an Indian village to a 
thriving city, and lias tlone his part in its 
growth and development. 



JOHN CHATELL, who since 1893 
has been proprietor of the "Aljrams 
House," Abrams, Oconto county, has 
been a resident of this part of Wis- 
consin since 1869, in which year he set- 
tled in Marinette county. 

Born in 1847, in Upi^er Canada, he 
removed thence with his parents, Antoine 
and Sophia Chatell, who were also na- 
tives of that country, to St. Lawrence 
county, N. Y., where the family settled. 
The parents both died there. Of their 
family three are yet living: Josei)h, in St. 
Lawrence county, N. Y. ; John; and 
Henry, in Norfolk, St. Lawrence Co., 
N. Y. John Chatell grew to manhood in 
St. Lawrence county, was educated in 
the common schools, and on September 
3, 1864, when about sixteen years of age, 
enlisted there in the Union army, becom- 
ing a member of the First New York 
Light Artillery, for one year. He was 
sworn into the service at Malone, N. Y. , 
and for five months was stationed at 
Hart's Island, going thence to Petersburg, 
Va., where he remained until the close of 
the war. He was honorably discharged 
June 19, 1865, at Elmira, N. Y. , and re- 
turning to St. Lawrence county engaged 
for the following four years in farming. 
In 1869 he concluded to try his fortune 
in the West, and coming to Marinette 
county, W'is., located in Marinette, 
where he entered the employ of the 
Hamilton & Merryman Co., working in 



713 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHICAL liECOliD. 



their mill fourteen years; during the 
winter he had charge of a camp for them 
in the woods, being engaged at filing 
during the summer. In 1873 he pur- 
chased a partly-improved farm of eighty 
acres in Grover township, on which he 
settled in 1874, and which he cleared and 
improved, working on it during the sum- 
mer time, and still continuing to run camp 
for the lumber compan}' in winter time 
until his removal to Abrams. He still 
owns the farm. While in Grover town- 
ship he served as pathmaster, and he was 
well and favorably known in that section 
as a substantial and useful citizen. 

Mr. Chatell was married, in St. Law- 
rence county, N. Y., to Miss Maggie Cira- 
vel, who was born in Canada, and her 
parents were also natives of the Dominion, 
where they lived and died. Five sons 
and one daughter have blessed this union, 
viz. : John (who is married and lives in 
Abrams, Wis.), Mary (wife of Dr. Gard- 
ner, of Peshtigo, Wis.), Stephen, James, 
Joseph and Alfred. Mr. Chatell casts 
his ballot with the I^cjiublican party. 
Socially he is a member of T. O. Howe 
Post No. 124, G. A. R. 



LOUIS REED owns a pleasant farm 
of 133 acres on the bay shore, in 
Oconto township, Oconto county, 
and is engaged in farming and 
fishing, having several small boats and 
giving employment during the fishing sea- 
son to eight or ten men. He has been 
a resident of the county for forty years, 
having arrived here in the pioneer daj's 
of 1856. 

Mr. Reed was born in 1841 in Ham- 
burg, Germany, and his parents, Moritz 
and Elizabeth (Krumbacb) Reed, were 
also natives of the Fatherland. In 1846 
the family came to this country, making 
the voyage from Hamburg to New York 
City in a sailing vessel in forty-two days, 
and taking up their homes in Chicago, 
whore the}' lived ten years. In 1856 they 
came to Oconto county, Wis., settling 



in Oconto, where Mr. Reed died the same 
year; his wife survived until 1893, when 
she too passed away, in Oconto, at the 
ripe old age of ninety-four years. They 
reared a family of si.\ children: Margaret, 
Mrs. Hinneman, who has resided in Chi- 
cago since 1849; George, a resident of 
Stiles townthip, who came to the county 
in an early day; John, deceased in Oconto 
county, who was a drayman by occupa- 
tion; Louis, our subject; Jerrj', who is 
living in Oconto; and Dora, Mrs. Follett, 
also a resident of Oconto. 

Louis Reed was about five years of 
age when he came with the family to 
America. He was educated in the public 
schools of Chicago, and at early age com- 
menced working by the month. In 1856 
he came to Wisconsin, to Green Bay, and 
from there by tug to Oconto, where for 
three months he was engaged in inside 
work at the mill. He was also employed 
at carpenter work and in river driving for 
thirteen seasons, for five seasons having 
charge of the drive. In 1863 he located 
on the farm in Oconto township, on the 
shore of Green Bay, where he still resides, 
and during all these years has been en- 
gaged in fishing and in agricultural pur- 
suits. He has worked hard, but he has 
been successful, and is the owner of six 
lots in the city of Oconto, besides his com- 
fortable farm property. Ever interested 
in the welfare and progress of the com- 
munity in which he chose to make his 
home, he assisted in organizing the school 
district, and is treasurer of the school 
board, an of^ce which he has held for the 
past twenty years. 

Mr. Reed was married, in 1 868, in 
Oconto, to Miss Jane Gale, who wasborn 
in Oshkosh, Wis. Her parents, Rice and 
Harriet (Cooper) Gale, were born in 
Pennsylvania and New York State, re- 
spectively, the father of English and 
Scotch ancestry, the mother of Mohawk- 
Dutch ancestry. In an early day they 
came to Oshkosh, Wis., thence to Ocon- 
to, settling here over lorty years ago, and 
they were among the early pioneers. He 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUWAL RECORD. 



7'3 



kept a tavern for many }^ears in the early 
days. He died in 1880 at the home of 
our subject, and Mrs. Gale now resides 
in Gillett.Wis. Seven children have been 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Reed, namely: 
Libbie (Mrs. Taylor, a widow, living with 
her parents), Eva, Ira, Lill (Mrs. Runkcl, 
of Oconto Falls, Wis.), Wesley, Ray- 
mond and Lewis. Mr. and Mrs. Reed 
are active members of the M. E. Church 
at Oconto, of which he is one of the trus- 
tees, and socially he belongs to Oconto 
Lodge No. 9, L O. O. F. He gives his 
politicel support to the Republican party. 



D.\VID TRIPP, general merchant 
at Brookside, Oconto county, is a 
native of Wisconsin, born in 1848 
in Burlington, Racine county, son 
of William and Deborah (Brown) Tripp, 
who were natives of New York State. 

The father of our subject was a car- 
penter and farmer by occupation. He 
was married in Wisconsin, having come 
to this State in 1846 with his father, 
James Tripp, and settling on a farm in 
Racine county where the latter died. 
William Tripp passed away in 1S51, in 
Racine county, and his widow afterward 
wedded Warren Post, and lived in Du- 
Page county. 111., three years, thence re- 
moving to Harrison county. Mo., then to 
Decatur county, Iowa, and finally to Trem- 
pealeau county. Wis., locating in Travers 
Valley. Here Mr. Post died in about 1 879, 
after which his widow removed to Deca- 
tur county, Iowa, where she still makes 
her home. Our subject, David, was the 
only child of her first marriage; but by 
her second union she has eight children 
living — William, James, Israel, John (all 
four living in Decatur county, Iowa), Eu- 
genie (Mrs. Harvey), Alfreta (unmarried), 
Ida and Ella (married). 

David Tripp grew to manhood in Iowa 
and Wisconsin, and acquired his educa- 
tion in the common schools. On reach- 
ing his majorit}' he came from Trempea- 
leau county to Oconto county, where he 



has ever since resided. In 1S73 he was 
married, in Pensaukee township, to Miss 
Katie A. Wilson, who was born in Massa- 
chusetts, as were also her parents, Joseph 
A. and Harriet S. (Stone) Wilson, both 
of whom are now deceased. The family 
came to Pensaukee in an early day. Five 
children have been born to them — Marion 
L. (who is teaching in Little Suamico, 
Oconto county), William, Howard, Mel- 
low and Ruby. On coming to Oconto 
count}-, in 1S69, Mr. Tripp entered the 
employ of the Oconto Lumber Co., work- 
ing in the planing-mill and woods, and 
remained with them two years. For one 
summer he worked for F. B. Gardner. 
In 1 87 1 he came t6 Pensaukee township, 
in 1 87 5 settling on a partly-improved farm 
of eighty acres in Section 35, which he 
commenced to improve and prepare for 
cultivation, and he now has seventy-five 
acres cleared, and has erected a good resi- 
dence, at a cost of $2,500. A few years 
ago Mr. Tripp bought out the general 
mercantile establishment of C. L. War- 
ner, the oldest store in Brookside, and 
has since given a good share of his time and 
attention to the business. For years he 
was engaged in the butcher business, fur- 
nishing meat, to Oconto and other north- 
ern points. When Mr. Tripp first came 
to Oconto county it was a wild, unculti- 
vated region, and he has seen almost its 
entire improvement and progress during 
his twenty-si.x years' residence here. Po- 
litically he is an active member of the Re- 
publican party, and socially he affiliates 
with the K. O. T. M. at Amberg. 



HL. BERGSTROM. This gentle- 
man, who has been associated 
with the Bird & Wells' mill, 
Wausaukee, Marinette county, 
since it was started, is a native of Wis- 
consin, born in 1859, in Xeenah, Winne- 
bago county. 

Louis and Louisa Bergstrom, his par- 
ents, were born in Norway, and in about 
1857 emigrated to America, coming di- 



7>4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGliAPUICAL RECORD. 



recti}' to Neenah, Wis., where the father 
entered the emplo\- of the Harts Machine 
Works, Menasha, and remained in the 
shop some years, thence fjoing to Apple- 
ton, Wis. He died in 1893 at Neenah, 
where his widow is now living. They 
reared a family of children as follows: 
Augusta, Mrs. Johnson, of Chicago; Jen- 
nie, who died in 1891 in Green Bay, wife 
of John L. Sorenson; William, who died 
in 1885 in Xeenah; Jennie, who was 
burned in the Peshtigo tire of October 8, 
1S71; H. L. ; A. W., living in Chicago; 
Louis, at Neenah, Wis., and John, resid- 
ing in Chicago. 

Our subject was reared in his native 
city, and received his education in the 
public schools there. In 1872 he came 
to Green Bay, Wis., in the employ of the 
Weed Lumber Co., of that place, and in 
lS74went to Little Suamico for Anson 
Eldred & Son, with whom he remained 
until his removal to Marinette county. 
In 1886 he came to Wausaukee and en- 
tered the Beach & Bishop mill, the first 
one started in this place, working as filer 
and foreman. He continued with them 
until, in November, 1891, they disposed 
of their interests to the Bird & Wells 
Co., with whom he has since remained, 
and he is one of their oldest emploj-es. 
Beach & Bishop gave employment to 
about one hundred hands, and the pres- 
ent company have a still larger force. 



They were formerly known as the ^^'au- 
saukee Lumber Company. Previously 
Mr. Bergstrom was employed by L. M. 
Marshall & Holmes, of Coleman, Mari- 
nette county, where he resided si.\ years, 
from 1880 to 1886, and when he came to 
Wausaukee the place contained but four 
buildings. He has witnessed its com- 
plete development, ever taking a loyal 
interest in the advancement and progress 
of the community in which he makes his 
I home. For one year he served as super- 
visor of his township. 

In 1880 Mr. Bergstrom was married, 
in Little Suamico, Oconto county, to 
Miss Mary Cjueran, who was born in Ger- 
many, daughter of William Queran, who, 
coming to this country man}' years ago, 
settled on a farm in Brown county, and 
was an early pioneer of De Pere; he now 
resides in Rockland township. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Bergstrom have come four chil- 
dren: Anna, Clara, Georgie and Maud. 
Mr. and Mrs. Bergstrom are members of 
the First Presbyterian Church of Wau- 
saukee, in which he serves as trustee, 
having held that office ever since the 
founding of the Church, in which he 
took an active part. Socially he is a 
member of De Pere Lodge No. 222, I. 
O. O. F. , and of Wausaukee Tent No. 
19, K. O. T. M., in which he is lieuten- 
ant commander. In political affiliation 
he is a Republican. 




INDBX. 



PAGE. 

Abbott, J.E 535 

Abrams, Hon. W. J 114 

Adams, H. R., M D 620 

Adriaensseii, A. A. L.... 378 
Aebischer. Charles N.... 176 
Aebischer, Mr.s. Margaret 175 

Aebisher, Samuel 175 

Aldrich. Chauncy N 121 

Ame.s, Milo 367 

Andersen, Dedrick O 384 

Andersen, Hans P 274 

Anderson, Andrew 346 

Anderson, T. D 637 

Anderson, W H ISl 

Andrew, John J 481 

Andrew, J. M 707 

Andrew, W. A 682 

Ansorg-e, Eugene K 199 

Armstrong, William 119 

Arndt, John P 213 

Arndt, John Wallace 213 

Arveson, Arve 256 

Atkinson, Thomas 118 

Babcock, Augustin H . . . 176 

Bailev, Patrick 341 

Baird', George W 578 

Bakeman, John 584 

Eakeman, Henry 584 

Barker, Benjamin B 628 

Bartelmc. John 343 

Bartels, Judge F. J 701 

Bartels, Henrv 569 

Bartli, Martin 345 

Batchelder, Benjamin W. 621 

Batey,John 159 

Bander, David B 602 

Baumgart, August, Sr. . . 238 

Baumgart, August 236 

Baumgart, Edward 345 

Baumgart, Paul 238 

Beattie, S. T 618 

Beaupre, Dr. Wm 309 

Becher, John 212 

Becher, Joseph 212 

Beck, H. M., M. D 229 

Becker, Peter J 316 

Beissel, Eseius 307 

Bell, Donald J 651 

Bergstrom, H. L 713 

Bernardy, Jacob 557 

Bernardy, Jacob H 5.57 

Beth, John 13 

Biddlecom, N. H 583 

Bingham, Webster A.... 40 

Birmingham, Jesse 658 

Black, N. B 505 

Black, R. J 161 



I'.^GE. 

Ble.sch, Francis 160 

Blesch, Frank T 160 

Bloch,0. W 564 

Boehm, Joseph 344 

Boehm, Sylvester 332 

Boman, Peter J 577 

Bone, Leonard 167 

Bongers, Rev. Matthew. 323 

Borman, Georgie 371 

Borman, Henry 371 

Bo.ssard, Rev. Guido 509 

Bovee, Lem J 567 

Bovee. Philip 567 

Bowring, Thomas D 118 

Boyden, Elbridge (i 24S 

Bozmack, Rev. Jacobus. . 154 

Brault, Joseph i)45 

Brault, Odilon 645 

Brault, Sinai .596 

Brennan, Jeremiah 259 

Brett, B. C, M. D 37 

Brice, O. J. B 4.")2 

Brien. J. A., M. D 571 

Briggs, B. M 516 

Briggs, Edwin F 576 

Briggs, Fred W 576 

Britton, David W 132 

Broeren. John 326 

Brooks, Gardner R 498 

Brown, A. C 695 

Brown, Thomas W 580 

Brown, W. A 695 

Brunette, Dominick 186 

Brunette. Manuel 186 

Bryce, Milton D 493 

Buckmann, Ahrend S. . . . 324 

Buckinann, H. F 324 

Bundv. James C 670 

Burdeau, Willard E 190 

Bush, D. L 642 

Bush, Mrs. D. L 643 

Caldie, Thomas 608 

Callahan, Peter 334 

Caiman, John 3<)0 

Caiman, Mrs. Kate 390 

Camm, Herbert F 297 

Campbell. H. Porter 453 

Cannon, E. J .553 

Cannon, J. A 552 

Carlin, P. H 418 

Caron, Rev. E. A. S 570 

Casey, W. J 179 

Casson, Curtis P 635 

Casson, John J 657 

Casson, William N 635 

Cautereels, Rev. P. J 362 

Champion, Scth W ISO 



PACK. 

Chase, Jasper S 420 

Chatell, John 711 

Christ, Henrv 596 

Christ. Henry P 596 

Christenson, David 505 

Classen, Hon. D. G .542 

Cla.sson. W. J 542 

Cleeremans, Alex 125 

Cleeremans. Charles 403 

Cleeremans. Frank 2ii3 

Cliflford, Patrick 4.S9 

Clute, H. P., V. S 708 

Cody, John 211 

Coenen, John 287 

Coenen, Theodore 2s7 

Coffeen, W. B., M. D 446 

Colburn, Andrew H 5(>8 

Colburn. Theodore 421 

Colter, G. Fred. M. D 532 

Conen, William 368 

Conley. Horace J 145 

Conne'lly, John 127 

Conners, Henry B 613 

Conners, Michael 613 

Cook, Angus 699 

Cook, Daniel 518 

Cook, Mrs. D 519 

Cook, James 510 

Cook, John (Marinette) . . .528 

Cook. John (De Pere) 123 

Cook, John (deceased). . . . 303 

Cook, (Jsmer C .550 

Cook, William .303 

Cook, Wallace P 550 

Corbett. M. J 41(i 

Cormier, David 357 

Cormier, Joseph 357 

Corstens, ,\rnold 386 

Corstens, John 386 

Cosgrove, Michael 674 

Cotton, Charles A 4,?8 

Couillard, Edwin 632 

Couillard, Jacob W 632 

Coulter, John 654 

Countermine, Rev. J. L.. 511 

Craanen, Christian 265 

Craanen, Jacob 265 

Craanen, John 360 

Crabb, Frank 184 

Crabb, Joseph 148 

Crocker, Ephraim 416 

Curran, Martin 279 

Daggett, William 662 

Daggett, William E 662 

Daiiistrom, E 621 

Daily, Charles C 522 

Daily, John 522 



7i6 



COMME.VOIiATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



PAGE. 

Davidson, O. C 554 

Davidson, Thomas 554 

Davis, Charles L 451 

Davis, Daniel H 210 

Davis, E. B 451 

Day, Charles W 48 

De Jonffhc, Constant 220 

De Lano, William W 669 

13e Lano, Mrs. W. W 670 

De Loinv, Rev. Father C. 91 

De Wilt. Kev. Elsear 425 

Decker, Edward 42 

Delanev, Georf,'-e A 179 

Delaney, James C 179 

Denis, Charles R 290 

Denis, (Jeorg-ie 88 

Denis, Capt. Joseph 147 

Dickie, Thomas A 577 

Dodds, Satnnel 641 

Dohn, Adam 229 

Dollard. John 373 

Dollard, Patrick E 373 

Doolan. Bartholomew. . . . 240 

Doran. Terrence 250 

Doiifiherty, Cornelius... .324 

Drake, James 406 

Droog-, Feli.x 146 

Duaime, Joseph E 336 

Ducat, Jac(iues 372 

Duchateau, Abclard 454 

Duchatcau, E. J. B 454 

Duffy. .lames 330 

Duffy, Thomas 330 

Dwjer. Antlujny 267 

Dwyer, Patrick 267 

Eastman, Everett C 494 

Eastman, Rev. Morgan L. 494 

Ebeling-, J. H 47 

Ef^'gleston, M. A 605 

Ehle, Herrman 2.39 

Eisenman, Andrew A.... 322 
Ei.senmati, Mrs.Apollonia 3S1 

Eisenman, John 381 

Eisenman, John C 322 

Ellis, Albert G 55 

Ellis, Eleazer H 55 

Ellis, William A 490 

Ellsworth, Dr. Albert H. . 313 
Elmore, Hon. James H. . . 21 

Enderbv, .lohn 280 

Endcrby. William R 280 

Engels, Edward 461 

En;;lish, Mark 349 

Eparvier, Charles 594 

Erickson, Erick 591 

Erickson, Niels 249 

Erlcy. Hugh 640 

Esmann, John D 192 

Eairchild. A. M 680 

Fairchild. C. M 680 

Fairchild. Hiram <) 501 

Fairchild. Rev. John 484 

Fairchild, John B 484 

Fairfield, W. E., M. D ... 434 

Falch, Jacob 364 

Falch, Philip 295 

Falch, Philip (deceased).. 294 
Farlev, Frank 710 



PACE. 

Farley, O. W 710 

Findeisen Bros 364 

Findeisen, John G 363 

Finnegan, Barnard IBS 

Finnegan, Hugh 332 

Finnegan, John C 186 

p'innegan, Patrick 332 

Finnegan, William 96 

Finnerty, Hon. Patrick.. 73 

Fisk, W. J 70 

Fisher, H. D 555 

Fitzpatrick, Eugene 689 

Flannigan, L. W 704 

Flatley, D 321 

Flynn, Edward 402 

Flynn, John 403 

FoUett, Mrs Rosamond. . . 14 
Francart, Ferdinand J... 531 

Francart, H. J 531 

Frisque, Florentine 432 

Frosch, Frank 277 

Frosch, George 277 

Fuller, F. H 384 

(Jage, Dr. C. 459 

Gallagher, Rev Ch.as J... 427 
Gauche, Father James... 289 

Gay lord, Capt. G. A 455 

Georgi, Ottoman 221 

Geurts, George 211 

Gilkey, Samuel D 551 

Gilkey, Thomas P 551 

Goddard, John 649 

Goddard . John H 649 

(Joemans, Anthony 168 

Goemans. Mrs Joanna . . . 168 
Goepfert.Rev. P.,C.S. Sp. 36 

Goffart, Ferdinand 124 

Goffart, Zacharie 142 

Goldsmith. Christoph 252 

Gonion. A. B 383 

Goodell, C. F 174 

Gotfredsen, Mrs. E 261 

Gotfrcdsen, Niels H 261 

Gow, Williatn 437 

Gowey, Archie L 193 

Gram, Lewis 585 

Gratza, Father John 306 

Greiling, August 217 

Grignon. D. H 437 

Gro.ss, Fred. P 122 

Gross, John G., Jr 423 

Gross, John G., Sr 414 

Grosse, G. A 527 

Grossc, John 527 

Grosse, William 563 

Hae.se, August 138 

Hagemeister, Henry F... 106 
Hagemeistcr, Louis W. . . 106 
Hagen, Walter T., M. D. . 27 

Hahn. Charles H 613 

Hall. Mrs. A. J 546 

Hall, Ben R 478 

Hall, Dr. Jonathan C 478 

Hall, Richard L 546 

Hallctt. C. A 514 

Hamilton, Edgar L 464 

Hamilton, Woodman C . 463 
Handevside, William 136 



I'AGE. 

Hanley. G. W 544 

Han.sen, Christ 295 

Hansen, Hans 389 

Han.sen, Niels 130 

Hanson, F, A., M. D .548 

Han.son, Gunder 548 

Hardwick, Moses 643 

Hart, Capt. C. B 65 

Hart, C. S 626 

Hart, Edwin 53 

Hart, Capt. H. W 54 

Harteau, D. M 162 

Harvej-, John S 697 

Harvey, Leslie C 477 

Hastings, Hon. S. D., Jr. 52 

Havden. George W 391 

Hayford. S. W 181 

Hebel, Joseph 180 

Hebert, Joseph 387 

Heim, Lorenz 193 

Henderson, Samuel 633 

Henrigilles, Joseph 163 

Herber, Peter 126 

Hess, (ieorge B % 

Hewitt, Rev. John L 107 

Heyrnian, Charles L 129 

Hey rman, Frank 128 

Heyrnian, John B 410 

Hibberd, Andrew 278 

Higgins, H.C 534 

Hinsdale, William C 110 

Hitchcock. L. S 671 

Hitchon, Henry 675 

Hitchon, Robert 675 

Hittner, H. M., M. D 385 

Hobblns, James 308 

Hobbins, John 309 

Hochgreve, August 426 

Hockridge, Duane R 482 

Hodgins, Joshua 676 

Hoeffel, Joseph 168 

Hoffman. William 397 

Hogan, Hon. John M 49 

Holg^ate, Hon. Amos 536 

Holmes, Albert G.E 105 

Hoskcns, Peter 130 

Howe, Alonzo V 595 

Howe. Mrs. A. V -. . 595 

Howland, Major Levi ... 399 

Howland, Thomas 399 

Hack. Daniel 625 

Hudd. Hon. Thomas R... 109 

Huisenfeldt, (Jeorge 237 

Huisenfeldt, Stephen 237 

Hunt, David 678 

Hunt. Robert 678 

Hunter, Alvin 165 

Hussin, Joseph 362 

Ingr.im, John 686 

Jackson, Robert 400 

Jacobsen , Jacob 292 

Jensen, Lars 315 

Joannes, Charles 76 

Joannes. Mitchell 78 

Joannes, Thomas 81 

Johann, Capt. John W. . . 354 

John, D. W 573 

Johnson. A. W 200 



INDEX. 



717 



PAGE. 


PAGE. 


1 


•Af.K. 


Johnson, Edward 


698 
457 


Le Roy, J. H 

Leroy, Josejih 


()6 
541 


Matravers, John 


. 650 


Johnson, Mapnus 


Matzke, Fred 


. 218 


Johnston, C. R 


485 


Leroy, Joseph, Sr 


541 


Maj', Anson 


. 586 


Johnston, James 


683 


Ley, Joseph 

Ley, Joseph. Sr 


177 


May, Samuel G 


. S«6 


Johnston, S. H 


6(l7 


177 


Mcehan, John 


. 408 




665 
670 
671 


Liebmann, Edmund F. . . 


215 
191 

215 




. 408 




Meister, Charles 


. 386 


Jones, Herbet t F 


Liebmann, Louis 


Meister, Christopli 


. 158 


Jones, Huff 


670 


Lind, C. A 


582 


Merryman. Andrew C. 


. 470 


Jones, Stafford P., M. D. 


491 


Lind Family 


582 


Merryman, Reuben C. . . 


. 473 




385 
385 




530 


Merryman, Robert W. . . 
Messmcr, Bishop S. G. . . 


472 


Jorgfeiisen, Hans 


Lindqnist, Nels. ......... 


529 


. 242 


Jorgensen, Jolin L 


11 

624 
82 


Linssen, Matthias 

Lochman, August 

Lochman. Rev. P. J 


236 
677 
(>77 


Michelson, John . . 


248 


Miller, Godfrey 

Miller, T. C. . .' 


302 


Kellotfg-, William E 


. 6.S6 


Kelscy, C. R 


609 


Lomas, C. W 


289 


MiUington Family 


. 304 


Kennedv, William 


388 


Loughrey, James W. ... 


630 


Minahan, J. R., M. I). . . 


. 36 


Kerr, James 


439 


Louw. Rev. Father C. de. 


91 


Miner, John W . . 


. 590 


Kersten,AlphonseM.,M.D 2-;i 


Lucia, Charles J 


314 


Miner, Mrs. J. W 


. 590 


Kettenliofen, Jacob 


225 


Luckenbach, Anton H... 


605 


Molloy, J. W 


. 681 


Kimball, Alc^nzo 


24 
113 
679 


Lueke, William 


12 

593 
140 


Monroe, John S 

Moran, James T 

Morau.x, J. D, M. D..,. 


556 


Kimball. N. S. 


Lundberg, Kessander. . . . 
Lurtpiin. Felix 


378 


Kirkpatrick, M 


. 196 


Kittell, Orin S 


379 


McAllister, Angus 


497 


Morrow, Elislia 


. 104 


Klaus, Henry P 


103 


McAllister, Archibald . . . 


5(,9 


Morrow, Francis X 


. ,521 


Klaus, Philipp 


102 
2(>9 
623 


McAllister, D. J 

McAllister, James D 

McAllister, P. H 


489 
149 
589 


Mowers, H. E 

Mueller. Carl G 

Mueller, Charles W 


. 355 




137 


Koehne, Henrv 


, 138 


Kolb, Peter 


392 


McCallum, Harry 


709 


MuUer, Philip]) 


. 50 


Kozlowskv, Frank 


231 


McCartney, David 


f>0 


Murphy. James L 


. 682 


Kozlowskv, Frank, Jr 


232 


McCartney, William 


60 


Murphy, John 


. 202 


Kuntz, Christian 


409 


McClure, James 


648 


Murphy, Simon J., Jr. . . 


. 204 


Kuntze, Ernest 


666 


McCormick, M. J 


454 


Murphy, Timothy 


. 202 


Kurz. A. G 


361 


McCormick. Patrick 


455 


Nacthwey, Anton 


. 154 


Kustermann, Carl 


23 


McCunn, John N 


270 


Nachtwey, Henry 


. 1.54 


Kustermann, Gustav 


00 


McDonald, Charles W.. . . 


611 


Nadeau, Napoleon 


. .591 


Kuypers, John A 

La Fresnier,F.J.A.,M.D . 


428 
553 


McDowell. John 

McDowell, Sanuiel 


694 
(,94 


Nelson, Niels . . . 


. 208 


Newberry, Henry 


. 515 


Lamarre, Alphonse 


246 


McGeehan. Hon. Robert J. 


94 


Newberry, William P. . . 


. 515 


Lamarre, John L 


246 


McGillis, John J 


614 


Newell, C. A 


. 448 


Lancaster, Henry 


370 


McGovern, Patrick 


707 


Newton, Abel D 


. 208 


Lange, Eberhardt A 


176 


McGovern, Peter 


558 


Nolan, M. H 


. 160 


Lapag-e, Frank 


610 


McGrath, Thomas J 


112 


Noyes. Luther B 


. 499 


Larsen, James 


634 


Mclver, Robert 


629 


Noyes, Cliarles H 

Noyes, Frank E 


. 70S 


Larsen, Ludwig- H 


532 


McKenzic, C. S 


655 


. 500 


Larsen, L. N 


687 


McKnight, John 


135 


Norton, Joseph 


. 358 


Larsen, Ouon 


532 
232 




226 
606 


Noyes, W. W 

Oatley. Albert B 


. 612 


Larsen, William 


McLaughlin, J. H 


. 424 


Larson, C. Frithiof, M. D 


679 
672 




340 
572 


O'Brien, Rev. M. J 

Olander, Rev. Carl <J. . . 


262 


Laselle, Charles 


McWilliams, Robert 


592 


Last, J. B 


123 


MacNeill, Luther K 


526 


Oldenburg, Gerhard. . . . 


. 405 


Lau. Rey. Clement 


252 


Madagin, Dan J 


710 


Oldenburg, Otto N 


. 405 


Lauernian, Joseph A. J. . 


560 


Madagin, John 


710 


Oiin, C. C 


. 600 


Laugesen , Erik P 


601 


Madsen, O.C 


639 


Olmsted, Aus. F.,M. D.. 


. 18 


Lawlor, Thomas 


419 


Mailer, Andrew C, M. D. 


427 


Olson, Cornelius 


. 689 


Lawrence, G. S .... 


319 


Malmstadt, August 


706 


Olson, Nels 


607 


Lawton Family 


28 


Maloney, T. F 


.=^08 


Paramore, E. F., M. D. 


. 476 


La%yton. Capt. Joseph G. 


28 


Mann, Horace E.,M. D... 


486 


Parent, Thomas 


. 538 


Leary, Cornelius 


310 

247 


Manthey, Carl 

Marcussen, Peter 


197 

352 


Patton, John . . . 


22s 


Lebal, John 


Patton, Michael 


. 227 


Lee, W. M 


588 


Martin, Constant 


39 


Peck, George T 

Peck, O.scar F 


. 559 


Lee, Rufus V 


688 


Martin, Daniel H 


433 


. 638 


Leigh, John 


504 


Martin, Mrs. Mary 


350 


Peck, Romantey 


. 638 


Leigh, Lincoln 


505 


Martin, Michael 


350 


Pele, Rev. Peter 


. 51)5 


Leitermann, Joseph 

Leonard, Bernard A 


331 
209 


Martin, Hon. Morgan L. 
Martin, P. H 


/ 
19 




586 


Peterson, Charles E. . . . 


. 093 


Leonard, J. H 


296 
66 


Martin, Xavier 


33 
361 


Peterson, Niels 

Peterson, W. H 


. 351 


Le Roy, Jonas 


Mason, Jared D 


. 418 



7i8 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



PAGE. 

Phelps, Henrv 321 

Philbrook, R. 516 

Philbrook, S. V. D 674 

Place, Abraham 646 

Place, Anson J 598 

Pkice,HenryJ.(GroverT.) 646 
Place, H. J. (Marinette).. 598 

Place, Job E 647 

Place, John 704 

Poctiuette, Joseph 579 

Poldernian. Abrani 616 

Popp, Rev. C. A. V 448 

Popp, Godfrey G. L 450 

Post, Charles D 488 

Post, Isaiah 488 

Prescott, E. C 510 

Prust, Charles 414 

Quatsoe, Ferdinand 374 

Qnatsoe, Peter 374 

Quirt. Charles 660 

Rabe, Henry 631 

Radoe, Aufjust F 408 

Ramsay, R. C 512 

Rasmus.sen, Niels 139 

Ratlibiin, Georg-e C 524 

Haymakers, Hermann .. . 369 

Reed, Louis 712 

Reinke, Charles 612 

Keinke, Fred 612 

Revnen. Matthias 74 

Rhode, Henry, M. D 273 

Rice, W. D 228 

Richard, Rev. Theodore J 566 

Richmond, Abial 561 

Ridsdale, Geo. Laycock. . 574 

Ripp, Mathew 331 

Robinson, W. H 644 

Rondou, A 196 

Ross, D. W 624 

Rovvbotham, Rev. Wm.. . 320 

Rugg, George W 644 

Ryan, Thomas 173 

Ryan, Timothy 219 

Sackett, Frank E 601 

Sackett, H. C 601 

Sargent, George W 663 

Sargent, Henry 540 

Sawyer, A. P 285 

Sawyer, Thomas 285 

Scanlan, Thomas H 198 

Schaden, Casper 293 

Schcffen, Henry 545 

Schiller, L. G 183 

Schmidt, Ale.x. P 200 

Schneider, F. W 114 

Schrocder, Charles 158 

Schultz, Peter Hanson. . . 203 

Schwarz, Christian 288 

Scofield, Major Edward. . 474 

Scott, James 1 692 

Sellers, Malcolm 92 

SoUevold, S. P 618 

Sensiba, George W 359 

Settersten, A. H 525 

Settersten, Charles J 521 

Settersten, G. A 521 

Seymour, E. W 698 

Seymour, Frank li 462 



p.\GE. 

Seymour, I. 1 699 

Seymour. John P 641 

Sharp, Thomas E 67 

Shaughnessy, John 312 

Sheldrick, John 523 

Sherlock, Andrew 431 

Sherlock, James 368 

Sherlock, Philip 431 

Sherman, J. J., M. D 479 

Sherwood, Edison 424 

Sherwood, Mrs. Olive I. . 424 

Shields, Henry C 700 

Shores, L. K.' 661 

Simcox, H. B 649 

Simcox, Isaac 649 

Simon, John 654 

Simons, Andrew 313 

Simpson, Benjamin F. .. . 684 

Simpson, Charles S 513 

Slaughter, A. W., M. D. . 395 

Smct, Ferdinand 241 

Smith, Alexander 397 

Smith, Don F 222 

Smith, Frank C 382 

Smith, Frank T 59 

Smith, James 396 

Smith, John 269 

Smith, J. D 691 

Smith, J. M 57 

Smith, Michael B 382 

Smitz, Father Adolph 268 

Snyder, Frank 380 

Snyder. William T 690 

Spice, Robert 636 

Spice, Thomas 636 

Spuhler, Adam 20 

Stephenson, Hon. Isaac. . 466 

Stephenson, Robert E 622 

Stewart. Robert D 68 

Stewart, William M 69 

Stoelting, C. W., M. D... 481 

Stoelting, Christian W. . . 481 

Straubel. Henry A 405 

Streckenbach, C. W 144 

Sullivan, John 347 

Sunstrom, Charles W 520 

Swalwell, John 506 

Sweeney. B. P 404 

Sweeney, Peter 404 

Taylor, George W 465 

Taylor, J. H 415 

Taylor, Robert B 6.=;3 

Thiele, August 401 

Thomas, Edgar 604 

Thompson, Horatio G.... 587 

Thorne, George W 507 

Tobin, Capl. James 539 

Touhev, James 1.^7 

Tremi; Joseph 183 

Tripp, David 713 

TuUy, T. C 664 

Utke, J. E 597 

Van Abel, M.irtin 275 

Van Beek. Martin 41 

V^an Calster, Emile 141 

Vanderheiden. Peter .... 148 

Vanderkinter, Frank . . . 144 

Vanderkinter Peter 143 



P.\GE. 

Van Deuren, P. J 460 

Van De VVyngaard, M 260 

Van Dyke, Anton 339 

Van Hoosmalen,Rev.W.F. 458 

Van Seggern, H. D 264 

Van Vonderen, John.... 388 

Vanier, Rev. Charles 619 

Verberk. Rev. A. J 71 

Verboort, Albert 255 

Verstegen, Rev. John .... 290 
Ver Straten, Mrs. Anna.. 195 

Ver Straten, John 195 

Ver Straten, Martin 194 

Wagner, William P 456 

Walker, L. G., M. D 492 

Waring, Frank 573 

Watermolen, Henrv 35 

Watermolen, JohnF 220 

Weber, Nicholas 395 

Webster, Capt. H. W 450 

Weise, Albert 434 

Wellens, Lambert 335 

Wellington, M. K 529 

Wensing, J. B 703 

Wescott Family 562 

Westmon, George H 4''5 

Weter, James P 214 

Wezenaar, John C 666 

Wezenaar. William 666 

Whitcomh, Edmond 519 

Whitcomb, H. D 519 

Whitcomb. W. S 372 

Whitcomb, W. W 615 

White, George E 6% 

Whiting, C. F 543 

Whiting, David E 543 

Whitney, Daniel 83 

Whitney, Harriet H 87 

Whitney, Joshua 87 

Wie.se, F. H 266 

Wiese, William 266 

Wilcox, Chester G 298 

Wilcox, Levi S 301 

Williams, Albert 311 

Williams, Eber L 581 

Williams, George 685 

Williams, Joseph 581 

Williams, P. T f>85 

WiLson, Adolph f)«>8 

Wilson, Mrs. Adolph 668 

Wilson, John E 517 

Wilt. Rev. El-sear de 425 

Windross, John 547 

Winton, CM U)<> 

Wirth, Philip M 2=^7 

Wittig, Ferdinand 251 

Woolford. William B 316 

Workman, William 155 

Workman. W. M 216 

Wotter, Frederick 458 

Wotter, H. A., M. D 458 

Wright Brothers .502 

Wright, J. K.... 502 

Yeaton, R. B 548 

Young. Hon. William H. 533 

Youngs, (icorge C 513 

^inidars, David 201 

Zoeller. Alois B S8S 



y\,. 



